At Edible®, our business is based on helping people celebrate life’s most special moments. For example, from birthdays and anniversaries to life’s important milestones like retirement or holiday get-togethers, our primary goal is to help people cheer these special moments with extra sweet memories and smiles! However, just as important is how we work together to help our cherished customers celebrate these moments. Additionally, we pride ourselves on our entrepreneurial spirit, which remains strong with the franchise owners that work directly to provide those sweet treats in your community. As you acknowledge life’s special moments, we want to celebrate the special franchise owners that deliver the delicious fruits and sweets that our customers expect. Today, we want to celebrate Ibrahim Choudhry and his Edible store in Moreno Valley, California!
Ibrahim opened his Moreno Valley location in November 2009 and has been helping people in his local community celebrate all kinds of occasions for close to 12 years! Ibrahim and his team pride itself in delivering fruit arrangements and gifts that are always freshly crafted from fruit that’s grown and picked to our Fruit Expert® standards. Plus, they have the best variety of gourmet chocolate Dipped Fruit™, too! Ibrahim has led this Moreno Valley team to achieve a lot of success in the last year and recently shared his experience and leadership skills leveraged to build a $1 million store. Congrats Ibrahim!
What have you done differently this year versus last year to become a million-dollar store?
I became more involved in my stores and played a much more detailed role in the operation and marketing sectors of the business.
What have you done differently to engage with the community during the pandemic?
One very important thing, when businesses were limiting their hours and closing their doors early, not only did we extend the hours on the operation, but we also extended our services. Which meant that throughout the entire pandemic, not for a single day, did we ever close our lobbies. Anyone and everyone was and still is welcome.
How did you build your customer base?
We used a three-step process to build our dedicated customer base. First, we engaged with our existing and active customers, plus opened communication with previous, but inactive customers. Next, we looked for new audiences to let them know we are here and open for business. Finally, we refined our operational efficiencies, so we were able to serve more customers. Our proactive communication allowed more people in the community to enjoy and benefit from our services.
What have been your most successful marketing tactics for Edible®?
Since the pandemic, our goal has been to provide every single customer with fast and quality service, but at a fair price. So, we implemented free same day delivery, which has proven to be one of, if not the best, marketing strategy.
What kind of culture exists in how you run your store, and how did you establish it?
Culture is a very important in my business. For starters, I encourage each of my managers to implement their own culture, but the one thing that is constant in my stores, is that I like to run my business like a corporation. However, at the same time I want to give employees the feeling that we are a family-owned shop. The way I established this was by being transparent. For example, we not only share the successes with the team, but we also involve them in the challenges we face in our business. I believe that every single employee can play a role in achieving your success and minimizing the risks of failure.
What has been your most satisfying moment as an Edible® store owner?
There have been countless moments of satisfaction as an owner, but I can tell you that no satisfaction comes close to when I witness an employee treating my business like it is theirs. To them it may be small, but to me it means the world. That is something priceless and it truly comes from the heart.
How do you define success in this industry (outside of financial)?
To me, in this industry or any other, success is being able to achieve your goals and being able to help your employees and customers achieve theirs.
What advice would you give to your fellow franchisee?
Problems = Opportunities! Be a problem solver and never forget that there is no problem that you are not capable of handling. Every problem has solution.
Who, and what, has been your greatest inspiration?
First and foremost, my parents, who through their love and care, raised me to be an overachiever.
Second, Tariq Farid, Founder and CEO of Edible. Besides being my ex-boss and biggest mentor, he is like an older brother and a great friend. No one has pushed me harder to achieve success than Tariq.
Last but not least, my wife, Maryam, who has been my biggest supporter since day one. I don’t know what I’d do if I didn’t have Maryam constantly encouraging me to go out and face this world like a Lion.
From all of us at Edible®, thank you Ibrahim for your dedication to executing our mission and taking pride in delivering WOW-worthy gifts to the people in your community!
