Tony Lutfi - Arby's, Church's, Little Ceasar's, Jack in the Box

We're all familiar with the American Dream where one starts a business with basically nothing and builds an empire worth millions.  We've heard the stories of Rockefeller, Carnegie and Buffett who built their wealth over a lifetime. Some modern day millionaires and billionaires seem to make their fortune almost overnight like Gates, Jobs and Zuckerberg. Our Entrepreneur Story this month is about a young man who at the age of 16 came to this country to avoid fighting with his countrymen. With hard work, determination and perseverance, he built an empire of franchise food outlets and businesses.  He is living the American Dream. When I read the story of Tony Lutfi in Franchise Times magazine, I knew this was a story worth sharing with my readers and I hope you enjoy it. There are many lessons we can learn from Tony's journey to success. Perhaps it will inspire you to go after your dream. I hope so. Congratulations Tony!  Job well done!

Tony Tutfi  Arby's - Church's Chicken - Sizzler Jack in the Box- Little Ceasars  Tony Lutfi was born in Jordan in 1960. His father was a laborer, laying tile for a living. The family was poor. In the 1970's Tony's brother Amin was drafted into the Jordanian Army to fight in the civil war against the Palestinians. Just before Tony's 16th birthday, the family sent him to American to live with an aunt to avoid fighting against his own countrymen. Tony's mother came with him to American to help get him situated and then returned to Jordan after three months to be with the rest of the family. Tony settled in with his aunt in Lodi, California. The cultural shock was overwhelming. In Jordan he had attended an all boys school and now he had to adapt to a mixed gender school which made him feel socially inept. Tony graduated high school and had plans to attend a community college and wanted to be a doctor. To pay for his education, Lutfi needed to work. His cousin Sylvia worked at the local Jack in the Box and she told him they desperately needed help for the overnight shift. Tony applied and was hired immediately. He started working before he even filled out any forms. He recalls, "They threw me right in. I remember making my first steak sandwiches without any meat on them." He loved the speed and the movement. "Everybody's talking, asking for something." Tony worked the overnight shift five nights a week while going to community college during the day. On the other two days, he worked overnights at a pair of local 7-Elevens. Sleep was at a premium. Tony worked his way up to night shift manager, earning $2.25 an hour. Because of his hard work, he was asked to be temporary store manager after a heart attack of the store manager. The new job paid $800 per month so he dropped out of school to concentrate on managing. The store recorded 11 record weeks under his guidance. Modestly, Tony doesn't take credit for that. "I just didn't screw it up", he said. The success motivated him to do more. In 1981, his family arrived from Jordan and they settled in Stockton, CA. They pooled their money together and bought a small grocery store and Tony went to work with them where he learned to butcher meat. In 1983 Lutfi went to work for Rax Roast Beef with a goal to someday own his own location. In 1988 the franchisees he worked for were having financial difficulties and Tony reached a deal with them to buy four locations. But, the deal fell through. A Japanese management company was taking over the Arby's locations in Southern California and wanted to buy and convert the four Rax units. The president of the management company, Bill Brusslan agreed to let Lutfi say on to help with the conversions and ultimately made him a manager of one of the stores. This was disappointing for Tony. He dreamed of being an owner. That is what he really wanted. But there was a silver lining. Brusslan became Lutfi's mentor. He recognized Tony's work ethic and promoted him to be the director of Arby's 33 locations in Northern California. "He treated me like a son. He gave me the best advice he could", Lutfi said. After 13 years of hard work, Tony Lutfi finally because a franchisee when in 1996 he bought two Arby's locations in Sacramento from his former employer. This was the beginning of the empire that Tony was determined to build. Two years later, Lutfi got into the Church's Chicken business by purchasing four stores in the Las Vegas Market that were in trouble. The acquisition came right before 911. "It took us a long time to get those stores turned around," Tony said. This provided valuable lessons and proved to be a catalyst for future acquisitions.      Today, Tony's business has grown exponentially. His nephew Nader Lutfi joined him in the business and is now vice president of Marlu Investment Group, the holding company for Tony's various businesses. Once Tony and Nader improved the cash flow of the four Church's in Las Vegas, they borrowed money to buy 10 more in Tucson. They went on to buy more units in Phoenix and Texas. In 2010 the company acquired Jack in the Box locations in California and built five Little Caesars locations. They went on to buy Sears Hometown stores, Sizzlers, and many more Arby's locations. Lutfi took advantage of the recession where he was able to purchase older brands at an attractive price because they were in a down period. His theory was to get the stores at a low price, go in and fix the store's operations and then profit from the improvements. He believed you make your money when you buy a business, not when you sell it. As Tony bought more franchise locations he developed a system and a game plan for improving the operations performance. Tony and his staff wait 90 days before making any strategic decisions. They talk to the staff, takes notes and interview people so he can better understand what's working and what is not working and needs to be improved. At the end of 90 days they compile of list of 30 changes to make at the restaurant and give the staff 60 days to implement those changes. Many of the ideas actually comes from the staff which makes cooperation and implementation much easier. They teach their managers to be business managers and "run it like it was their own." This philosophy has worked well. Engaging their employees in the change has resulted in loyal employees with lower turnover. "You make them feel important because they are important," Lutfi said. Tony has been known to help out some of his employee during hard times. He once paid for an employee's car repair and also for the funeral of a manager's mother. One of his employees said, "He's just a nice person. He's good to people and he's fair." Today Lutfi's holding company, Marlu Investment Group, has 21 Jack in the Box locations, five Sizzlers, five Little Caesars, 53 Arby's, 47 Church's and 29 Sears Hometown stores.  Tony is still working hard. He wakes up each morning at 5:30 and usually works until 6:30-7:00 in the evening. Tony and his wife Anna, who he met while they both worked at a Jack in the Box, have three boys and have passed on their hard work ethic.  All the boys worked at Arby's before they left for college. They cleaned dumpsters and restrooms. "They had to understand the value of work," Lufti said.  He also taught them the business side and account principles. Since college graduation, two of the boys have joined the business and the youngest probably will after his college graduation. Lufti's older brothers are also in the business along with his nephew, Nader. It is a true family business, only on a large scale. Tony and his Marlu Investment Group continue to grow and are one of the largest franchisees in the country. He is presently working on a deal for five T.G.I. Fridays along with development rights. Tony mentioned that he could see the company owning 10 brands someday. He is a man with big dreams and has worked hard to makes those dreams a reality. Obviously this isn't the typical story featured in my monthly newsletter. I wanted to share it with you because it shows that there is really no limit in the size and growth of a business through franchising. Some people are content with one outlet or territory and many have several locations. In actuality, the sky is the limit. You can grow your business as large as you want and you don't have to start out as a millionaire to achieve that success. Tony Lufti is a perfect example of that. He was just a 16 year old immigrant that needed a job and with hard work and determination he built an empire. Do you have the desire to be a self-sufficient business owner or perhaps build a business empire?  Success doesn't happen over night. It's a process taken one step at a time. If you'd like to discuss your dreams of business ownership, please reply back and I'd be happy to assist you. Your comments and feedback are always appreciated. Wishing you continued success in the future.