April 18, 2005
Brew north | A chat with Hank Ford, co-owner of Slopes Northern Maine Restaurant in Presque Isle.
By Rebecca Lamet
Founded: October 2004
Employees: 80
Startup costs: $4 million
Revenues, 2004: $360,000
Projected revenues, 2005: $2 million
Contact: 769-2739
150 Maysville St., Presque Isle
www.slopesrestaurant.com
You decided to open not only a restaurant but a brewery as well; can you tell me about Slopes?
The best thing about the restaurant and brewery is we've really focused our energy on trying to create niches and fulfill things that weren't here. We're the only microbrewery north of Bangor and we brew six different kinds of beer.
Our menu has steak, seafood and Italian. If someone feels they want to eat in a microbrew restaurant they can do that. Or, they can dine in our dining room, which is fine-dining type of presentation.
We also have a fairly good-sized banquet facility with state of the art audio and visual [equipment]. Including the banquet facility, Slopes seats up to 650 people ˆ it's one of the biggest restaurants statewide.
When did you get the idea?
Practicing medicine was what brought us to Presque Isle. I came in 93 and I believe my partner [Imbe Daudi] came in 96. This is a growing region, and Imbe and I recognized that. Presque Isle has been described as the hub of Aroostook County and that's really panning out now ˆ they're growing commercially quite a bit. So along with commercial growth you need amenities and restaurants.
What is your competition is like?
Imbe and I have always said the success for us is in trying to encourage [activity] and provide more [opportunities] for people to have their events and so forth in this area, rather than looking at it as a competitive venture. If people are coming out to eat and go sledding here, they need to find a place to stay and use a lot of different services. We're a part of that.
Where did the name come from?
What pushed us over the edge in deciding to go ahead and execute this plan was the fact that the Maine Winter Sports Center built [facilities] both here and in Fort Kent. We wanted to go along with that whole winter theme. "Hitting the slopes" was the idea.
What have been the greatest challenges in getting started?
The restaurant business is difficult: Ninety percent of all restaurants close within the first year, and we knew that going in. We had three different feasibility studies done and didn't go into this haphazardly.
A lot of people may have looked at us as two doctors going into something blindly, but we had a very specific financial plan in mind, looking at projections for the year including food costs and income. We also looked at socio-economic [factors] and growth potential of the project. I think the biggest struggle is trying to implement and execute that plan and anticipate future challenges.
How did you finance the launch?
We financed it through Machias Savings Bank. We had additional finances from the city of Presque Isle, Coastal Enterprises Inc. and Northern Maine Development Commission. And of course we put our own personal injection in.
How did you secure the contribution from Presque Isle?
Like every other part of it, we had to submit an application and we had to go to a public hearing. Obviously they look at it for what kind of economic impact it's going to have. For them it's an investment for jobs and revenue returning to the area.
How do you market your business?
We do traditional advertising. We're in the newspaper every week and we're on the radio every week. We've also combined with the Big Rock ski resort and done TV commercials together.
Our website is 99.9% finished. You can do everything from see the daily specials or take a tour of the brewery.
What are your plans for growth?
I think our ultimate goal for the restaurant is to open up another facility in a different area, and we've pursued that on a limited basis. But this is the original Slopes and this is what we're working on fine-tuning. Obviously you can't complete a design until you have an operation to tweak it with.
What did you know about beer before opening Slopes?
Ah, let me seeˆ I liked to drink it! Now, I know that we're the farthest north microbrewery east of the Mississippi.
New Entrepreneurs profiles young businesses, 6-18 months old. Send your suggestions and contact information to editorial@mainebiz.biz.
Employees: 80
Startup costs: $4 million
Revenues, 2004: $360,000
Projected revenues, 2005: $2 million
Contact: 769-2739
150 Maysville St., Presque Isle
www.slopesrestaurant.com
You decided to open not only a restaurant but a brewery as well; can you tell me about Slopes?
The best thing about the restaurant and brewery is we've really focused our energy on trying to create niches and fulfill things that weren't here. We're the only microbrewery north of Bangor and we brew six different kinds of beer.
Our menu has steak, seafood and Italian. If someone feels they want to eat in a microbrew restaurant they can do that. Or, they can dine in our dining room, which is fine-dining type of presentation.
We also have a fairly good-sized banquet facility with state of the art audio and visual [equipment]. Including the banquet facility, Slopes seats up to 650 people ˆ it's one of the biggest restaurants statewide.
When did you get the idea?
Practicing medicine was what brought us to Presque Isle. I came in 93 and I believe my partner [Imbe Daudi] came in 96. This is a growing region, and Imbe and I recognized that. Presque Isle has been described as the hub of Aroostook County and that's really panning out now ˆ they're growing commercially quite a bit. So along with commercial growth you need amenities and restaurants.
What is your competition is like?
Imbe and I have always said the success for us is in trying to encourage [activity] and provide more [opportunities] for people to have their events and so forth in this area, rather than looking at it as a competitive venture. If people are coming out to eat and go sledding here, they need to find a place to stay and use a lot of different services. We're a part of that.
Where did the name come from?
What pushed us over the edge in deciding to go ahead and execute this plan was the fact that the Maine Winter Sports Center built [facilities] both here and in Fort Kent. We wanted to go along with that whole winter theme. "Hitting the slopes" was the idea.
What have been the greatest challenges in getting started?
The restaurant business is difficult: Ninety percent of all restaurants close within the first year, and we knew that going in. We had three different feasibility studies done and didn't go into this haphazardly.
A lot of people may have looked at us as two doctors going into something blindly, but we had a very specific financial plan in mind, looking at projections for the year including food costs and income. We also looked at socio-economic [factors] and growth potential of the project. I think the biggest struggle is trying to implement and execute that plan and anticipate future challenges.
How did you finance the launch?
We financed it through Machias Savings Bank. We had additional finances from the city of Presque Isle, Coastal Enterprises Inc. and Northern Maine Development Commission. And of course we put our own personal injection in.
How did you secure the contribution from Presque Isle?
Like every other part of it, we had to submit an application and we had to go to a public hearing. Obviously they look at it for what kind of economic impact it's going to have. For them it's an investment for jobs and revenue returning to the area.
How do you market your business?
We do traditional advertising. We're in the newspaper every week and we're on the radio every week. We've also combined with the Big Rock ski resort and done TV commercials together.
Our website is 99.9% finished. You can do everything from see the daily specials or take a tour of the brewery.
What are your plans for growth?
I think our ultimate goal for the restaurant is to open up another facility in a different area, and we've pursued that on a limited basis. But this is the original Slopes and this is what we're working on fine-tuning. Obviously you can't complete a design until you have an operation to tweak it with.
What did you know about beer before opening Slopes?
Ah, let me seeˆ I liked to drink it! Now, I know that we're the farthest north microbrewery east of the Mississippi.
New Entrepreneurs profiles young businesses, 6-18 months old. Send your suggestions and contact information to editorial@mainebiz.biz.
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