Home Page About Food Sense Valued Services Success Stories Project Scope Resource Center
Contact InformationSite Map
All Services

Welcome to our services overview page! Below is a summary of the core management consultant and strategic planning consultant services we offer. Food Sense is highly resourceful, diverse experience spanning across a wide range of client scope and project types of food industry businesses. We invite you to learn more about how Food Sense can help your specific type of business, by clicking on the quick links above and reviewing our client benefits and success stories.

Our Service Capabilities Overview

   

President and Owner, Deborah L. Holand has over 20 years experience with some of the nation’s most respected premier operators in the restaurant and retail businesses.

We offer a guaranteed minimum four-fold payback on our fees and a free phone consultation. We are ready to help you develop the right business solutions to meet your company’s future needs. Please contact us today.

New Concept, Menu & Product Development

Food Sense’s experience in concept and product development spans over 30 exciting and diverse concepts, thousands of menu recipes and manufacturers product evaluations. Concept formats span from upscale full-service concepts to fast casual self-service concepts and commissary operations. Food Sense can provide a clear vision, solid plan and the core competencies to create a viable concept that translates into thriving reality.

You can’t be a serious innovator unless and until you area ready, willing and able to seriously play. “Serious Play is not an oxymoron; it is the essence of innovation and what motivates excellence."

"The toughest decision is deciding what you want to and can be to the consumer."

   • 

Project Management & Coordination

   •  Product Sourcing & Service Alliances

   • 

Prototype Idea Creation & Development

   •  Supply Chain Distribution & Logistics

   • 

Strategic Business & Financial Counsel

   •  Branding, Packaging, Merchandising

   • 

Facility Design & Equipment Specifications

   •  Promotional Marketing & Media

   • 

Menu & Product Development

   •  Management & Training Systems

   • 

Inventory and Cost Control Management

   •  Point of Sales & Register Information Systems

   • 

Production Labor Productivity Planning

   •  Cost Control Technology & Software

   • 

Product Evaluation & Testing

   •  Process Assessments & Implementation

Return to TOP

Turn-Around Revitalization Strategies

Many operators may not know when they are in a turn-around situation. In fact, most operators can dramatically improve performance, by applying proven business processes, analytical expertise and strategic innovation. This is Food Sense’s strength and we can help you to maximize and significantly revive sales and bottom-line profit results. You may know how well your business is doing, but do you know how well it should be doing, based on industry benchmarks and best in class operator performance. Even if you are facing the most extreme situation of financial performance or closure, Food Sense can help you.

An Invitation: Ask yourself “What have I done to dramatically improve quality and performance in the last 90 days?”. If the answer is “not much”, we can help you turn-around results.

"The problem is never how to get new, innovative thoughts into your mind, but how to get the old ones out."

   • 

Business Revitalization Plans

   •  Labor Productivity & Cost Control

   • 

Corporate & Operations Assessments

   •  Production Management

   • 

Growth Performance Benchmarking    •  Automation & Process Control

   • 

Sales & Profit Optimization    •  Procurement & Asset Management Processes

   • 

Category, Menu & Product Analysis    •  Marketing & Advertising Programs

   • 

Supply Chain Re-engineering    •  Operations Planning & Analysis

   • 

Inventory Cost Reduction Strategies    •  Management & Training Systems
   •  Pricing & Margin Structure Strategies    •  Technology & eBusiness Solutions

Return to TOP

Strategic Business and Financial Counseling

Today’s challenging marketplace is increasingly complex and competitive. Best in class operators never become complacent. Last months’ results are as good as only yesterday and cannot be banked for tomorrow. To survive long-term, you must constantly look for new ways to sell more stuff, to more people, more often for more money. Food Sense can offer a fresh perspective in helping you change with the marketplace and drive your performance to new levels. It has been said that you cannot squeeze blood out of a rock, but Food Sense consistently finds lost profits in even the most successful concepts.

An Invitation: Take the satisfaction guarantee challenge. If you don’t get a minimum four-fold payback return on your investment in our fees, our services are free. It’s that Simple! Please contact us today.

"The greatest danger for most of us is not that our aim is too high and we miss it, but that it is too low and we reach it."

