Cheikh Mboup Of Edible Brands: Five Things You Need To Be A Highly Effective Leader During Turbulent Times
An Interview With Fotis Georgiadis
There is no greater skill than being able to effectively pivot to meet a challenge or an issue. Edible needed to expand our offerings to meet our customers’ needs, and over the last year, we’ve done just that.
As President and COO of Edible Brands, Dr. Cheikh Mboup leads the strategic vision of Edible Arrangements, Berry Direct, Netsolace and Incredible Edibles. Since his December 2019 appointment to president, Mboup has played a critical role in turning around Edible’s double-digit decline in sales to achieve a record-setting year for Edible sales in 2020. He is recognized as a business transformer and was recently highlighted by Forbes as a pioneer for business pivots based on how he led Edible’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic with empathy, agility and aggressive innovation in the form of numerous new product categories launched all within the tumultuous year. Before joining Edible, Mboup founded various franchise restaurant brands which operated across the north and southeast United States. Mboup holds a bachelor’s degree in statistics from Lehigh University, an MBA in economics from Jacksonville University and a doctorate in economics and international business from Argosy University.
Thank you so much for your time! I know that you are a very busy person. Our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you tell us a bit about your ‘backstory’ and how you got started?
I’m originally from Senegal in West Africa, and I lived in 11 different nations before coming to the U.S. for an American education. I started high school in Staten Island where I had some initial struggles through my early courses as I was in the process of learning English. One of my teachers — Ms. Goldberg — recognized my abilities in mathematics and began signing me up for math competitions. My success in these competitions earned me a full ride to Lehigh University, where I started college at the age of 15.
I graduated summa cum laude from Lehigh with a bachelor’s degree in finance and statistics, and my goal was to become a stock broker. After graduation, I worked at Merryl Lynch but quickly realized that career path was not for me.
At 18 years old I got into the grocery business. I moved to Jacksonville, Florida to help with private equity for a grocery conglomerate and then transitioned to work for Winn-Dixie/BI-LO where I worked my way up from store director to district director. During this time, I earned my MBA in economics and international business from Jacksonville University.
After earning my MBA, I started on my doctorate in economics and international Business from Argosy University before moving to Atlanta to work for Edible as the head of operations in the U.S. market. I completed my doctorate in 2017.
Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lessons or ‘take aways’ you learned from that?
I’ve made many mistakes in my time, but I think the funniest part of them all is just how worried I was about each of them at the moment. When you make a mistake, you spend more energy stressing over it than you do working on fixing it and moving forward. You look back and think, “I can’t believe I lost sleep over that! I can’t believe I spent so much energy on that.” If you truly want to enjoy success, you must understand: what you did in the past — whether good or bad — is the past. Spend your energy preparing for tomorrow and not indulging in the past.
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story?
We tend to forget the best CEOs — our mothers. My mom is such a big contributor to my success. But in addition to her, there’s a whole sea of people I’m thankful for, from high school peers who took the time to guide me and teach me the English language, to my college professor who gave me my first job. I owe my success to so many people who offered their hands in support and wisdom.
Extensive research suggests that “purpose driven businesses” are more successful in many areas. When your company started, what was its vision, what was its purpose?
Since our inception more than 20 years ago, Edible’s purpose has remained the same: To celebrate the greatness in life! Our products are emotional currencies. They are the perfect fit for people who want to say “thank you”, “sorry for your loss”, “I love you”, “I’m proud of you”, and so much more. We seek to make an emotional impact, not only on our customers but also on our franchisees who invest in this brand and give it everything they’ve got.
Thank you for all that. Let’s now turn to the main focus of our discussion. Can you share with our readers a story from your own experience about how you lead your team during uncertain or difficult times?
I’d like to reflect on March 2020, when the pandemic broke out into the U.S. and forever changed our world. For Edible in particular, we were in a great place just prior to the pandemic. Edible was on a steady upward trajectory following a rough year in 2018, when we experienced a double-digit decline in sales. By late 2019, things had really turned a corner, and then experienced in early 2020, the most successful Valentine’s Day sales in our company’s history. Then the world turned upside down, and things looked bleak for business once again.
At the start of the pandemic, the government did not consider Edible to be an essential business. But between the fresh resources we have readily available from our stores and the eCommerce capabilities we are known for, we knew we could make ourselves useful during this time of crisis. So, we pushed the business and pivoted to selling fresh produce boxes directly to consumers’ homes, shifting our status to essential and allowing us to maintain business operations. From that point forward, our response to COVID-19 only accelerated our company’s uphill progression.
83,000 households received an Edible product during the pandemic as we pushed to deliver what our customers needed amid challenging circumstances. Edible closed 2020 with $629 million in record sales, in addition to having increased employee count to over 60 people in corporate roles alone with thousands more in stores. I attribute every key partner of Edible — from our suppliers to our dedicated franchise owners — for being integral parts in the success of the company during such difficult times.
Did you ever consider giving up? Where did you get the motivation to continue through your challenges? What sustains your drive?
