Blimpie® Franchisee Spotlight – Jitin Choudhury

When you see a young man sweeping the floors of the restaurant, it can be hard to picture him as the eventual owner of the store. But this is exactly what happened to franchisee Jitin Choudhury.  Jitin started at Blimpie when he was just 16, and with hard work, grit and determination, he moved up until he had the opportunity to buy his very own shop. Jitin bought his store when he was only 27, and now, fresh out of his twenties, he owns and manages a successful Blimpie and Surf City Squeeze® co-branded location in East Meadows – a success story that was recently featured by Newsday^TM.

Jitin began at the bottom of the career ladder – a teenager cleaning the Blimpie in Westbury, New York. As he swept and mopped, he was learning the ins and outs of running a Blimpie store, including the day-to-day management work that went on behind the scenes. When he was 21, he finally got the chance to cut his teeth as manager of the East Meadow Blimpie. He spent several years learning the ropes and honing his management skills, and when the opportunity arose in 2012, he bought the store from the retiring owner.

Jitin quickly found that being owner came with a unique set of challenges, especially since he had worked alongside much of the staff he was now leading. He confronted challenges to his leadership early in his time as owner – situations that required a lot of focus and communication to resolve. Employees had to get used to working under their former co-worker, while Jitin himself was learning how to set people’s expectations so his leadership and goals wouldn’t be questioned.

Progressing so quickly in his career forced Jitin to learn a lot on his feet. The biggest lesson he learned, was that owning a business involves a huge shift in perspective. An owner must have a big picture view of things, because everyone from his employees to his family are relying on him to make decisions that will grow the business and keep it relevant. Things that were never Jitin’s concern suddenly had to take center stage, like human resources, marketing and area competition.

Now, Jitin has been in business for nearly two years. He has seen enough that the new challenges he faces don’t scare him, but every day is still a new surprise. After seeing incredible growth in his first years as a business owner, he is excited for what the future holds. He looks forward to continued growth, and he hopes to help those who are starting where he did grow into potential future owners!

For more information on Blimpie franchise opportunities, please visit www.blimpiefranchise.com.