In June, 22 entrepreneurs and small business owners visited Philadelphia and met Nick Bayer of Saxbys, a social impact company he founded in 2005. The small size of the group led to a candid and wide-ranging discussion about scaling up while maintaining a corporate culture of dignity and respect for fellow team members and for customers. A core company mission is to “Make Life Better.”
Though participants came from Africa, the Middle East and South America, their questions about attracting and retaining talent, managing competition and business planning were universal.
Lucy from South Sudan asked about Nick’s strategy for dealing with competition. And, Sari from Jordan wanted to know what Nick’s biggest challenge was in year two of building Saxbys. Giovanna from Italy asked how Nick retains good team members. His answer was that he aspires to be a better leader, they recruit people attracted to their positive culture and they nurture the entrepreneurial spirits in team members who aspire to make an impact. “I want nothing more than for our people to be promoted from within.”
“A Saxbys core belief is that we embrace being ‘ODD’ – outgoing, detailed-oriented and disciplined. Embrace
being unique,” said Bayer.
Although he runs a multi-state hospitality and coffee company, Nick delights in the time spent with international entrepreneurs. “They invite me to speak in their countries, and I love being able to travel and meet new people.”
“I am a Citizen Diplomat because by serving the next generation of business leaders, you are serving yourself. You learn by teaching.”
– Nick Bayer
