5 MINUTES WITH…

Q&A with craveable brand’s CEO.

WHAT WERE YOUR TOP PRIORITIES AS NEW CEO?

Understanding and supporting our customers and our team (our franchisees, our store teams and support office) have always been a top priority for me. In addition, being new to the business I was keen to understand what we as Craveable do well, where we have opportunities and work with the team to develop our strategy for this next chapter of Craveable.

HOW HAVE THESE CHANGED WITH THE ONSLAUGHT OF THE PANDEMIC?

Focusing on our customers and team has never been more important. This has included making sure our teams are operationally set up to support our customers and their businesses as best they can in the current climate.

It has also meant understanding what is important to our customers during this time e.g. trust, convenience and responding to this with speed. We have also had to ensure we are on the front foot communicating new developments, addressing concerns and guiding our network through this difficult time. From a strategic perspective, it has highlighted what is truly important, and accelerated decision making in many areas.

HOW QUICKLY HAS CRAVEABLE BEEN ABLE TO PIVOT ITS BUSINESS AND EMPLOY NEW STRATEGIES?

Very quickly. As they say, “necessity is the mother of invention”. We have made decisions in minutes which pre-COVID-19 might have taken us months. For instance we quickly transitioned our delivery offer to contactless across our three brands. We also established a Click and Collect offer in our Oporto and Chicken Treat brands.

In rolling out the numerous operational changes required by changing regulations and consumer expectations, we pulled together a cross functional team across our brands and rolled this out consistently.

COVID-19 has forced us to make faster choices with less fear and pushed our team to work more collaboratively than we ever have. This has been a very nice silver-lining and something we want to take into a post COVID-19 world.

HOW HAS THE CORONAVIRUS AFFECTED CRAVEABLE STAFF?

We are in a fortunate position where the majority of our network is still able to trade in some capacity. We have worked

Former Caltex executive Karen Bozic joined the franchisor for Red Rooster, Oporto and Chicken Treat in December 2019.

team largely intact to ensure as we emerge from COVID-19 we are ready to go.

WHAT DO RETAILERS NEED TO BE DOING TO SURVIVE THROUGH 2020 AND BEYOND?

I come back to that focus on customers and team. Those businesses that continue to understand and anticipate what customers want and respond with speed, will be the ones that survive and thrive. Customers are changing their behaviour during this time. They are prioritising and de-prioritising things. They are looking for solutions that make life easier and brighten their day. All of these changes will likely mean the go-forward environment we operate in will be very different to pre-COVID-19. Retailers must acknowledge this and adapt their offers accordingly.

HOW DOES YOUR EXPERIENCE IN THE SUPPLY CHAIN IMPACT YOUR APPROACH TO THE BUSINESS RIGHT NOW?

I think it has been helpful in understanding the importance of looking outside and up the chain and not just internally to assess impacts. It has also meant we can adopt a supplier mindset and think through what might be important to them during this period of time. The majority of our supply is local, which is a fortunate position to be in. We have great suppliers who have worked closely with us during this period.

HOW IS VIRUS CRISIS MANAGEMENT AND THE POTENTIAL ECONOMIC FALLOUT AFFECTING YOUR LONG TERM STRATEGY FOR THE BRANDS AND THE CRAVEABLE BUSINESS?

COVID-19 has had the impact of accelerating some initiatives and slowing others down from a Craveable perspective. The crisis has meant a forced prioritisation of what is really important. The thing we cannot control is how long and deep any economic downturn might be, and how this might play out in consumer sentiment.

That being said, we remain very confident in Craveable’s future. We play in the value-end of foodservice, which makes us more attractive than other options in an economic downturn. However, we know we must work hard to ensure our offer adapts to respond to our customer needs, so they choose us more often going forward.

CRAVEABLE IS PART OF AN INTERNATIONAL GROUP, WHAT BEARING DOES THIS HAVE RIGHT NOW ON RIDING OUT THE TOUGH TIMES?

We have very supportive owners who have investments in other parts of the world. This has been invaluable in gaining international perspectives and insights during this period. We have, and continue to work closely with them to ensure we do what’s best for Craveable and our network. They remain very much committed to our business.

WHAT'S YOUR PERSONAL STYLE OF LEADERSHIP, AND HOW DOES IT PLAY OUT AT CRAVEABLE?

As a leader you have to empower, support and connect with your team. However, there are times, like leading through a crisis, that you will be required to jump in and roll the sleeves up to gain perspectives quickly in order to make decisions.

So, I’d like to think I get that balance right, but you’d really have to ask my team! Role modelling and demonstrating values is also important to me. I’d never ask my team to do something I wouldn’t be prepared to do myself, and a crisis is a great opportunity to live this.

Doing the right thing and giving your team the confidence to always make that choice is also important in the current environment.