Devoted to small businesses and those who run them

One of the make or break factors of small business is business expansion and growth. 

There are a lot of parallels between businesses in different fields, and the restaurant industry is one where success can happen very quickly, due to strong word of mouth advertising.

Momma Cherri's was a Kitchen Nightmares success story. Celebrity chef, Gordon Ramsay visited this Brighton soul food restaurant to work his magic. Momma Cherri was wonderful with guests and a good employer, but not so good at the financial hard headed business side of things.

After Ramsay's visit, the business expanded and she moved to larger premises, employing up to 30 staff. Momma Cherri was a natural at PR and had great TV, radio and newspaper coverage. Even Ramsay was impressed by this, and he came to visit a second time.

What he found was that Momma Cherri had bookings months ahead, based on the media coverage.  But the business had grown too fast. They had reverted to some of the old ways - prepared food and frozen foods. The result was that guests were disappointed. The food did not live up to the hype or the promise. 

Word of mouth works both ways, and with poor reviews and financial troubles, Momma Cherri's went into bankruptcy. Momma Cherri said her restaurant had been a victim of its own success.

Size is not always important in business. Working to scale is. You can have a successful business by being focused and supplying what your customers want. You don't have to be big. A good example is the little pizza place which drove McDonald's out of town.  

• How do you control growth and grow at a pace you can manage staffing wise and financially?