Martin Berson has always been passionate about providing alternative ways to offer healthier food options to his customers. From washing dishes and driving delivery vans, to working registers and cooking in the kitchen, Martin has worked in all aspects of the food and beverage arena and understands what it takes to turn an idea into a reality. With almost 20 years in the industry, he has had the opportunity to run and operate several restaurants, including Snap Kitchen, which provides fresh, healthy prepared meals to the Austin and Houston areas. Although it may seem like starting this business was a snap, Martin faced a somewhat challenging journey to get to where he is today.
Just like many entrepreneurs, Martin faced several obstacles before opening Snap Kitchen in 2010. The biggest challenge was maintaining a long-term staff. He was determined to make sure his staff always felt like they were being supported, so he worked diligently to create an environment that felt more like a small family rather than a huge corporation. Another challenge was in the development of the overall operations strategy. It was difficult for Martin to figure out where Snap Kitchen actually fit into the spectrum – it wasn’t exactly a restaurant but it wasn’t a necessarily a convenience store either. This was a new concept that he had to define all on his own.
Even with all the internal challenges, Snap Kitchen has stayed ahead of the curve to become one of the first high-quality prepared food stores in Central and South Texas. The company now has 11 stores throughout Austin and Houston with plans of opening 10 more stores throughout the year. No matter how many new stores open in the future, Martin wants to maintain his goal of offering healthy food alternatives to his customers: “At the end of the day, it’s really about the food – we offer chef-driven, high quality local ingredients to our customers. It’s what we’re proud of the most and we really feel great about what we’re selling.”
As busy as running a business can be, Martin still finds time to give back to the community. The company partners with various food banks around Austin and Houston to give any leftover food to those in need. The company is currently working with Keep Austin Fed, a nonprofit organization that gathers surplus food from commercial kitchens and distributes to local charities. Becoming a community partner is something that is very important to Martin and he enjoys developing new relationships with organizations that share his goal of giving back to the community as much as you can.
We look forward to see where the Snap Kitchen brand will grow and how Martin will continue to unleash his potential to the community for years to come.
