Here we go!
The first in a long line of blogs... Following my mad journey with the support of my even more mad girlfriend. I left school with no A levels or degrees. I decided to train to be a chef and attended catering college, those years were a real good laugh. I learned how to cook (the basics) working in a kitchen for a couple of years until the stress and unsociable hours got to me. I know people work harder and longer but I can only speak on behalf of an 16 year old that had to work 10:00~14:00 come home and go back to work 18:00~22:00, this was every weekend with 2 days off in the week.
My friend was in warehousing and offered me a job working in a warehouse, i was off!
I worked picking and packing, trained to drive several forklift trucks and became a department head. I left that place after a couple of years and moved to the warehouse next door and became a night shift supervisor gaining valuable experience of colleague management, HR, problem solving skills and learning how to get the best out of people, what drives and motivates individuals.
I was made redundant 12 months later, luckily I moved with one of the main contracts but had to travel 40 minutes to work every day. The business grew and I grew with the business, my problem solving skills were pushed to the max as the work load was immense. I attended a course in first line management at the local college. I wanted to use the skills I had learnt and push for a promotion into line or shift management so left for a sideways move to ASDA.
ASDA has developed my management style through internal management programs, over 30 courses and hard graft, on days responsible for 12 team leaders and over 100 colleagues.
Both my girlfriend and I DJ at momo Northampton, a bar that has had 1 million pounds worth of development take a peak www.momonorthampton.com every Saturday night.
The time is now right to use my knowledge of food, project management, colleague management and knowledge of bars/clubs to create a Cafe in the style of a Paris Cafe. Good restaurant standard food, a quality welcoming atmosphere aimed at people 18~50 years... Not your blue rinse brigade and defiantly not your greasy spoon...
I have little money so will have to create a business plan... Get investmant... Update all of my certificates in food hygeine and safety... Decide if i want to serve alcohol and get my personal licence... Purchse premises, develop and refit... Hire colleagues to work with me... Design a menu... Promote my Cafe and hopefully open my Cafe to be named Presto's before I miss the Summer holidays in 2011...
Watch this space...
