Business View Magazine | November 2019

85 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE NOVEMBER 2019 TAZ I K I ’ S MEDI TERRANEAN CAFÉ and veterans, as well as to high school and college students,” says Simpson. “We’re looking at people who may be new to communities, or need to get plugged in, and are looking for a career or maybe an opportunity to own their own business. So, the ‘overlooked’ are in the centerpiece of our recruitment strategy.” Taziki’s is focused on having a great training program in place. The company has a new training platform that is designed to help anyone coming in at the lowest position to have a career path where they can learn things, demonstrate that they can do it, and then teach others. They can start as a cashier or dishwasher and have a career path all the way to becoming a manager or owner. “Another major, new initiative has focused on Taziki’s farmers. Since the beginning, Keith did an amazing job taking an international, ethnic cuisine and making it approachable and accessible to anyone,” says Simpson. “We have some bakers and farming partners that have been with us since the beginning, but we haven’t done a great job telling that story. So, Keith and I went on a road tour. We went to Michigan and met with fifth- generation lamb farmers, watching their animal husbandry practices and the care they take of their land and animals. We invited them to speak at our conference, because we wanted our staff to be proud of the farmers behind our food. Likewise, we went to Monroe County in Wisconsin, one of the premier sources of dairy in the world - they win gold medals for the feta cheese and the Greek yogurt that we source from them. Our baklava is from a Greek family in Tarpon Springs, Florida; our pita comes from a Lebanese man, who’s been baking it for us from the beginning, and he came to our conference and told the story about how bread is more than just a side; bread is sacred and symbolic for people to emphasize relationships. So, we’re having a lot of fun looking at our existing supply chain and meeting our farmers and hearing their stories and then us telling them what a big part they are. We want to do that for them, but also for our staff and our guests, so they can be proud of what it means to eat real food.”