Business Ideas
Neighborhood House Corporate Round Table
Jan 10th
Steven Schussler Keynote Speaker at Neighborhood House Corporate Round Table
Topic: Strategic Partnerships, Innovation and Entrepreneurism
Date: Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Time: 7:30 a.m. – 9:30 a.m.
Location: Neighborhood House
Private
The 5 P’s of Entrepreneurial Success
Jan 10th
In any economy, in any job market, whatever the size of the initial budget you just can’t keep a good entrepreneur down. No one knows that better than Steven Schussler, the man behind the Rainforest Cafe and a host of other wildly successful projects.
Learn more about the 5 P’s of Entrepreneurial Success in his book “It’s A Jungle In There” Personality: The Role of Risk-Taking in Entrepreneurial Success: Many people prefer to play it safe when it comes to business matters. Are you willing to take risks in the pursuit of entrepreneurial success? Steven Schussler
CCIM Speaking Engagement Success
Jan 7th
The CCIM Presentation last night was a huge success – what a great group! Thank you Carol Ebert, and Brad Pfaff for hosting this event and thank you Robert, Wendy, Brad, Gene, Carol and others for all your great questions! Thank you for your support of buying my book “It’s A Jungle In There” 100% of the sale of my book go to Smile Network International, a Minnesota-based humanitarian organization that provides reconstructive surgeries to impoverished children and young adults around the world.
Enjoy the read and the rollercoaster ride. Remember, “Sweat the Small Stuff”, “No is a Yes waiting to happen!” Steven Schussler
Minnesota Business Back Talk Issue – Steven Schussler Interviews Dan Lowe, Managering Partner of Red Development
Jan 6th
The Business of Shopping [Centers] by Steven Schussler
The Shoppes at Arbor Lakes (Maple Grove) and Woodbury Lakes are among the more forward-thinking Twin Cities shopping destinations. Dan Lowe is managing partner and one of the founding partners of the developer behind both: RED Development, LLC, which develops, leases and manages a total of 30 shopping centers nationwide. The company primarily focuses on open-air lifestyle centers and destination retail and entertainment developments. Lowe’s development responsibilities include project coordination, financing, budgeting, equity structure, due diligence, governmental relations, lease review and legal aspects for each project.
Visit Schussler Creative Website to read the full article
2011 Who’s Who of Franchising’s Elite
Jan 4th
Franchise Times – 20 to Watch 2011 Who’s Who of franchising’s elite. Every year Franchise Times consults our Ouija Board to predict who will be the industry’s top movers, shakers and money makers. Some will have a banner year, while others–not so much. We don’t have time or space to do justice to these 20 notables, but we expect their stories will unfold on our pages over the next several months. And by year-end, you’ll have a complete picture.
Number (7) on Top 20 List to Watch
Betty & Joe’s™ Baker & Coffee Baker™ You Can’t Have One Without the Other™
Hot Dog Hall of Fame™ Frankly the Best Hot Dogs, Sausages, Dumplings and French Fries in the World!™
The people who brought us elaborately themed restaurants like Rainforest Cafe® and T-Rex Cafe® (life-size mechanical dinosaurs) are plotting their foray into franchising with their smaller, but equally quirky, concepts. Betty & Joe’s Baker & Coffee Maker™ and Hot Dog Hall of Fame™. One unit of each has been opened for around two years, Jeff Bornmann, CFO, said. Betty & Joe’s will pair traditional coffee offerings with better food, while the hot dogs are painted with gourmet mustards. Steven Schussler’s Creativity should spice up the franchise front. So coffee franchises and dogs beware. Franchise Times January 2011
Happy New Year from the Schussler Creative Team
Dec 30th
As I mention in my book, “It’s A Jungle In There” No One Creates In a Vacuum and we’d like to take a moment to thank all of you for your continued support, camaraderie, and friendship.
As we move forward into the New Year 2011, let’s keep giving back, keep trying; keep inspired; never stop dreaming, and never, ever give up! Remember Passion + Ambition Yields Success (It P.A.Y.S.)
