571: Carol Huntsberger on Creating Relationships with Brutal Honesty

In 2003, Paul and Carol Huntsberger purchased Quality Seafood Market from Same Eaves.Under Paul and Carol, the restaurant blossomed from a fried food kitchen into a place where families could gather to enjoy fresh seafood.  In 2010 Carol become the sole proprietor of Quality Seafood Market. Under the Leadership of Carol Huntsberger, Quality Seafood Market has continued expanded it's walls, added private dining room, oyster grill, food truck and has grown it's off site catering department. Show notes… Favorite success quote or mantra: "What you think about is what you bring about." In this episode with Carol Huntsberger, we discuss:  We're never given more than we can handle. You're prepared. Get after it.  A brief history of Quality Seafood and how Huntsberger became it's owner.  How Huntsberger's success was built on relationships and listening to the people she had surrounded herself with.  How when Carol broke into this industry she was brutally honest and real with herself and her clients. This only helped to garner more respect.  The first step to taking over a failing business. Stop the bleeding!   The role education plays in turning around a business. Not only educating yourself, but educating your clients and guests.  Tips on building an email list and using it to drive traffic.   Sharing your story with your clients and guest. People want to know whats going on behind the scene.    The importance of being flexible and having a back up plan.   How staying open and optimistic creates opportunities.   Instead of buying ad space, donate your product to a good cause or at least a gift card.  Today's sponsor:" EthicsSuite.com -provide a safe, secure, simple and anonymous communication channel between you and your employees to help you protect your hard-earned reputation and assets. Demonstrate to your team that you are committed to providing a workplace that operates with the highest ethical standards. Staying informed about important issues will help you resolve them internally before they spiral into larger, costly, or public problems. Cashflowtool.com  A simple powerful and predictive cash flow companion for Qickbooks. Simple, because it requires no data entry, is always up to do and works on any device, anywhere. Powerful, because with it's built-in cash flow calendar, activitiy feed and anomaly detector, you instantly know all aspects of your cash flow with no surprises. Predictive, because you'll know your cash flow today and anticipate it tomorrow. Knowledge bombs Which "it factor" habit, trait, or characteristic you believe most contributes to your success? Positivity. What is your biggest weakness? Overthinking. What's one question you ask or thing you look for during an interview? Read their body language. What's a current challenge? How are you dealing with it? Traffic. It is putting a dent in their dinner business.  Share one code of conduct or behavior you teach your team. Treat people the way you want to be treated.  What is one uncommon standard of service you teach your staff? Greet people with a smile. What's one book we must read to become a better person or restaurant owner? GET THIS BOOK FOR FREE AT AUDIBLE.COM  The Simple Truth of Service: Inspired by Johnny The Bagger  What's the one thing you feel restaurateurs don't know well enough or do often enough? Recenter with the purpose it all.  What's one piece of technology you've adopted within your four walls restaurant and how has it influence operations? Google Docs If you got the news that you'd be leaving this world tomorrow and all memories of you, your work, and your restaurants would be lost with your departure with the exception of 3 pieces of wisdom you could leave behind for the good of humanity, what would they be? Keep caring. Be honest. Make other people feel special.  Contact info: qualityseafoodmarket.com Thanks for listening! Thanks so much for joining today! Have some feedback you'd like to share? Leave a note in the comment section below! If you enjoyed this episode, please share it using the social media buttons you see at the top of the post. Also, please leave an honest review for the Restaurant Unstoppable Podcast on iTunes! Ratings and reviews are extremely helpful and greatly appreciated! They do matter in the rankings of the show, and I read each and every one of them. And finally, don't forget to subscribe to the show on iTunes to get automatic updates. Huge thanks to Carol Huntsberger for joining me for another awesome episode. Until next time! Restaurant Unstoppable is a free podcast. One of the ways I'm able to make it free is by earning a commission when sharing certain products with you. I've made it a core value to only share tools, resources, and services my guest mentors have recommend, first. If you're finding value in my podcast, please use my links!