We recently connected with Emily Campbell and have shared our conversation below.
Emily, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. One of the things we most admire about small businesses is their ability to diverge from the corporate/industry standard. Is there something that you or your brand do that differs from the industry standard? We’d love to hear about it as well as any stories you might have that illustrate how or why this difference matters.
At The Elephant, we focus on people. From our employees to our suppliers to our customers, we strive to create our own ecosystem within rural Kansas. We vow to source as many products from local suppliers within a 300 mile radius as we can. It is our mission to showcase the resources our region has to offer. Nearly 50% of our menu during certain months of the year are from local producers and suppliers. Some of the local items on our menu include: beef, dry-aged steaks, bison, pork, wagyu, lettuce, herbs, grits, and a variety of local produce grown during the spring and summer months. We find it important to support our region in order for it to continue to flourish and survive. Not only that, but we appreciate knowing where our food is grown and how fresh it is. We rarely have to worry about shortages or lack of quality in our local products because we know our suppliers will take care of us. It is not unusual for local famers, gardeners and ranchers to drop off their products on a weekly basis and then enjoy a local meal while they are here. It is a full circle relationship and something we pride ourselves on.
Beyond our suppliers, we aim to create a work environment for our employees that promotes growth, creativity, and most of all – teamwork. Our restaurant is unusual in a sense that we promote a full-scale tip pool with our front of house employees. We believe that in order for our customers to have the best experience possible, our team must be willing to help make The Elephant successful – not just their ‘section’ of guests or during their designated shift. All tips brought in throughout each shift are combined into one pooling system and distributed based on a precise formula that takes into account the level of service provided, the number of hours worked, and the percentage of food and beverages sold. This system incentivizes our team to help wherever needed and attend to all guests in order to create the best service and, therefore, higher tips. As a part of the tip pooling system, we also promote recognition of the kitchen crew by encouraging a voluntary tip-out from the front of house the back of house. We instill in our entire team the importance of understanding everyone’s role throughout the restaurant. Many times the front of house staff will help the back of house staff with prep or cleaning and vice versa. No member leaves from their shift until the entire crew is done. In return, this has created a lot of flexibility amongst staff resulting in several staff members able to work multiple positions simultaneously. I made a promise from the first day that we opened – if my employees walked through these doors on a daily basis dreading to come to work, we would close down the restaurant. We involved our team in all aspects of the restaurant, from planning weekly specials, to assisting with menu development, to planning special events. In order to love what they do, I believe they must directly contribute to the soul mission of The Elephant. We provide internships for the young generation to gain experience in the culinary field. We also provide opportunities for local community members to contribute their skills and talents on a part-time basis. Through our eclectic menu, we try to focus on introducing both employees and customers different products and cooking techniques not typically served in our area.
Last, but not least, our customers are more than just diners here at The Elephant. Our customers become a part of our core values and help us develop our niche within the region. We strive to provide a regional attraction for our customers to come to. We focus on the experience more than anything. We strive to train our wait staff to education the customers on our unique practices and enforce high standards in the delivery and presentation of our menu. Most of all, we focus on providing the highest quality products we can without being overly pretentious with our menu. At The Elephant we aim to provide an international flair to our offerings, while staying focused on the basics.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
I originally began my career as a CPA, working for local government as the assistant finance director for the City of Manhattan Kansas. My husband, Doug, and I both graduated from Kansas State University but are natives of Hoxie, Kansas. We moved to Seattle for a brief period of time as a part of Doug’s career as a project manager. During our stay in Seattle, I decided to pursue another avenue and attend culinary school. I worked at several different restaurants during my two years there under some renowned chefs. At the end of our time in Seattle, we decided to return to our hometown where Doug became a partner in his father’s construction business and I assisted with the accounting and financing of my family’s three Case-IH dealerships in the area. I continued to cater on the side and further my culinary skills at home until we were one day approached by some good friends to open a restaurant in one of Hoxie’s oldest buildings on main street. We took a leap of faith and purchased the building from the family of longstanding jewelry store owner who had passed away. Doug and his crew completely renovated the space, preserving a lot of history and heritage of the building, and of Hoxie. We opened The Elephant in July 2018 and have since thrived despite the turmoil that all new businesses face.
Can you open up about a time when you had a really close call with the business?
COVID was one of the first and biggest struggles we faced during our near five years of being in business. We had to shut our doors to the public and rely on take-out orders only for nearly 2 months. We were unable to sell alcohol for the first 90 days of COVID until the state allowed to-go alcoholic beverages. I had to temporarily release half my staff while redefining our business plan to keep the other half employed and also turn a profit. Luckily, our customers were eager to return eating out and we did not struggle to regain our revenues once we could fully open our doors. However, the biggest struggle for us was post COVID. Due to government payouts and fear of returning to work, it was extremely hard to bring our staffing levels back to anywhere near normal. There was a month we could only open half the day and then there were entire weeks we had to close down. Financials were looking beyond grim and there seemed to be no glimmer of hope in site. Luckily the PPP stimulus package helped get us back on our feet and enough staff came around to return to almost normal hours. Months down the road food and liquor prices skyrocketed forcing us to rapidly restructure our menu. The holidays were half as busy as we anticipated and employment market forced wages up more than feasible for us. Once again we revamped our menu prices and crossed our fingers it would not deter guests from dining with us. Within the perfect storm came huge financial struggles. We had to personally invest in the business just to keep it afloat and determine if it was beneficial to even keep the doors open in the future. With some major business changes, private investment, and staffing changes, we have finally dug our way out of the black hole and have started seeing improvement in our margins.
What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?
As a new entrepreneur into an industry I was very unfamiliar with (disclaimer: I had never worked in a restaurant prior to attending culinary school), I learned the hard way the importance of processes, controls, and hierarchy. For the first 4 years of The Elephant’s existence, I worked the front lines for more than 12 hours a day and tried to manage the other 12. I didn’t realize the necessity of fulfilling my ownership role first and being my employees’ friend second. I cared about my staff so much, how they felt and what they thought of me that it interfered with my ability to see the big picture. It interfered with our ability to grow and better adapt during times of need. Don’t get me wrong, investment in my staff is first and foremost. They are the true backbone of the operations and what defines The Elephant. However, when their investment in the business is not in line with the true mission, personalities collide and the structure collapses. It has taken me 5 years to finally step back and take ownership of The Elephant instead of it owning me. I’m a firm believer in leadership and that is what I have tried to teach my employees from day one. Our job titles around here do not include the word manager, they are listed as leaders. I’ve have witnessed a higher level of dedication over the last year as I have stepped away and allowed the team to operate the restaurant. I show my respect and appreciation for them, yet set very high standards that also make them excel as an individual. I think they have more respect for more assistance from the top than my assistance on the bottom.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://theelephantbistrobar.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theelephantbistrobar/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theelephantbistrobar/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-elephant-bistro-and-bar
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/the-elephant-bistro-and-bar-hoxie
Image Credits
Bow Creek Photography