Case Study: Base Wood Fire Pizza

The journey from Solicitor to Successful Pizza Guru

Starting a new business is always a daunting challenge, but for Shane Crilly, a successful solicitor who had worked in London and Sydney, the transition to the pizza industry was particularly demanding. Upon his return to Dublin, Shane realized that the pizza standard was just not up to par. He decided to quit his job as a solicitor and travelled to Naples, Italy, the birthplace of pizza, to learn the best cooking methods to make the perfect pizza. With a fantastic vision for his business and a group of committed investors behind him, Shane was not afraid of hard work.

However, Shane knew he needed more experienced thinking to help guide his business to success. He was looking for a business mentor or advisor to discuss the roadmap he was following and tease out decisions and next steps as they unfolded. That's where Cathy came in.

As a seasoned business consultant, Cathy has worked with businesses in every industry and at every stage. She believes that businesses must strip themselves back to the bare bones to identify the key success factors. Once a clear vision is established, it's down to having a brilliant product to satisfy customers, a team committed to delivering this customer experience, and a way to tell the story to attract new customers.

One of the first projects Cathy worked on with Base was to facilitate a team ideation morning. The team came up with hundreds of ideas on how to improve the Base product, service, and marketing for the business. The ideas were prioritized into a high-impact/low-cost cluster and then prioritized again in terms of timing. A series of mini-projects with project leaders were set up to turn these plans into action across the following few weeks.

The outcomes from this simple session were staggering. Base had a team that felt valued, their ideas and contribution mattered to the business, and a chef training process that was shortened to use video on phones to ensure that changes to the product could be recorded quickly and sent to the various chefs in real-time instead of waiting for the next formal training session. Base also agreed to several collaborations with high-profile events to build awareness and compiled a list of people who could join the Base team when resource requirements increased.

Next up, Shane and Cathy had a strategy session to map out "What success would look like for the business in 18 months time." A series of clear strategic initiatives emerged, which were prioritized and turned into actions by delegating responsibility to the various leads. With Cathy's help, Base successfully implemented a management structure with clear processes and built a culture based on teamwork.

Shane reflects on the impact of Cathy's mentorship, "Cathy helped and advised on putting structures and processes in place to ensure we maintain our quality formula as we open new stores and scale up the business. We have a young management team in our business, and Cathy helped us successfully implement a management structure with clear processes and gave me the tools to build a culture based on teamwork, which is paying dividends on a daily basis."

Working with Shane and his management team has been a fantastic experience. They continue to drive quality in a competitive market with a highly committed workforce. Currently, Base has five stores in Dublin, with plans for further expansion. They consistently deliver high-quality products, have a happy team of people who are invested in the company's success, satisfied customers who continue to come back for more, and a brand that is now synonymous with all-natural, highly customizable pizza made with dedication from its people.

Through Cathy's work with Base, the business will continue to grow and develop as a leading high-quality fast delivery pizza brand.