There’s a famous quote among writers, often attributed to author William Faulkner, that “in writing, you must kill all your darlings.” The idea is that writers must be willing to let go of any characters, settings or plot lines they love if those things don’t serve the broader story.
Clean Juice is proving that it’s true in running restaurants, too. Founded by husband-and-wife duo Landon and Kat Eckles, Clean Juice is a certified organic juice concept based in Charlotte, N.C., that has grown to 130 locations, with 35-40 more in the pipeline for 2023.
One of the founding elements of the Clean Juice business was the in-house bottling of juices that could be grabbed on the go or sold as part of a cleanse. Recently, the company decided to centralize that part of the business to a facility in California that uses high-pressure processing to create fresh, high-quality juices that can be shipped to franchisees across the country.
Landon Eckles joined the latest episode of Take-Away with Sam Oches to talk about the difficult decision to move away from such a core business practice, how it’s led to immediate results, and why brands must be willing to adapt as they scale.
In this conversation you’ll find out why:
- If your brand promise is a high-quality or nutritious menu, your customer will forgive you for taking price
- The bigger issue with supply chain today might actually be packaging and utensils
- If you are not growing with the economies of the scale that you're creating, you are dying
- Don’t be afraid to kill your darlings
- You have to look at the whole picture when making a significant brand change
- The worst thing you can say is “we’ve always done it that way”
Contact Sam Oches at [email protected].