   • 

Strategic Business Planning Processes

   •  Menu/Product Engineering & Planning

   • 

Process Evaluations & Assessments    •  Strategic Profitability Analysis

   • 

Corporate Accounting & Financial Systems    •  Cost Reduction Programs

   • 

Capital Investment & Venture Analysis    •  Automation & Process Control Programs

   • 

Purchasing Programs & Standards    •  Performance Benchmarking

   • 

Sales & Profit Optimization Analysis    •  Management & Training Systems

   • 

Category Assessments    •  Operations Infra-structure Evaluations
   •  Market & Competitive Assessments    •  Technology & E-Business Solutions

Return to TOP

Market and Operations Evaluation

Effectively investing and building a brand with high levels of execution define the leaders of this industry. You get one chance to make a first impression so if you are launching a new business, product or service, it is critical to get it right the first time. Food Sense can help you evaluate your options, develop a business plan to make your mark!

If you already have a business and need to revive operations, we can help you re-define your business to become more effective in growing your concept, brand and business profits. Our experience spans over 30 concepts, with experience in developing and sourcing of thousands of products, with extensive private label success. Food Sense’s experience is diverse, across restaurant, retail and every facet of the food channel. We maintain a strong focus on emerging market and industry trends to help our clients maintain a leading edge.

"These days, having a successful concept is not enough. That’s just the price of entry to become best in class and thrive long-term."

   • 

Opportunity Analysis, Corporate & Business

   •  Business Problem Evaluations

   • 

Efficiency & Cost Reduction Assessments    •  Purchase Effectiveness Reviews

   • 

Concept Layout, Menu & Profitability    •  Product Pricing & Margin Strategies

   • 

Product Specification & Quality Revie    •  Marketing & Merchandising Programs

   • 

Performance Benchmarking    •  Industry Benchmarking Studies

   • 

In-Depth Profitability Analysis    •  Emerging Market Research

   • 

Management & Training Systems    •  Consumer & Employee Focus Groups
   •  Promotional Marketing & Advertising    •  Time & Motion, Process Evaluations

Return to TOP

Management & Training Systems

At the business unit level, your staff and management are under fire, where the rubber meets the road. This is where the tone for the operation is set and should be obvious that the success of your concept depends in great part on the quality of execution and commitment of your staff. People are your best resource and great systems are enablers to reaching the business goals. The better your staff understands what it really takes to be best in class, the better they will be able to market and sell your concepts.

Food Sense can help you develop best practices and proven systems that can be easily executed to help you realize your business goals. Food Sense works shoulder-to-shoulder, capable at both the business unit and corporate level across all functional departments. In many foodservice operations, there is a lack of understanding as to the emphasis on operating systems required, to enable operations to reach full sales and profit potential. Food Sense works with company’s to develop tailored solutions that work!

"If you don’t spend enough time on systems and training upfront, you’ll end up wasting ALL your resources long-term, with minimal results."

   • 

Business Planning & Forecasting

   •  Management Cost Control Best Practices

   • 

Sales Marketing & Merchandising Training    •  Inventory Asset & Shelf Management

   • 

Employee Training Manuals & Seminars    •  Labor Productivity & Time/Motion Studies

   • 

Technical Product Knowledge Training    •  Food Production & QA Best Practices

   • 

Position Profiling & Hiring Standards    •  Profit & Loss Management & Analysis

   • 

Vendor Negotiations, Product Sourcing    •  Menu Management Practices & Systems

   • 

Financial Planning & Profitability Analysis    •  Accounting & Financial Management Systems
   •  Operations Compensation Bonus Programs    •  High-Impact Visual Merchandising Strategies
   •  Recruiting & Hiring Incentive Programs    •  New Concept Development Process Training
   •  Category Optimization: Assessments, Training, Reviews, Strategic Analysis    •  Corporate Crash course for industry Newcomers, Junior & Senior Management

Return to TOP

Marketing & Merchandising

The Fun Part! Once, your operations and execution are performing to expectations, it’s equally important to continually nurture the brand and concept, constantly giving customers reasons to become and stay loyal. If your vision and what you are trying to sell to the customer is not crystal clear in your mind, Food Sense can help you define your vision and develop thriving reality to make your vision happen!

Great Marketing is about selling more stuff, to more people, more often for more money. We buy with our eyes and perception is reality. You may have the best product in the world but if you don’t communicate the value to the consumer, through verbal & visual marketing and merchandising, the product will become wallpaper in the scope of consumer’s vision and flounder in the sea of competition.

A famous entrepreneur once told me that foodservice is like the theatre business. The facility is merely the props, setting the stage to motivate the consumer audience and entice the impulsive sale. The employees are the actors and storytellers, they must know what to say and when to achieve service excellence. Finally and most importantly, THE FOOD IS THE STAR of the show! Food Sense can help you create winning marketing strategies and the kind of high-impact visual merchandising, from plate to facility, that will WOW your consumer into purchase and help you SELL MORE STUFF!

