GCEE Conference Days 3 and 4
- Jul 19
- 8 min read
People often say that the North and the South have so many differences. There's the accent, the politics, the weather and the food. In the food category, there's a little, tiny place called Waffle House. Now of course, I've seen many a waffle house. They're on the side of highways, in small and large towns/cities but I had no idea that people in Gorgia had a serious dedication to this restaurant. As a northerner, and a non-Georgian, I knew nothing about this franchise. Yet during this conference I spend a really fun hour learning. Waffle House was founded in 1955 by neighbors Joe Rogers Sr. and Tom Forkner in Avondale Estates, Georgia. The reason I know this now is that I was fortunate enough to visit their number one location. It's not a store that serves food anymore, but a museum that portrays the entire franchise's history. I'll give you a rundown on some of my favorite parts. But if you'd like to hear the entire talk, you can simply click on the link below. Just in case you're concerned, I did ask their permission to video.
What are the interesting pieces at trivia that didn't make it into the video is why waffle house got its name. The founders named it Waffle House to encourage customers to order waffles, which were the most profitable menu item. And every generation thinks truly devious marketing is something that there generation made up. 🙃
If you look at the statistics on restaurants, they're grim. In the first year, more than twenty percent of businesses close, by the fifth year, the statistic is up to over 50% and by year fifteen, 75%. Waffle house has made it long past those statistics and has a lot of moral backbone to go along with it. They were one of the first businesses to hire and serve African Americans in Georgia.
They are also intimately connected with the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA. Whenever there is a natural disaster, they attempt to get their restaurants up and running as fast as possible to serve the local community. When it's really bad out, they only offer two choices, burgers or chicken sandwiches. This might seem harsh, but when all you're looking for is a glass of clean water and a meal after a natural disaster, this is a pretty welcome sight.
Just in case you were looking for another piece of ridiculous trivia, I have another one for Waffle House... Did you know that Waffle House is so deeply embedded in American society that FEMA even created the "Waffle House Index". This metric measures the approximate severity of natural disasters based on how many Waffle House locations are open and what they are serving.
As you can see above the original Waffle House is a simple brick box with a nearly floor-to-ceiling plate glass storefront. What we have not seen yet is the museum next door. It displays Waffle House memorabilia from the past sixty + years. As we said before, you can't eat at this waffle house, but never fear there is one just down the street at 2850 East College Avenue, just down the street. So once you've had your fill of the tour and the museum, you can have the real thing! Unfortunately, it 's not good for a group of more than twenty four, so we didn't end up going to eat at this location. Okay off to the museum!
This museum shows why Waffle House has developed such a loyal customer base. Look how cute the uniforms are from the 1960's to the 2000's. You can just see the development of its reputation for friendly service. One of the things that I like best is it's limited but flexible menu. Think about what was said in the presentation, they do not have salad on the menu, but they are full of a la carte options and if they have it they will combine items to meet your needs. Since opening they have served, this is an approximate from Google, over 877 million waffles, 2.5 million eggs, and well over a billion cups of coffee.
As most people know Waffle House is open 24 hours per day, 365 days a year. Many people spread the rumor that Waffle House doors have no locks. Next time you visit be sure to check whether it is true.
Normally I would introduce a place with my own feelings, remembrances and impressions but the Innovation Institute or I2, really needs to introduce itself. Here is what Georgia Pacific says this arm of there company can do for customers. They serve companies like Amazon, Tyson Chicken, E. & J. Gallo Winery and many others. I had no idea what to expect but even if I had it blew me away! Here how the I2 institute introduces itself.
The Innovation Institute®: Where Ideas Become Solutions
Located in Norcross, Georgia, the Innovation Institute® is our hub for testing, collaboration, and applied research. Here, we simulate retail and packaging environments, validate new materials, and host customer brainstorming sessions. The Institute integrates R&D, testing, and training under one roof, making it one of the most advanced packaging innovation centers in the industry.
State-of-the-art labs maintained at TAPPI conditions.
ISTA-certified testing capabilities.