Wishing you all a very Healthy, Happy and Prosperous New Year!
Steven Schussler and the team at Schussler Creative, Inc.
“Celebrate Uptown” Speech Expo & Book Sales – Uptown Association
Dec 23rd
“Celebrate Uptown: Speech Expo & Book Sales – Uptown Association
Date: Tuesday, January 25, 2010
Time: 5:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m
Keynote Speech: 6:30 p.m. by Steven Schussler
Location: Uptown Association
RSVP: 612-929-9000
The UPTOWN ASSOCIATION ANNUAL MEETING is set for Tuesday, JANUARY 25 and we’re inviting the community to ‘Celebrate Uptown’! A key component of the festivities will be a Business & Community Expo honoring the diverse businesses and organizations that make Uptown vibrant and unique. Take advantage of this opportunity to meet new people & promote your products or services to your neighbors. ALL TYPES OF BUSINESSES AND ORGANIZATIONS ARE WELCOME. After the Expo, be sure to stick around for Mayor Rybak and keynote speaker Steven Schussler– Chairman & CEO of Rainforest Cafe and renowned author of “It’s A Jungle In There.”
ROI Leader Forum Announcement for January 14, 2011
Dec 23rd
ROI Leader Forum Announcement for January 14, 2011
Topic: “A Guide to Entrepreneurial Success”
Speaker: Steven Schussler, Founder and CEO of Schussler Creative, Inc.
Entrepreneur, Motivational Speaker and Author of the National Bestseller “It’s A Jungle In There” Inspiring Lessons, Hard-Won Insights and Other Acts of Entrepreneural Daring.
Time:
7:30 a.m. – 7: 45 a.m. Continental Breakfast
7:45 a.m. – 9:00 a.m. Presentation and Networking
Location: Lurie Besikof Lapidus & Company LLP
2501 Wayzata Blvd., Minneapolis, MN 55405
COST: Free!
To reserve your place at one of these seminars, please contact Jean LaPlante.
Passion and imagination—two of the most powerful engines of success—combined with persistence and an unwavering belief in his dreams, has compelled Steven Schussler for decades. Well-known as the creator of the Rainforest Cafe ®, A Wild Place To Shop and Eat™ launched at the Mall of America in 1994, Schussler and his team have built 45 Rainforest Cafes in seven years on three continents winning more than 40 awards in the process! A premier branding expert™, he founded Schussler Creative in 2000 and has recently published his inspiring lessons, hard-won insights, and other acts of entrepreneurial daring in a national bestseller, “It’s a Jungle in There.” Come listen to his tales about being a restaurateur, branding expert and creative consultant, as well as a speaker and author. Leave with insights into the Five P’s for Business Success: Personality, Product, Persistence, People and Philanthropy.
STEVEN SCHUSSLER, started his entrepreneurial career at age 9 with a paper route. He became a television and radio executive, and eventually embraced his passion for conceiving theatrical environments that appeal to the masses—in his restaurants, retail attractions, and entertainment venues worldwide. A living example of entrepreneurial social responsibility, Schussler is dedicating 100% of the authors sales benefit Smile Network International, a non-profit organization and their mission of surgically repairing cleft lips and palates of impoverished children and young adults worldwide. In addition, he teaches an entrepreneurial class at the UMN Carlson School of Business Management, and writes a monthly column, “Back Talk,” for Minnesota Business Magazine. For further information, visit www.schusslercreative.com.
It’s a Jungle in There – Steven Schussler on Entrepreneurship Hosted By: MOJO Minnesota and MHTA
Dec 19th
MOJO Minnesota, with co-host MHTA, invites you to the Target Performance Hall on January 12th for a look inside the imaginative mind of Steven Schussler, a Minnesota entrepreneurial superstar. Schussler, the creator of Rainforest Cafe and Galaxy Drive-In and now author of #1 national bestseller It’s a Jungle in There, will talk about his story of innovation, risk and wild success – with Q&A to follow. Schussler donates all profits from his book to Smile Network International.