No, never. I do not give up. Motivation is driven by people. I look around at the individuals who make up our business, specifically our franchise owners. I see some who are providing for their households, some who are dreaming to achieve success that others told them they couldn’t achieve, some who have invested everything they have into building a legacy for their family… That’s what motivates me. My goal for Edible is to create a prime example of what other individuals and organizations can look toward to excel in business. I want the world to notice that the best, finest and most elevated employees can be found at Edible. I believe Edible always pushes for excellence, and the combination of grit and growth that we embody builds the best teams. I hope that one day, when my time with Edible comes to an end, I can say that I left the company in the best place it’s ever been. It’s important to me that I pass the torch on as our company founder and CEO Tariq Farid did for me, with nothing but opportunities for continued success ahead for the next team that’s charged with upholding our legacy.
What would you say is the most critical role of a leader during challenging times?
Authenticity. I have so much respect for great books about leadership, but there comes a time to put those down and instead look into the eyes of the people you lead to truly understand how to guide them most effectively.
When the future seems so uncertain, what is the best way to boost morale? What can a leader do to inspire, motivate and engage their team?
The best approach to take during challenging times is that of empathy-driven leadership. Being able to put yourself in the shoes of your employees and to communicate with them in a way that confirms you have heard and understood them is the key to earning their trust. When faced with the uncertainty of COVID-19, I led my team with transparency, not holding back about the fact that I was frankly just as afraid as everybody else. It was important for our organization to share the burden, not to place all of the pressure on one person’s shoulders. I was open to ideas from my whole team and encouraged everyone to lean on each other. Our strategy was to focus on what we could control while getting rid of the obstacles that were in the way. By looking at the issues at hand from all different perspectives, we were able to power through in ways that motivated everyone to stay committed to the course ahead.
What is the best way to communicate difficult news to one’s team and customers?
Honesty and transparency are always the best policies. It’s important that everyone is on the same page, because that’s how you’ll be the most productive when working toward accomplishing goals together. I know we wouldn’t be able to achieve anything by lying to our customers or to our franchisees.
How can a leader make plans when the future is so unpredictable?
Be open-minded. Have conversations. Fundamentally, be nimble when it comes to pivoting from one thing to another. Pivot quickly!
Is there a “number one principle” that can help guide a company through the ups and downs of turbulent times?
Be authentic.
Can you share 3 or 4 of the most common mistakes you have seen other businesses make during difficult times? What should one keep in mind to avoid that?
We’ve seen companies refuse to change, or take too long to pivot. It’s natural to use statistical analysis to make your decision, or to rely on past experiences or other pre-existing knowledge. Yet in a time of crisis, there is likely no historical data or anecdotes to tell you how to handle the crisis at hand (i.e.: a pandemic like nothing we’d seen before in our lifetimes). As a result, the only thing you really have is the ability to be as nimble and authentic as possible.
Generating new business, increasing your profits, or at least maintaining your financial stability can be challenging during good times, even more so during turbulent times. Can you share some of the strategies you use to keep forging ahead and not lose growth traction during a difficult economy?
Focus on the product before the profit. What are you doing to emotionally connect you to consumers? If you have a good product that connects with your customers, the profit will come. Ask yourself, “How will this affect humanity and society?” Make customers think, “I don’t need this, but I want this!” Then keep that demand alive by evolving the product as needed over time.
Here is the primary question of our discussion. Based on your experience and success, what are the five most important things a business leader should do to lead effectively during uncertain and turbulent times? Please share a story or an example for each.
- Listen to your team. A great idea can come from all corners of your organization. Be a leader that is open to the input and ideas of others. Foster a collaborative environment where your people feel comfortable sharing their thoughts and insights, especially in the difficult times.
- Put your customers’ needs at the forefront of everything you do. It’s natural for any organization to proceed with its standard business strategy assuming that it will continue to align with loyal customers’ expectations. But during times of crisis or uncertainty, it’s important to follow what the consumer desires in response to new circumstances. Model your business to fulfill those new needs. Put yourself in the shoes of the consumer to identify how your business can innovate to accommodate their needs during difficult moments. This will push you out of your comfort zone in a much-needed way.
- Be Flexible. There is no greater skill than being able to effectively pivot to meet a challenge or an issue. Edible needed to expand our offerings to meet our customers’ needs, and over the last year, we’ve done just that.
- Enhance two-way communication. Over the course of the last few months, we at Edible have been in constant communication with our entire network to ensure everyone is fully aligned. My biggest advice would be to not only stay consistent with communication, but to share risks and act as an entire organization. At Edible, we are fortunate to have franchise partners who are willing to try new things and pivot rapidly.
- Work for the future. It can be easy to get caught up in everything swirling around you, whether good or bad. It’s important for everyone to remember that there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Stay hopeful that these uncertain times will not last forever. Businesses need to ask themselves, “How do we grow from this problem and move forward once the dust settles?” We need to take what we’re being faced with now and apply what we are learning from it in order to move forward and come out in the end as a stronger organization.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
“Applaud your wins but focus on your opportunities.”
How can our readers further follow your work?
Follow @Edible Arrangements on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn and @Edible on Twitter!
Thank you so much for sharing these important insights. We wish you continued success and good health!
Cheikh Mboup Of Edible Brands: Five Things You Need To Be A Highly Effective Leader During… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.
