The right consistency: Cafe Rio expands far from the home turf.

• Author: Webb, Gaylen
• Position: Lessons Learned

When a business is on an aggressive growth path like Cafe Rio Mexican Grill, it's important to have consistency in every aspect of the operation. That's why CEO Dave Gagnon has this mantra: "We run every restaurant like it's our only restaurant."

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But can consistency be numero uno in the midst of an aggressive expansion program far away from company headquarters? Indeed, it can. In Cafe Rio's case, the Utah-based company just opened six new restaurants on the East Coast and is currently in the process of opening its ninth location in the D.C. area, in Frederick, Md.

It's Chief Marketing Officer Ben Craner's job to ensure that customers consistently experience the same quality and attention to detail at every Cafe Rio location, coast to coast. So when the company, which currently operates 56 locations nationwide, embarked on its 10-store expansion in 2011, he says executive management didn't fret so much about the distance between home base and the new stores as it did about training.

"Training is the key for us," Craner says. "We go to great lengths to train our store managers before they ever leave Utah. You can't know exactly what to expect in every new location, which makes your training program even more critical. Any company expanding beyond its headquarters location will experience challenges. Our focus on training has helped us overcome hurdles and remain agile."

Craner explains that by focusing on training, the company is able to open new stores with managers and teams that know exactly the Cafe Rio processes and systems. "That's important when you squeeze 1,000 fresh limes every day and make every food item from scratch," he says. "We don't install freezers or microwaves in our restaurants. We bring every ingredient in fresh and we make every food item fresh, from our dressings to our guacamole. How do you do that and make it consistently good? Training!"

Replicating Success

In addition to Cafe Rio's focus on training, there are other lessons the company learned in the midst of its East Coast expansion effort. Jennifer Burns, who handles the company's media relations, offers a list of eight elements she deems crucial to any expansion effort:

1. Document all of your processes and procedures. "At Cafe Rio, everything is documented to a t' across the board," she says.

2. Continually improve your training. "It has to be current and timely. That's why we are investing in a full training facility here in Utah...