Overview
Discussion - The Horned Dorset At Home
The Horned Dorset Inn in Leonardsville, NY was founded in 1977 by four partners: Harold Davies, Kingsley and Bruce Wratten and Donald Lentz. They had no restaurant experience but did have a drive to preserve one of the most significant buildings in their hometown. So they renovated during the day and served dinners at night. Over time, the restaurant became the destination in the region for French fine dining.
The restaurant is now run by Aaron Wratten, Kingsley’s son, and his wife Maddalena Molli. They uphold the finest traditions established by the founders while bringing a new experience and energy to the menu. The restaurant operates seasonally from late spring until Thanksgiving, when it closes for winter. This is because of the reality of winter in Central New York, and because running a fine dining restaurant is tiring and they need a break. The pair usually spend their off time in Maddalena’s native Italy, relaxing and finding inspiration for the next season’s menu.
The 2019 season wrapped up as normal, with a major exception; all of the full-time staff resigned. Some left to find other work, some left to find themselves, and one left to get married. No one left because of Aaron and Maddalena or because they didn’t love their work. This created both a problem (and later an opportunity) for them. Off to Italy, they went to relax, recharge and rethink.
And then COVID happened. Fortunately, they decided to cut their time in Europe short by two weeks and made it back just before the ban on travel to and from Europe was imposed. So they took some time to think and to observe, and to ask themselves the key questions:
“What is our forte? What are we purveyors of?”
Which led to more questions:
- Do we need to run a restaurant?
- And if we do, what do we need to do it?
In answering the second question, they came to a realization that they had the physical plant – a commercial kitchen. They had access to local suppliers for fruit, vegetables, dairy, and meat. But what they didn’t have were people. The restaurant is in the middle of nowhere - 25 miles from Utica, 55 miles from Syracuse, and 90 miles from Albany. With the pandemic keeping most people at home, they didn’t even have the luxury of having a market for takeout. So they decided to capitalize on their weakness. If the people couldn’t come to them, they would go to the people. They were called to pivot from where they were to where they could be.
So Aaron and Maddalena started “The Horned Dorset at Home”. The two of them (with occasional help from Aaron’s parents) worked in the small kitchen in the basement of the restaurant, developed a series of menus that they could prepare, package, chill, and then deliver to customers around the area. They decided to try it as an 8-week experiment and see what happened.
The venture was a great success. And continues to be a central part of the restaurant three years in.
For your initial post, please answer the following questions:
- What were the key external factors that drove their decision-making, and how did these factors influence the level of risk associated with their investment in "The Horned Dorset at Home"?
- What other courses of action could have been chosen, and how might these alternatives have affected the balance between risk and potential return on investment?
- Considering the risks and investments made by Aaron and Maddalena, what lessons can be applied to your current organization or future work when facing similar challenges or opportunity.
Assignment - Delta Airlines: Navigating the COVID-19 Storm
This assignment is designed to apply principles of crisis management, fiscal responsibility, and business strategy to Delta Airlines and the ways it address the varying problems raised by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Our case this week examines Delta Air Lines' response as demand for its services plummeted in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, with a focus on the company's funding needs and capital structure. Following a series of initial actions, the company's cash "burn" had reduced from $100 million per day at the start of the pandemic to approximately $27 million per day by the summer of 2020; in addition, Delta had amassed significant liquidity and amended its financial covenants. However, the company's shares were trading at roughly half their pre-crisis levels, rating agencies had downgraded Delta's credit rating to "junk" status, and a second wave of coronavirus infections was underway in the United States.
Read the case “Delta Airlines: Navigating the COVID-19 Storm” in your coursepack.
A subcommittee of the Board has asked you to provide guidance at the next meeting. They are particularly concerned with the following questions:
- Is Delta positioned to weather the storm and compete in the post-COVID world?
- If not, what else should they do?
- What actions should be taken to mitigate financial and operational risks?
- How should various stakeholders' concerns be prioritized and reconciled ranging from shareholders to employees to passengers to government?
Prepare a 3-5 page report for the committee that addresses those questions focusing on the path forward. Remember that the board will be relying on the justification you provide for your recommendations. Be sure to clarify the reasons why you have arrived at your recommendation.