“Innovation is the creation, development and implementation of a new product, process or service, with the aim of improving efficiency, effectiveness or competitive advantage and survival.”
The pandemic of 2020 put all of us into an unexpected and unplanned situation. The consequences of a worldwide pandemic put a significant stress on individuals and businesses. Specifically, small businesses that do not typically have the luxury of robust bank accounts were stressed to the limits. Many were unable to survive. But this is the perfect situation for innovation to bring its salvation to such situations.
One small business, a pair of restaurants located in the Silicon Valley, realized successful navigation of the unexpected challenges of the pandemic. They had ‘Innovation” as part of their business by-line: Quality, Innovation & Education.
When the pandemic hit with a vengeance, governments nationally and locally, scrambled for solutions to mitigate the deadly effects of the new and novel virus. Medical experts were consulted and given unprecedented power to dictate procedures and social limitations on national, state and local counties and city venues. Restaurants and other traditional social gathering venues were shut down. They were limited to “to go” and “outdoor dining” for almost a full year in many cases. Small businesses were very vulnerable in this situation. Many restaurants and other businesses collapsed into insolvency destroying the dreams of countless entrepreneurs.
The Founder and CEO of Sushi Confidential, Randy Musterer, was uniquely positioned in many ways to meet the challenges ushered in by a global pandemic.
At the pandemic’s onset, Randy Musterer had a lot going for him. Before opening his restaurants, Randy had spent 17 years in cancer and infectious disease research. He worked at some of the most prestigious pharmaceutical companies in the world. That experience gave Randy the knowledge and understanding of what was necessary to protect people from a pandemic and its vicious contagious character. Randy’s response to the pandemic was to immediately plan for the worst. A closed restaurant can be devastating to the owner, the employees, the customers, and the suppliers of the business.
Randy, using his scientific background and experience, educated his employees. He taught them what steps they needed to take to remain in a position where they were not vulnerable to contracting the disease. He implemented protocols for his employees while in the workplace, protecting them and the customers from contracting or spreading the virus.
Next, Randy devised a strategy for keeping the restaurant functional when indoor dining was prohibited. He vigorously established an effective take-out system that gave his faithful and loyal clientele a means to still access his top-quality sushi offerings. He instantly connected with his clientele via social media to share his background in infectious disease research, what he was doing to implement safety precautions at Sushi Confidential This resulted in the ability to gain trust and support from his loyal following. He attracted the news media as credible resource for small business challenges and success amidst a global pandemic.
Randy didn’t rest with the initial success of the take-out business. Early in the lockdown, a few of Randy’s close friends in the industry were deciding how to navigate their small businesses through the pandemic. Many were not considered “essential”, therefore, were required to cease operations. Randy knew how devastating this would be to their survival moving forward. He saw an opportunity for his fellow small business entrepreneurs and invited them to sell their products through his established take-out business. Frost Cupcake Factory began offering their award-winning cupcakes on Randy’s menu. Then a local brewery, Strike Brewery, of San Jose began offering their micro brews. An award-winning Mixologist, Jason Steele, owner of Los Gatos Soda Works, soon joined the offerings with custom “take-out” cocktails, once the state changed the laws to allow hard-alcoholic cocktails “to go”. The success of these partnerships inspired other local restaurants to follow suit to create their own partnerships to help other small businesses survive, and even thrive, during the pandemic.
While many restaurants slowly pivoted to “learn” how to operate during a pandemic, Randy realized that he needed to continue to advance his offerings to keep his clientele both old and new from boredom. As restaurants were limiting their menu to be able to open and operate at a bare minimum, Randy went on a constant upgrade to his menu. On a feverish pace, he created new and innovative sushi rolls and other menu offerings. He also expanded his vegetarian, gluten-free and keto offerings.
The success of any business owner is how the owner can relate to and solve his customers “pain points”. Randy was working eighteen hours a day to ensure his restaurants’ survival. He was interacting with his customers daily and started to hear a common theme. They were bored after three months of “lock down”. How many more puzzles could the family make? How many more movies can they watch together? How do I keep my kids off “screen time” and video games? Randy knew, if he came up with a solution to their “pain points”, he could make additional revenue to ensure his restaurants’ success. Randy, having previous success with Sushi Making Classes at the restaurant, decided to create a make-your-own Sushi Kit. He included a YouTube instruction video to ensure its success. This became quite popular, especially with families with children. Families sharing their Sushi Confidential Sushi Making Kits on social media enhanced the popularity of the idea.
Randy continued his partnership with Strike Brewery. Together they brewed a hazy IPA on Randy’s Sushi Confidential label.
Not letting grass to grow under his feet, when outdoor dining became an option, Randy quickly adapted his patio for outdoor dining. When more space was needed Randy was instrumental in getting the city to create parklets on the street in front of his restaurant and all the local businesses there.
Randy invested on gaining additional outdoor dining by creating a “sushi” beer garden in the parking area behind the Campbell restaurant. When the fall holidays arrived, a surge in virus cases instigated the shutdown of outdoor dining. With people now deprived of dining in a controlled environment of outdoor dining in restaurants, they reverted to uncontrolled environments of house parties. This turn of events had the effect of causing Randy’s catering business to take off again. Randy employed some clever marketing ideas that capitalized on the questionable actions of the city and county lockdown edicts.
Randy’s intense focus on innovation has brought him through the yearlong pandemic with its amazing challenges. His appreciation for those who made great sacrifices to keep us all as safe as possible fuels Randy’s altruistic nature. He set out to honor and praise the first responders, medical teams and hospital workers by serving them sushi dinners. This commitment for them was evidenced on the day that Randy and his staff received their Covid vaccines. He brought bento box lunches for all the workers and was rewarded by being on the front page of the local section of the San Jose Mercury Newspaper.
Randy didn’t let a new vocabulary go without capitalizing on it. In the beginning, businesses were labeled “essential” and restaurants were not on the list. Randy seized that as an opportunity with T-shirts and hats challenging that idea. His subtle protest for the restaurant snub.
Customized Sushi Confidential masks rounded out the opportunity to capitalize on the unprecedented circumstances created by the pandemic that came out of no where.
An innovation is an idea that has been transformed into practical reality. For a business, this is a product, process, or business concept, or combinations that have been activated in the marketplace and produce new profits, growth for the organization and in difficult situations survival.
Randy has mastered innovation for the benefit of his staff, his clientele, and his family.
COPYRIGHT © 2021 ALLAN EDWARD MUSTERER ~ All Rights Reserved
