Chains vs Local...What are the true economics

I don't have a dog in this fight, but I would really like to see the details and methodology on the study cited above.

I can't find them, I've looked.

What are the credentials of the firm/individual doing the study and who underwrote the cost of the "research"?

Credentials:
http://www.civiceconomics.com/html/people.html

Following a maze of links, it looks like Institute for Local Self-Reliance might have paid for the study.
http://www.newrules.org/about-new-rules-project

Your 100% right on the bad science, it is everywhere. It is just so hard to figure out what is a legit study vs. a bogus or monetarily skewed study.

How do we decide on value. Does a CA avacodo have more value (to you or me) than a Mexican one if they are both $1 and of equal quality? Maybe, maybe not. Value of a specific item is harder for me to pin down than local.

Value in the local vs chain restaurant debate is a no-brainer for me.

Deciding on value is up to the individual. You seemed to be excluding location when you made the "without sacrificing value", so I figured you already knew.

An arbitrary example including location in the value is that you might be willing to pay up to 5% more for american made, up to 10% more for KY made, up to 15% for Louisville made. Then you dont have to make the "without sacrificing value" qualifier because location is already included into the value.

As far as the local v chain debate, sometimes I cant tell the difference. The Havana Rumba case, for example. Its both local (in some sense) and a chain. But, in other ways, it isnt local, because I live in Middletown not St Matthews, so when I go there tonight/tomorrow, Im shipping my money out of town. Eh, it provides me good value.

As far as the local v chain debate, sometimes I cant tell the difference. The Havana Rumba case, for example. Its both local (in some sense) and a chain. But, in other ways, it isnt local, because I live in Middletown not St Matthews, so when I go there tonight/tomorrow, Im shipping my money out of town. Eh, it provides me good value.

The definition of chain has been debated over and over. I don't consider it a chain and your money is staying in Louisville (local or not?).

LHB needs to come up with a definition to "local restaurant".

The definition of chain has been debated over and over. I don't consider it a chain and your money is staying in Louisville (local or not?).

I dont live in Louisville, despite the result of the merger vote.

The definition of chain has been debated over and over. I don't consider it a chain and your money is staying in Louisville (local or not?).

I dont live in Louisville, despite the result of the merger vote.

Neither do I.

The definition of chain has been debated over and over. I don't consider it a chain and your money is staying in Louisville (local or not?).

I dont live in Louisville, despite the result of the merger vote.

Middletown is in Louisville Metro.

Question - any information on national or regional chains that feature chef driven seasonal menus?
Honest question - no sarcasm.

Question - any information on national or regional chains that feature chef driven seasonal menus?
Honest question - no sarcasm.

Is there such a thing? In Louisville?

What about a franchised chain with a local owner, as most of the chain restaurants likely are. Once they've bought the franchise rights, does any of their $$$ go back to corporate? If not, then wouldn't it be staying local, even if the restaurant was a chain?

Yes. And, no. Most would be influenced by an outside corporate source; be it financial returns or menu change.

The definition of chain has been debated over and over. I don't consider it a chain and your money is staying in Louisville (local or not?).

I dont live in Louisville, despite the result of the merger vote.

Middletown is in Louisville Metro.

Only literally. Im just ignoring it.

On the issue of franchise vs. chain - I don't know exactly how it works with restaurants, but in other "franchise" operations, more money is flowing INTO the community than out.

For example, if I own a new car Toyota dealership (I don't), I purchase vehicles at wholesale from Toyota. For the most part, that's the ONLY money that goes back to corporate. I then sell those cars for a profit (hopefully) at retail to a customer. In addition to the profit that I make and spend in the local economy and pay my employees with, etc., Toyota also gives me advertising dollars, incentive dollars, and rewards my sales people with things like vacations and bonus money. I buy parts from them at wholesale, and re-sell into the local community at retail. I get additional incentives from corporate based on parts sells and service operations.

In short, I don't pay some monthly fee to be a franchise. I don't "buy" the franchise from Toyota. The ONLY money that goes to them is the cost for me to buy wholesale vehicles and parts.

I realize that with some franchises, things work differently, but in the larger picture, the owner of the franchise OWNS the franchise. The product I'm selling might be produced somewhere else, but that holds true for tons of locals within and outside of the restaurant industry. If I pop over to local Ear-X-Stacy, the product wasn't produced locally. If I drop into Quest Outdoors, the product was not produced locally. This list goes on and on.

http://www.lennys.com/section.cfm?secti ... page=rates

The on-going royalty and national marketing rates for a Lenny’s Sub Shop are only 8% of net sales. Many other franchises cost up to 11%-13% of net sales.

http://www.lennys.com/section.cfm?secti ... page=rates

The on-going royalty and national marketing rates for a Lenny’s Sub Shop are only 8% of net sales. Many other franchises cost up to 11%-13% of net sales.

I didn't read the article, but how is that "cost" determined? In my car dealer example, I might spend 13% or more of net sales on purchasing wholesale vehicles from out of the local area.

If I run Quest Outdoors, I might also spend 13% or more of my net sales to to puchase at wholesale the goods I sell, and all 13% or more of that money is flowing OUT of the local economy.

My overarching point is this - unless you are a local establishment that sells ONLY a product produced locally, using raw goods produced locally, some portion of your sales will, necessarily, flow out of the local economy, if only by the cost of purchasing the goods that you then sell into the local economy, whether it be food, cars, or hiking boots.

If "cost" means a yearly or monthly fee paid to corporate, it does dilute the money that stays in the local economy, but I think the whole "buy local" can be miscontrued. If I buy something from a "chain," and by that I mean an outpost of a large corporate entity, the only local impact are the wages paid to the local employees. If I buy from the typical "franchise," the local impact is greater because ownership is probably local, even though 10% or more might flow directly back to corporate. If I buy "local," but am buying a good not PRODUCED locally, a good portion of money still flows outside the local community.

Question - any information on national or regional chains that feature chef driven seasonal menus?
Honest question - no sarcasm.

OK, much as it may sound like I am, I am not a chain expert. I did see some stuff on food network showing that Cheesecake Factory (which started as an actual restaurant, not as a corporate concept made into a chain) changes their menu seasonally, and every quarter has a contest with all their chefs for "specials", from which the winners become part of the menu the following year.

I also believe that some seafood chains (Mitchell's - at least prior to sale to Ruth's Criss - and Bonefish for example, along with Oceanaire and McCormick's) have as their featured fish the fish the individual location can actually bring in fresh (lower levels, like Red Lobster, seem much more uniform chain-wide).