LET’S MEAT

About the Book

This book is about a life in the meat business. It contains a little about a lot. It has some personal history, an early personal tragedy, it’s a little emotional, contains a lot of frustrations and a lot of honesty. There are a few interesting stories, a lot of valuable lessons and some guidance on how to create worksheets to collect and sort data. It contains an interesting conflict between a subordinate and a superior that doesn’t end well for one of them. The purpose of this book is to give some insight into a business that most people really don’t know anything about. Until the 1980’s primarily a blue-collar business run by some smart men grinding out profits by the pennies. A business that wasn’t and still isn’t for everyone. Only a select group of people who can get up every day knowing there is no finish line and can withstand an ever-changing environment, vicious competition that doesn’t always play by the rules, ever changing markets that can change in the blink of an eye and the pressure to continually “meat” the bottom line until you say, I had enough. After reading this book my hope is that you walk away from it with an understanding of the behind the scenes work that goes into getting that steak you see under the glass at your local butcher shop or supermarket and all those delicious deli meats and salads at your favorite deli. That you can takeaway an idea, learn something from one of the lessons that you can use to help with your everyday routine or use to help you work better with your teams and customers. If nothing else, you enjoyed reading it and it helped you relax and get a few smiles trying to visualize me trying to stick the devils head out the porthole plane window. Over a 55 plus year career I can break it down by using Jack Welch’s 20-70-10 rule. 20% learning, 70% doing and 10% BS.

About the Author

Anthony Conti is a lifelong student of the meat & deli business. From his humble beginnings working for his father to helping manage some of the largest meat distributors in the Northeast. His 55 plus years of experience served him to become a leader in the industry. Known as the go to guy in New England for his knowledge in the buying and selling of meat & deli he has grown a loyal following of both customers and suppliers. Anthony is married to his wife Nadine and has two children, Jennifer, and Anthony and two grandchildren, Kimberly, and Cameron. He attended Johnson & Wales business School and is a former member of the Rhode Island Food Dealers Association board of directors. He has attended numerous industry seminars and trade shows across the country. He and his wife currently live in Saint Augustine, Florida. They enjoy spending time with their children and grandchildren. He is a practicing martial artist and enjoys an occasional round of golf. Currently he represents a high-end Angus Beef company located in Kansas.