JOSE CRUZ BUENO

acxtqo@r.postjobfree.com 832-***-**** 6186 Andover Hills Ct League City, TX 77573 ENTREPRENEUR/RESTAURANTS/FOOD & BEVERAGES

FOOD DISTRIBUTION & MANUFACTURING – FAST CASUAL RESTAURANTS – PROCUREMENT & LOGISTICS Entrepreneur and quintessential business leader with phenomenal success integrating strategies, innovations and personnel to build successful and profitable ventures. Record of establishing successful businesses, delivering rapid revenue growth and creating world-class operational structures to drive profitability. Expert in defining corporate strategy and translating into actionable plans to propel expansion and diversification. Bilingual English and Spanish. AREAS OF EXPERTISE

Start-Up & High-Growth Ventures Supply Chain Logistics Customer Service Sales Loss Control Competitive Positioning Risk Management Project Management Procurement

Incentive Plans Change Management Sales & Marketing Cost Analysis PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

BUENO BROS NATURAL FOODS LLC – Houston, TX 2013 to Present Marketer of Natural and Organic Food Products

PARTNER

Founded Bueno Bros Natural Foods an expert in the Sales, Marketing and Logistics of Natural and Organic Foods. Our industry leading experience helps brands successfully establish a market presence in both the retail and foodservice food industry. We work with products from all over the world and can help with a comprehensive sales marketing and distribution strategy on a Global scale. Our team of experts are all career food industry veterans with established relationships with leading retailers and foodservice companies.

Successfully pioneer new brands in both the retail and foodservice segments.

Enhance brand penetration by improving labels and market coverage.

Work with Food Brokers to manage brand development.

Open and Maintain International Business Opportunities in International Markets.

Work with Private Label Opportunities.

Manage Logistics of Import Programs.

KORE MEALS LLC DBA FRESHII – Houston, TX 2009 to Present Holding company that owns the rights to develop a minimum of 20 Freshii casual restaurants. PARTNER/DISTRICT MANAGER

Purchased the development rights to Freshii, a health casual concept, in 2009. Created and executed strategic business plan to achieve growth in the TX market. Direct all aspects of startup development, including real estate selection, construction, staff recruitment and daily operations. Lead the development and execution of process improvement initiatives, marketing strategies and employee incentive programs. Manage vendor and employee relationships.

Hired, trained and motivated employees to execute the Freshii mission.

Introduced new enhancements to the menu, adding juices and smoothies.

Increased profitability to 20% of net income by increasing revenues and reducing expenses.

Reduced costs of goods by more than 10% by negotiating procurement contracts with key vendors, distributors and purveyors in the market.

JOSE BUENO acxtqo@r.postjobfree.com 832-***-**** Page 2 THIRD COAST PRODUCE & AFFILIATES – Houston, TX 1992 to 2010 Privately-owned wholesale food distributors.

VP OF PURCHASING/PARTNER/GENERAL MANAGER

Challenged to drive and sustain rapid, profitable growth through strong and decisive leadership of all purchasing and operating controls. Established the strategies, methods and procedures in an effort to expand product/service offerings, strengthen market position and drive revenue growth. Ensured compliance while managing relationships with vendors, employees and partners. Hired, trained and led a staff of 20 procurement professionals. Held full accountability for operations, fixed assets, intangible assets, purchases, payables, inventory, receivables, capital budgeting, order processing, production, payroll, IT application controls, revenue recognition, general computer controls, billing and cash management processes.

Grew sales from $1.5M to $50M over 18 years.

Established a fresh cut produce facility designed to produce up to 1M lbs. of fresh cut produce per week; employed 100+ workers.

Designed and implemented a proprietary ERP financial management system using Microsoft Dynamics NAV to manage the production facility.

Built a state of the art distribution and manufacturing facility in 2006.

Implemented a voice recognition picking system to streamline produce picking; reduced error rate from 1 error per 1K cases picked to 1 error per 5K cases picked.

Spearheaded the development of a complex pricing model for the produce business. VP OF PURCHASING/PARTNER/GENERAL MANAGER – Continued:

Created Food Safety and HACCP programs for Third Coast and its affiliates.

Managed and renewed key contracts with large national chains such as OSI, Sodexo, Aramark, Hilton Hotels, Eurest and Compass.

EDUCATION

Bachelors of Business in Hotel Restaurant Management University of Houston – Houston, TX

Bachelors of Business in Business Management

University of Houston – Houston, TX

AFFILIATIONS

Alumni Member, University of Houston

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