If you want a Recipe for Success then get Down Home with the Neelys, as in Gina and Pat. They opened up the 2013 Annual Meat Conference with a story of hard work and devotion to not only their business but their family and I wish everyone could hear it. I got a taste for you though by catching them after their presentation today.

I heard Gina say, “At the end of the day the brand must be working.” I asked her what that meant. She says “No matter what you’re representing, if you don’t believe in it, you don’t know it like you should know it, the brand is not going to work. You’ve got to sell your brand. Your brand is what keeps you relevant.”

I heard Pat say, “Nothing is more intimate than what you’re serving.” He says that there are three elements of success in the restaurant business. These include cleanliness, quality of the food and great service. “It’s so doggone important that you make sure that you’re serving the highest quality food that you possibly can each and every day and you’ve got to be consistent with it.”

At the end of their remarks the Neelys talked about the importance of our children and parental responsibility. That’s a message we need to hear a lot more about and I’m really glad they shared their thoughts on it with me.

You can listen to my interview with Pat & Gina here: Interview with Gina & Pat Neely

2013 Annual Meat Conference Photo Album