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With the average lunch "hour" only 29 minutes long,fast food is often not fast enough. But Mark Wiser, president ofFood Bucket Inc., has figured out how to feed the masses on a tightschedule. His Chicago-based company touts itself as the"ultra-convenient, no-brainer deli." With carryout anddelivery service in addition to dine-in, Wiser says virtuallyeveryone gets their food delivered within 15 minutes of ordering;walk-in customers get fed even faster.
"We provide what we think-and we've measured it-is thefastest carryout line in town," Wiser says. "We havepeople who literally rollerblade in."
Wiser, 37, began Food Bucket after a dozen years' experiencein the restaurant industry. With a business model designed to servepeople who eat at their desks, Wiser opened his first store in July1998 to test his concept. The first store did so well, a secondfollowed eight months later. Both stores, in Chicago's Looparea, offer almost no seating, which helps Wiser keep start-upcosts at about $40,000. In July, he opened a third store inChicago's upscale Gold Coast area with a scant 620 square feetand 20 seats. With a simple menu of soups, salads and sandwiches,it's been relatively easy to structure the Food Bucketbusiness, Wiser says.
"Our business model is not to have million-dollar stores,because we don't need to," he says. "We expect theaverage Food Bucket to be profitable and expandable at $200,000 peryear in sales."
Contact Source
- Food Bucket Inc., (773) 384-2887, foodbucket@aol.com
