We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Fanny Panella a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Fanny, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What do you think matters most in terms of achieving success?
To be successful, you need to be very driven, dedicated and often put your professional life before your personal life.
Fanny, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I own and operate 2 restaurants Chez Nous and Malagon, and 1 wine bar Bin 152 in Charleston, SC, and I am in the process of opening another venture: a wine bar La Bonbonnette Bar à Vin in Paris, France.
I started in the restaurant industry in my early 20s in Nice, France where I am from. I have been a hostess, a server, a manager, a general manager, and an operation manager, and finally opened my first business Bin 152 in 2009.
All my businesses are European focus and very small in size by design. I believe that the design and the ambiance of a restaurant is as essential as the food and the service for its success. My goal is to make my guests feel like they have stepped into Europe and make them forget about their daily life while they are in my establishments. I want them to feel transported somewhere else.
What I am the most proud are my business partners and our teams at each business, I could have not done it without them.
What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?
I am a perfectionist and I am a control freak. In order for me to grow and open other businesses I had to learn how to let it go and trust my employees to do what I was doing. This was very difficult for me, but I always remember what one of my superiors told me: “The best managers are the best delegators”
Not only did I learn how to do so, but I also discovered how fulfilling it is to teach and to become a mentor for my employees and to see them grow as well.
How’d you meet your business partner?
My main business partner is Patrick Panella who is also my husband. We met 22 years ago in San Francisco. We own and operate the 4 businesses together.
Jill Mathias, the executive chef of Chez Nous and Juan Cassalett, the executive chef at Malagon are our business partners but also friends we met when we opened Bin 152.
Our landlord at Bin 152 and our friend Christopher Kellogg is also a business partner.
We work and travel together, I feel really fortunate to have these people in my professional and personal life.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.bin152.com, www.cheznouschs.com, www.malagonchs.com, www.labonbonnetteparis.com
- Instagram: @bin152winebar, @cheznouscharleston, @malagoncharleston, @labonbonnetteparis
Image Credits
The 2 first photos are from Andrew Cebulka. They are photos of Malagon restaurant
The 2 next ones are from Molly Rose. They are photos of Chez Nous
The last 2 ones are also from Molly Rose and they are photos of Bin 152