The article “Dreams Come True. Or Not.” written by Rob Johnson was published by the Wall Street Journal on May 16, 2011. In it, he compares two entrepreneurs’ stories of how they performed when they decided to quit their jobs and pursue the “entrepreneurial fantasy” of opening a restaurant. The article opens by stating that even those who don’t fancy themselves as entrepreneurs dream of quitting their jobs and going into business for themselves; whether it’s a bed and breakfast, a bookstore, or even “… launching a restaurant and spending their days surrounded by great food and drink.” Johnson poses the question “But what’s it like to actually do it?” and evaluates the dream two entrepreneurs, Diana Dixon and Thomas Sergio, had with vastly different
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A 30-year veteran public-school teacher in Virginia, she was inspired to open her own place in 2002 while on a trip to Santa Fe, New Mexico. Taken by Santa Fe’s restaurant scene she wondered why she couldn’t bring some of that style back to her rural hometown, Troutville, Virginia, where there were only two large truck stops consisting of fast-food eateries. For five years, she thought about restaurant planning almost daily, spending most of her “time away from education thinking about the components of food, service and ambiance.” By November 2008, despite the debt incurred to open (in the ballpark of $1 million), The Pomegranate saw its first customers with Dixon’s interpretation of gourmet cuisine, an extensive wine list, and a dance floor. She knew her place would have to be causal enough for her rural market, but nice enough to lure her customers who are primarily “fortysomethings and up”. She discovered that the reality of running a gourmet restaurant is harder than she had considered. From fixing leaky toilets, mowing the lawn, cleaning, going over the books, menu planning, and booking entertainment, this frugal woman’s workday typically lasted from 9am-3am the next …show more content…
He considered franchises because he knew of the high failure rate for new restaurants. He settled on The Grape, because it was focused on food, was classy, reasonably priced, and held awards as the best wine bar in Atlanta. The Grape’s management led him to a likely location in Raleigh, North Carolina, near the North Carolina State University Campus. With 20% cash upfront of an $800,000 investment, he opened in July 2006. He had hoped that his new venture would appeal to affluent professors and researchers. What he found was that the demographic studies and market research were vastly different than the reality. The small plates and wine menu were not attractive to his customers, many of whom were reluctant to try new things. He found that most of them didn’t want wine at all. To add to this, he had to adhere to The Grape’s pricing rules, so he “’… couldn’t slash costs to get diners to experiment with wine. Even before the recession hit.’” He discovered that the wine-only structure was at odds with the Raleigh market. He closed in late 2007, declaring Chapter 7 bankruptcy. Upon researching a little further, it seems that The Grape chain is permanently
A 30-year veteran public-school teacher in Virginia, she was inspired to open her own place in 2002 while on a trip to Santa Fe, New Mexico. Taken by Santa Fe’s restaurant scene she wondered why she couldn’t bring some of that style back to her rural hometown, Troutville, Virginia, where there were only two large truck stops consisting of fast-food eateries. For five years, she thought about restaurant planning almost daily, spending most of her “time away from education thinking about the components of food, service and ambiance.” By November 2008, despite the debt incurred to open (in the ballpark of $1 million), The Pomegranate saw its first customers with Dixon’s interpretation of gourmet cuisine, an extensive wine list, and a dance floor. She knew her place would have to be causal enough for her rural market, but nice enough to lure her customers who are primarily “fortysomethings and up”. She discovered that the reality of running a gourmet restaurant is harder than she had considered. From fixing leaky toilets, mowing the lawn, cleaning, going over the books, menu planning, and booking entertainment, this frugal woman’s workday typically lasted from 9am-3am the next …show more content…
He considered franchises because he knew of the high failure rate for new restaurants. He settled on The Grape, because it was focused on food, was classy, reasonably priced, and held awards as the best wine bar in Atlanta. The Grape’s management led him to a likely location in Raleigh, North Carolina, near the North Carolina State University Campus. With 20% cash upfront of an $800,000 investment, he opened in July 2006. He had hoped that his new venture would appeal to affluent professors and researchers. What he found was that the demographic studies and market research were vastly different than the reality. The small plates and wine menu were not attractive to his customers, many of whom were reluctant to try new things. He found that most of them didn’t want wine at all. To add to this, he had to adhere to The Grape’s pricing rules, so he “’… couldn’t slash costs to get diners to experiment with wine. Even before the recession hit.’” He discovered that the wine-only structure was at odds with the Raleigh market. He closed in late 2007, declaring Chapter 7 bankruptcy. Upon researching a little further, it seems that The Grape chain is permanently