The Larkin Square Author Series welcomes you to a talk and book signing with Ari Weinzweig, CEO of Zingerman’s Community of Businesses, headquartered in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Joining Ari in conversation will be Tim Bartlett, general manager of the Lexington COOP. The free event will be held on Tuesday, March 19th, 5:30 pm – 6:45 pm in the Filling Station in Larkin Square, 745 Seneca Street in Buffalo. Parking is free. You may park in Larkin Square, behind the Swan Street Diner or in the lot off of Emslie Street next to the Hydraulic Hearth. Talking Leaves will be selling copies of Weinzweig’s books. Make an evening of it and enjoy dinner across the street from Larkin Square before or after the talk at the Hydraulic Hearth.
Tim Bartlett and the team at the Lexington COOP have worked with Zingerman’s through their ZingTrain program to fine tune their best business practices. This is a great talk for anyone interested in food, small business, entrepreneurship, leadership, creativity, the arts, writing and making books.
Ari Weinzweig is CEO and co-founding partner of Zingerman’s Community of Businesses, which includes Zingerman’s Delicatessen, Bakehouse, Creamery, Catering, Mail Order, ZingTrain, Coffee Company, Roadhouse, Candy Manufactory, Events at Cornman Farms. And the newest business, Miss Kim, which serves great tasting Korean fare.
Zingerman’s produces and sells all sorts of full flavored, traditional foods in its home of Ann Arbor, Michigan to the tune of $60,000,000 a year in annual sales. Ari was recognized as one of the “Who’s Who of Food & Beverage in America” by the 2006 James Beard Foundation and has awarded a Bon Appetit Lifetime Achievement Award among many recognitions.
Ari is the author of a number of articles and books, including Zingerman’s Guide to Better Bacon (Zingerman’s Press), Zingerman’s Guide to Giving Great Service, Zingerman’s Guide to Good Eating (Houghton Mifflin), Zingerman’s Guide to Good Leading, Part 1: A Lapsed Anarchist’s Approach to Building a Great Business, and Zingerman’s Guide to Good Leading, Part 2: A Lapsed Anarchist’s Approach to Being a Better Leader. Zingerman’s Guide to Good Leading, Part 3; A Lapsed Anarchist’s Approach to Managing Ourselves, was released in December of 2013. Zingerman’s Guide to Good Leading, Part 4; A Lapsed Anarchist’s Approach to the Power of Beliefs in Business was released in summer of 2016. In 2017 Ari was named one of “The World’s 10 Top CEOs (They Lead in a Totally Unique Way)” by Inc. Magazine. His most recent publication is the pamphlet, “The Art of Business; Why I Want to be an Artist.”
Zingerman’s website shares this about The Art of Business: “What would happen if everyone approached their lives as artists? Put together their communication as if they were poets? Designed their spaces—small and large—as if they were architects? Listened to others like a musician? What if business leaders looked at their organizations as if they were making art for the ages instead of being just vehicles for making money? What if everyone—not just those who society calls “creatives”—is capable of turning what they do every day into amazing art?”
For a deeper dive into creativity and leadership, Ari, along with a full roster of interesting speakers, will be presenting the following day, March 20th, 2019, at Awaken 2019, a conference presented in conjunction with the grand opening of the Buffalo Center for Cultural Innovation.
Larkin Square Events, including the author talks, are presented by KeyBank and sponsored by Independent Health. They are free and open to the public.