"To be Distinct or Extinct: You are the storyteller of your own brand, and you can create your own legend or not."

   • 

Sales & Marketing Training Programs

   •  High Impact Visual Merchandising Technics

   • 

Marketing Media Budgeting    •  Facilities Lay-out, Design & Lighting

   • 

Menu, Signage and Promotional Materials    •  Equipment & Decor Specifications

   • 

Brand Creation & Positioning    •  Point of Sales Marketing Strategies

   • 

Packaging Development & Sourcing    •  Employee & Consumer Focus Groups

   • 

Venue & Product Merchandising    •  Emerging Market & Industry Trend Researc

   • 

Operational Execution Training Systems    •  Advertising: Newspaper, Billboard, Radio
   •  Performance Benchmarking    •  Employee Marketing & Training Programs

Return to TOP

Technology & eBusiness Solutions

To be successful in the food industry, it is critical to utilize every resource available to help you exceed customer expectations and generate a profitable business. Technology is the one of the best enablers you can develop to help your management and operations teams succeed. Best in class operators understand this and Food Sense can help you develop affordable solutions that will return lasting results.

Whether you need basic start-up systems from store operations and corporate management systems to the most sophisticated technology solutions for multi-concept national chains, Food Sense can help you find the right solution to meet your needs. Why waste valuable time and expense when we can help you speed your development and evaluation process to get better results, faster.

"The only way to embrace a technological revolution, is to unleash an organizational revolution."

   • 

Supply Chain Distribution Systems

   •  Register Point of Sales Systems

   • 

Inventory Management Systems    •  Cash Handling Systems

   • 

Category Management Systems    •  Technology Adaptation

   • 

Menu Cost & Production Systems    •  Business Process Evaluations

   • 

Labor Productivity Systems    •  Automation & Integration Coordination

   • 

Sales Forecasting & Projection Models    •  eCommerce & Internet Business Solutions

   • 

Financial Information & Enterprise Systems    •  Corporate Employee Intranet Solutions

Return to TOP

Business Process Coordination

Being best in class takes a clear vision, determination and commitment to reaching your goals. Often company’s need a fresh perspective, an outside opinion to help bring to light opportunities to improve the way clients conduct business and go to market. Food Sense has experience working with some of the nation’s most progressive premier operators, and can help you reach your objective and business needs.

It’s often said the fastest way to reach your destination, is to take the most direct route. Food Sense has extensive experience improving corporate business unit efficiency. We combine strategic innovation with best practices to help businesses identify worst practices that are barriers to effective structures. We help clients identify the key control points of focus to successfully implement improvements and discover the most direct path to get better results, faster. Food Sense helps corporate teams focus at all stages, to improve efficiency and results.

"The easiest way to make more money is to stop losing it! People are your best resources."

   • 

Strategic Planning Processes

   •  New Concept Development Coordinator

   • 

Operations & Corporate Business Plans    •  Employee & Customer Focus Group Moderator

   • 

Training Program Implementation    •  Strategic Brainstorming Sessions

   • 

Software & Technology Upgrades    •  Project Coordination & Implementation

   • 

Reporting & Analysis Processes    •  Departmental Team Development

   • 

Corporate Department Efficiency Studies    •  Interim Management Positions / Revitalizations

   • 

Daily Operating Systems Practices    •  Technology & Internet Implementations

Return to TOP

New Venture Assessments

Are you looking to create a new concept or assessing whether you should expand your operations and concept brands? If so, Food Sense can help you evaluate new partnerships, business strengths and core competencies to discover what it will take to be successful in your new business venture.

Food Sense has extensive experience in strategic financial planning and analysis, evaluating organizational impacts of expansions, mergers and acquisitions to franchise operations. We can help you evaluate the break-even points of a new business, identify the pitfalls and success thresholds required to be successful. If you have a mature concept, we can help you understand the best practices of extending the life of the concept and what is required to sustain performance in the competitive and changing marketplace.

"Learning how to right-size your company is key to enabling growth and sustainable results."

   • 

Vision & Mission Statements

   •  Supply Chain Distribution & Logistics

   • 

Strategic Business Expansion Planning    •  Strategic Partner Relationships

   • 

New Concept & Product Evaluations    •  Franchise & Joint Venture Operations

   • 

Market Research & Studies    •  Mergers & Acquisition Management

   • 

Product line Extensions    •  Operations Consolidations

   • 

Brand Positioning and Marketing    •  Divestitures & Closers

Return to TOP

© 2003 Food Sense, Inc. • Web Design by T2Designs.com.