Ari Weinzweig and his partner, Paul Saginaw, started Zingerman's Delicatessen in Ann Arbor, Michigan, in 1982 with a $20,000 loan, a small selection of specialty foods and a short sandwich menu. That single deli has led to the development of Zingerman's Community of Businesses, which includes a bakehouse, caterer, creamery, roadhouse, coffee company, candy maker, Korean restaurant, event centers, mail order service and consulting company. Collectively, the Zingerman's experience is now delivered by nearly 600 people with annual sales of $60 million.
Ari is a frequent speaker at the University of Michigan and Eastern Michigan University as well as national and international conferences. He has written more than 250 issues of Zingerman's newsletter and has contributed to magazines including
Food and Wine,
Fine Cooking,
Specialty Foods and
Gourmet Retailer. He is the author of numerous books:
Zingerman's Guide to Better Bacon,
Zingerman's Guide to Good Olive Oil,
Zingerman's Guide to Giving Great Service and others. He has also authored
Zingerman's Guide to Good Leading, a series of four volumes.
What He'll Talk About:
Every leader knows how challenging it is to create a culture that keeps employees engaged, inspired and focused on a common goal. When that culture flounders and employees no longer bring their best selves to work, Ari calls that "The Energy Crisis in the American Workplace." In his thought-provoking keynote, you'll learn "Zingerman's 12 Natural Laws of Business" from Ari's first book in the
Guide to Good Leading series. He'll present powerfully simple and meaningful ways to help your organization live within the natural laws and become more successful and sustainable, all while creating positive lives for your employees and customers! His message will touch on vision, training, servant leadership, continuous improvement, appreciation and much more.