In early January, I published a blog entry noting that Tom Amyx, owner of Tom's New York Deli here in Richmond, wanted to give away his restaurant to someone who could carry it forward with a positive and exciting vision. It turns out that my blog post generated quite a few inquiries to Tom about doing just that. A local couple, Ron and Rachel Hughes, saw my post, talked to Tom about the possibilities, and are now taking over ownership of the Deli as of this week.
Earlier today, I sat down with Ron and Tom to ask about how giving away a whole restaurant works, plans for the future of the Deli, and what Tom will do with all of his spare time (and cheesy jokes) in life after small business ownership; here are some excerpts from the conversation:
I love this city! Thanks to Tom, Ron, Rachel, and the entire staff of Tom's Deli for living out a great vision for small business and community building in Richmond, Indiana.
I’m a journalist, publisher, software developer and entrepreneur with experience as a founder and organizational leader. Work with me or learn more about me.
Very nice piece Chris. Good to hear some vision and commitment about the importance of downtown business.
Nicely done. Thanks for producing this.
I especially enjoyed the plug for bike racks downtown.
Fascinating and inspiring! Wall street will not be happy if this business plan catches on..
Chris, great job. Tom's such a great man and Ron Hughes. I gotta write the phone number Tom gives for the next business maniac that wants to do biz in Downtown. We're crazy folk!
The Pal-Item has a story about this in today's paper as well.
Great interview. Sounds like the new owners will do great things with the place! Can't wait to try it out.
Was this the place you and I went to for breakfast a year or two ago? Nice interview.