50 lucky attendees will win a free copy of It’s a Jungle in There.
Thank Eide Bailly for the generous sponsorship that made this event possible.
Date: Wed., January 12th
Time: 4:30-6:00 p.m.
Location:
Open Book – Target Performance Hall
1011 Washington Avenue South
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Admission is free but space limited (so act fast!). Refreshments provided.
For more information, contact Brad Lehrman blehrman@lommen.com.
http://mojominnesota.com/
To view Steven Schussler Speaking Schedule visit http://www.schusslercreative.com/schussler_author.html
Leading Blog: A Leadership Blog: It’s A Jungle In There
Dec 4th
Leading Blog: A Leadership Blog: It’s a Jungle in ThereBy Michael McKinney
Created by Steven Schussler, the Rainforest Café holds the record as one of the top-grossing restaurant chains in the world and was the first restaurant concept to be featured at every Disney theme park worldwide. Schussler shares in …
Leading Blog: A Leadership Blog – http://www.leadershipnow.com/leadingblog/
It’s a Jungle in There
Anyone that has ever been to the Rainforest Café, knows it’s a treat. Created by Steven Schussler, the Rainforest Café holds the record as one of the top-grossing restaurant chains in the world and was the first restaurant concept to be featured at every Disney theme park worldwide. Schussler shares in It’s a Jungle in There, what it takes to make it happen and the lessons he learned that can be applied to your dream.
Schussler embodies the five Ps of successful entrepreneurship—Personality, Product, Persistence, People, and Philanthropy—that he teaches in the He writes, “As a leadership quality, one’s own passion is what galvanizes others into action.” Passion and persistence has played a big part in everything Schussler has done. It’s “not going through the motions but going through with the emotions.”
Schussler says that he’s always wanted to create a rainforest themed restaurant but the problem was getting investors interested in the idea. To get their attention he turned his home into a tropical rainforest. “Over a period of a few years, my standard split-level home was transformed into a jungle dwelling complete with rock outcroppings, waterfalls, rivers, layers of fog, mist that rose from the ground, a thatched hut covered with vines on the roof, tiki torches, a twelve-foot neon and a full-size replica of an elephant near the front door.”
“In the bedroom, my bed was ‘paradise’ sign, constructed to look like it was suspended in a tree….Birds and animals moved freely through the area during showings of the house….Every room, every closet, every hallway of my house was a ‘scene’: an attempt to present my idea of what a rainforest restaurant would look like in actual operation….No venture capitalists were going to invest their money in my far-out concept without actually seeing it, so I transformed my house into my vision of what a rainforest restaurant would look like in order to make them believe in my dream.”
Naturally, this would catch the attention of your neighbors (and law enforcement) too. There were problems of all sorts as you can imagine. And Schussler writes, “Being passionate doesn’t totally shield you from moments of doubt.” But his passion finally won out.
“How far are you willing to go to see your dream realized?
In short, high-content chapters, he explains his guiding philosophy and backs them with concrete experiences. He has two quotes framed on the wall over his desk: “When you’re out of quality, you’re out of business” and “The noblest search is the search for excellence.”
He talks about looking for “enhancement gaps.” Those gaps between “what you are seeing and what you could create to make what you are seeing better by providing some product or service.”
He asks, “Are you willing to help other people succeed even when it’s not a requirement of your job to be of assistance?”
Self-control: “What you don’t want to do is say things and/or act in a manner that will create negative impressions and the unwanted consequences that are certain to follow.” You must know your audience.
Burning Bridges/Writing People Off: Don’t do it. “What I learned that day reconfirmed my belief that ego can be a killer, especially an unchecked ego. Most entrepreneurs need to have a healthy ego, but you also have to be realistic. That’s a very delicate balance—the kind of balance you need to cross a bridge you tumbled off the first time around.”
Anyone would benefit by reading and integrating the lessons offered