- 14 November, 2005 -

For all the worries that traffic congestion and out-of-sight housing costs are causing Los Angeles to slip from its place as a premier economic center, the region remains a cauldron of new business activity. And there is no better proof than these companies: they have found a niche to serve and a way to prosper despite the naysayers and obstacles. The Business Journal's annual list of 100 fastest growing companies this year includes firms with two-year aggregate growth rates topping 75 percent and a median revenue nearly hitting $32 million. 2. IAG Coffee Franchise, LLC Steven Shoeman Age: 56 Title: Chief Executive Officer Business: Coffee house franchisor Growth rate: 700.7% Getting started: Marty Cox and Louise Montgomery founded It's A Grind in 1994. By 1999, they had five retail coffee stores in Long Beach and were trying to decide what direction the company should take. I met them through a friend, who was also one of their regular customers. My entire career has been in franchising-I started in Florida with a fast food franchise called All-American Hero. After I spent a single day touring Marty and Louise's stores, I knew they had a fantastic concept. Financing: Marty and I both put up our own money, and we raised about $500,000 from friends, who were mainly customers from the stores. Marty and Louise spent 14 hours a day working in the stores, and they got to know their customer base very well. Biggest break: Probably that Marty and myself ever met. We spent eight months developing the company before we offered a single franchise. The problem with many franchise startups is that you have an operator who knows his product but doesn't have experience in sales. Or you have a guy with franchising experience, like myself, but no clear idea of store operations. Hardest lesson: That you have to be a goof it with the franchisee. When we were new, we would sign up anyone who came into our office waving a check, whether or not they shared our philosophy. Secret to managing growth: Committing the resources to build an infrastructure before growth begins. We hire the people we need six to eight months before the franchisees open their locations so they can understand our system. Best/Worst attributes: I'm a great strategic planner. I can see the future two or three years out and put into actions the principals and methods to get us there. My worst is being detail oriented, and that's where Marty picks up the slack. Biggest single deal: We did a 27-store deal in Las Vegas our very first year. It was a husband and wife and they basically bought the entire Vegas territory. Experts Advise Drafting a Plan, Then Getting Ready for the Unpredictable By Bob Phibbs Author: "You Can Compete! The Retail Doctor's Tools to Double Your Sales" The challenge you run into is really keeping your eye on the fundamentals that got you into business in the first place. How do you keep your eye on that while you grow your company is the hard part. As businesses grow their concept, they realize more and more it's their people that make them successful. There's not much loyalty and people often times bring bad habits to your brand. You need the right people to juggle so many projects. You have to hire new employees before you need them. That's always the challenge. By the time you hire them, usually you're a couple of months past when you should have done it. Training new employees takes a lot of time and is very expensive, but it's not something you can do without. I run into people who ask, ‘What if I train them and they leave?' and I always respond, ‘What if you don't train them and they stay?' The number one goal is never say no. It's up to you to find a way. Look at new suppliers. Look at pricing. Find a way to make it happen. If you want to be in business, then say yes. Instead of waiting for things to break and fixing them, you need to look at the things that could happen and have a contingency plan. You have to budget resources, money, and time.

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