The Chefs Toolbox holds the ingredients for success -
Founder David Mills saw a tasty business idea, put it on the front burner, and served up dividends.
Warren Buffett probably doesn’t know it, but without him fast growing Australian kitchenware party plan business The Chefs Toolbox may never have got off the ground.
After 14 years as an investment banker, David Mills was casting about for a business idea when he saw that famed investor Buffett had recently purchased The Pampered Chef business in the US. Just four months later, The Chefs Toolbox was born.
“I was looking for a business and saw that The Pampered Chef had been bought by Warren Buffett and I thought ‘if it’s good enough for him, it could work for us’, and away we went,” Mills says.
Five years later, his punt on Buffett’s buy – and a whole lot of his own hard work – is starting to pay dividends. With a network of just over 400 consultants across Australia, The Chefs Toolbox achieved revenue growth of just over 60% to more than $4.7 million in 2006-07 and looks set to surpass $7 million this financial year.
Those are impressive financial stats on such a young company of only 400 distributors. Especially when you think about the actual percentage of those 400 people that are serioulsy building their buisness.
David Mills technique of piggybacking on Buffets purchase and vision was indeed smart. SImilar htings have been done in many industries and businesses. It is a good model to look at for interational players.
Similar things have happened in many franchsed businesses such as fast food and coffee.
Be well.
Anders Gustavsson
President
Infinite Synergy, Creators of MLM The Game
Posted by: Anders Gustavsson | May 11, 2008 at 04:03 PM