Union Could Teach Catering Course in Building Client Base
By Kirk Bangstad
kirk.bangstad@chefschoolreview.com
Chef School Review Columnist
The North Dakota Farmer’s Union should teach a catering course on how to find customers. The first lesson for this catering course would be to open a business in a city where many politicians have to be nice to you.
The Grand Forks Herald out of North Dakota recently published an Associated Press story about a new catering business and restaurant opening up in Washington D.C. This catering business is a bit different from the rest, because it is run by a political group. The North Dakota Farmer’s Union has recently taken a few catering jobs as it prepares to open the doors to its new restaurant called Agraria. The restaurant will feature farm products from North Carolina such as beef, lamb, potatoes, and pasta. The Union has already hired a manager, chef, and catering director.
Catering Jobs will Probably Come from Democrats
In a town where relationships mean everything and politicians are everywhere, those wanting to appear sensitive to the plight of the farmer will be hard-pressed not to give Agraria their catering jobs. Agraria will probably not hesitate to look for catering jobs among democrats, politicians from rural states, and lobbyists for farm machinery companies. Catering courses may eventually use their business model as a case study.
Catering Jobs Outside of D.C. Maybe Harder to Find
According to the article, the Union thinks it can turn a profit in more than just Washington, D.C. This may be true, but the notion seems a bit far-fetched. To do this, they’ll probably have to do what most other caterers and restaurateurs do—develop a reputation for good food. Politicians definitely have a knack for making people buy things they don’t want to buy, but they don’t really have a track record for running successful restaurant chains.
Sources
Union’s New Catering Business, Grand Forks Herald
About the Author
Kirk Bangstad is a singer living in Chicago, IL. Having received his B.A. in Government at Harvard, Kirk previously worked as a management consultant.
Posted on August 28, 2006 at 4:54 PM
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