Environmental chambers for real-world durability testing.
On-site Packaging Fundamentals education.
Customizable customer tours and workshops.
Before we started the tour we did several lessons. The one that I found the most interesting was a quiz that was designed to help you understand if the entrepreneurial lifestyle is for you. I received a "B" ratine. When I really looked at my answers it was clear that i have the creativity for it but not the desire to work more than 50 hours a week. I love to go home, play with the puppies, and swim in the pond. I like to leave work and not have to think about it if I choose not to.
Georgia Pacific has such a wide range of customers. Before we went into the actual testing portion of the facility, we got to see some of the problems that they've solved already. On the right, you can see wine bottles by the case. Of course.There was lots of joking about whether we got to take one after the tour, sadly the answer was no. You might think that the problem the customer had was with the cardboard boxes. That was just the solution… The actual problem was that when the bottles would get to the liquor stores, the labels would often be smudged. So the customer came to Georgia Pacific, asking them to design a box that would prevent this from happening.So that customers would want to buy every bottle that reached its final destination. On the left you can see Georgia peaches. One of the big problems with shipping fruit is that you need the boxes to be weather repellent, because they are often packed in the field, but you need them to be breathable enough so that the fruit does not rot on the way to the grocery store. You also need it to be sturdy enough do that they do not get bruised or squished along the way. Georgia Pacific designed a new wax for the boxes that allows them to be strong, breathable and waterproof but also recyclable. One of the features that seems to be embedded in the company is that they will attempt to be as ecologically responsible as possible. Trees are their business, and if they don't care for the forests, they don't have a product to sell.
If you've ever wondered how many things you can do with corrugated cardboard, the I2 institute will help you. Most people know that Atlanta hosted some games in the world cup, so Georgia Pacific made cardboard cutouts to commemorate the event while promoting their partners. If you keep following along, you'll get to see videos of the I2 staff actually testing boxes for their customers.
Ok one pit stop before that!! I think that I would like to work here. Clearly they have a sense of humor and you don't have to sit behind a desk all day.
The machine that you see at the beginning of this video does not appear to be very high tech. If you watch it and see what it does, I think you'll understand why amazon finds it so important. I was a bit surprised that we were allowed to take so many photographs and videos. You would think that so much of this would be proprietary, but it seems that Georgia Pacific believes that the services that they provide their customers are so superior that other companies simply can't outcompete. Please feel free to look at as many of the box testing videos as interests you :)
If I was going to tell you that you should watch one of the videos, this one is my favorite because I had no concept that companies tested this kind of box stress. Now, to be honest, I should have because once you put a box in a truck, if it's not climate controlled, then the box is completely susceptible to the surrounding environment. If you wonder what happens when you put a box in a humid environment for a long period of time, watch this video.
We left the I2 institute and headed to tucker brewing company in Tucker, Georgia. They are a family owned lager, brewing company that makes beer in the German tradition. I say this because many breweries don't specialize in lagers, so I was excited to try their beer. When we got there, they had a world cup party going on. Unfortunately, we missed the game, but we were there for something even cooler, TRIVIA. Spoiler alert I didn't win but I did have an amazing time answering both serious and fun questions about economics. After this we headed to the dorms for one last night.
In the morning, Chris brought us donuts and coffee from his favorite donut shop. They were amazing. I really should have taken a picture of the company, so that if you live in the Atlanta area, you could patronize them, but unfortunately I didn't. If you know me, you know, I don't love things that are too sweet. These were fluffy and light and lightly sweet. You can see the cookie monster donut here. I, on the other hand, had a bacon topped one. The closest thing I could find to lunch😊
Just because this is the end of my summer institute series. Doesn't mean it's the end of my blogging for this summer. About one hour after my lessons ended, my sisters and 2 of my nieces came to pick me up. I truly cannot say enough good things about the GCEE conference. They worked very hard to balance fun and practical economics lessons. If you have any interest in applying, please feel free to reach out to me and I can help. Have an amazing rest of your summer to all of those of you who go back to school at the beginning of August, keep in touch.
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