Issue link: https://nebusinessmedia.uberflip.com/i/1415387
W W W. M A I N E B I Z . B I Z 31 O C T O B E R 4 , 2 0 2 1 ainebiz: Luke's Lobster received its B Corp status in 2018. Why was that important to you and how do you keep it going? Luke Holden: We were the first res- taurant group to get that status. It was a challenge by the team to measure the health of the business in a new way. ere's a recertification process every three years and we're going through that now. e challenge is to increase your score. We've always been a stake- holder-driven business rather than a shareholder driven business. At first the teammates really cared about the B Corp status and it became a recruiting and retention tool. Now, it's driving customer interest as well. MB: In response to the pandemic, you opened an online market in 2020 to keep buying from and supporting fish- ermen. How successful was that? Did your branded grocery line help as well? LH: 2020 was by far the hardest personal and professional moment I've ever hit. e shutting down of China affected the lobster market, with a drop of 20% to 50% in prices. e pandemic hit New York City for us first. We had 500 teammates in the company. We shrunk to 23. It was miserable. We shut all but one restaurant, in Portland. at was almost 40 restaurants. And we were responsible for the landings for harvest- ers. We found that there was demand through an online marketplace. e first few days of that we saw incredible sales. By no means did that take the C O N T I N U E D O N F O L L OW I N G PA G E » Luke Holden, founder and CEO of Luke's Lobster, helped the company weather the pandemic, expanded the company's branded grocery line and created an online seafood market to help fishermen have a place to sell their harvest when the pandemic shuttered restaurants and overseas markets. He believes in paying lobstermen strong wages and helped make Luke's Lobster a B Corp with responsibility to the community and the environment. Since 1989 Local Decisions Be Budget! 800.924.4229 www.bdtme.com Problems Solved. Budget Document Technology is an industry leader in providing digital solutions for document creation, production, and distribution. • Multi-functional Color & B&W Copiers • Printers & Scanners • Postage & Mailing Equipment • Software & Network Solutions • Managed Print Services Helping Maine get business done! It's Time to Take Command #DCTakeCommand " Clark Insurance's strong growth is supported by what our people are learning in Dale Carnegie classes. " — Jeff Shaw A family-owned business @dale.carnegie.maine / Dale Carnegie Maine / @dalecarnegiemaine maine.dalecarnegie.com / maine@dalecarnegie.com / 207.775.DALE (3253) Are your employees fully engaged? Could your productivity improve? Mention this ad for a free Business Improvement Discussion. contactDCmaine.com