In May 2016, Biggby Coffee made the proactive decision to temporarily reserve expansion in the Michigan for current owner-operators and suspend expansion to new owner-operators in the state. This decision was made because of the company’s love and support for its current Michigan owner-operators and has resulted in a plan crafted as a collective body. “We’re starting chapter two of the Biggby expansion story and through partnership with our Michigan owner-operators, we’re able to bring ideal opportunities to the table,” says co-president/CEO Michael McFall.
The Biggby Coffee franchise sales team, led by director Tony DiPietro and sales manager Abby Bartshe, held roundtable events to gather feedback from existing Michigan owner-operators. The goal was to come up with a strategy moving forward in terms of market expansion. The results include a plan to grow established markets in the state of Michigan, but also in other states like Ohio, Illinois, and Indiana.
“We have so many wonderful people excited about growing with Biggby, and we can’t wait to explore our opportunities in Michigan and our other eight states,” says franchise development coordinator Abby Bartshe. “We’re dedicated to aggressive growth in Indiana as well, and I am regularly making trips to Indiana to meet with our existing owner-operators and have conversations about what the growth in their area will look like. Biggby puts its family first, and these people are our family. We are dedicated to taking care of them and helping them grow their business.”
This is a direct result of the hard work of the franchise sales team and their commitment to spreading Biggby love throughout the Midwest and beyond. When it comes to the state of Michigan, the available areas will be grown strategically. Contracts will be released that will be available to current Michigan owner-operators first, then new owner-operators.
The decision to reopen the Michigan market was carefully timed and thoroughly discussed. “We didn’t want to jump the gun and put time and energy back into expansion before we were ready,” says co-president/CEO Bob Fish. “We evaluated our internal systems, our resources, and the happiness of our people.”
Biggby Coffee is simultaneously moving in the direction of becoming a deliberately developmental organization, so ensuring that people are considered first is a natural decision. “When our team visits our family of owner-operators, they are there to support, make recommendations, and review current and future plans. We want them to be on their A-game with energy, excitement, and enthusiasm,” Fish adds.
