This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Charles Hanna, the CEO of Cedar’s Foods, based in Haverhill, Massachusetts. The following has been edited for length and clarity.
When my father came to the United States from Lebanon in the 1960s, he fell in love with this beautiful country. In 1981, he decided to start a hummus company, even though it was not yet common in the US. When he told my mother, she called her sister and said, “My husband is going crazy. Who is going to buy hummus?”
My mother made samples, which my father would take to the market. Some people would accept, and others wouldn’t, until he called a local grocery store called Market Basket. The man he spoke to happened to know about a great Lebanese restaurant that served hummus, so he decided to give it a shot. My father was very happy.
In the ’90s, my father asked me for help in running the business. At the time, I had no clue I would be so deeply involved. I had other plans, like maybe running a restaurant, but I wanted the business to succeed and make my father proud. I remember him telling me one thing: to make sure that when we made the product, we made it of the highest possible quality.
I took that to heart.
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At that time, I never took a holiday. Sometimes I’d stay at work until 3 a.m., thinking about how I was going to run the business because I had no experience. I drove one of the delivery trucks and spent a lot of time selling the product because I’d never hired a broker.
I took over our small business as an owner in the mid-2000s, and finally had to list myself as CEO in the early 2010s once the company grew and I needed a title when working with the bank.
Today, we’re one of the world’s largest hummus producers, and my day-to-day is heavily involved in all aspects of the business. Here’s a day in my life.
I wake up around 6 a.m. every morning without an alarm
I go to the gym, and I also like biking.
Music is a big part of my mornings and when I get ready for the day. I love all kinds of music, especially old French songs and classics. It puts me in a good mood, and I honestly don’t know how to be in a bad mood. I wake up happy, and I try to carry that positive energy into work.
After my workout and a light breakfast, I head to work
My office is only 12 minutes away from my home.
When I open the door to the office and see my people inside, it’s the best feeling in the whole world. We go up to the executive offices and sit down to talk and joke. Our president and COO, Nick Scangas, makes me one of his Greek coffees, or we might have some cookies made with his mom’s recipe.
Then, we get serious. I’m involved in marketing, finance, and sales. I’ve done it all. I’m very detail-oriented, so I like to look at the numbers and analyze them.
I’ve never had an assistant or wanted one. I respond to emails and WhatsApp messages all throughout the day; I believe the more I’m involved and using my brain, the better. The only thing I can’t do is cook, but I have a good taste in product.
One of the first ideas I had was to flavor the product rather than just make original hummus. My father initially told me no because the original recipe was our traditional product, but I convinced him to let us try garlic and red pepper.
Today, we’ve created many more flavors — lemon, chocolate, even hot honey — because I’ve always believed everybody has a different taste, and if you have a healthy base product, people should be able to enjoy it in different ways.
Courtesy of Cedar’s Foods
I also spend a lot of time on humanitarian projects, like supporting our local YMCA and funding students’ education in Lebanon, which are extremely important to me.
One of my favorite parts of the day is going downstairs and talking with everyone
I’ll listen to music, chat with employees, and see how they’re doing because, in the end, we’re all people.
My team and I go out for lunch together. I like going to 99 Restaurants; my team doesn’t love it as much as I do, but they’ll come along.
When I was younger, I loved volleyball and would play every day. I believe in running a business like a team — just like when I’d played volleyball. I’ve never believed in somebody being in total control. You have to surround yourself with strong people.
We’ve built this company to feel like a family, and many of our employees have been with us for years. We have an incredible executive team, and everybody brings something different to the company. I have many meetings every day with different team members — either in person or on conference calls.
You’ll never find me sitting at the head of the conference table; I sit around it with my team because I think it signifies that everyone can have their own input and ideas. If you stay within the team and nobody’s better than anybody else, you’re going to make the best team ever.
After work, my house is filled with family and friends
In the afternoon, I leave the office, and my home is open. About 30 people come over every day — my uncles, cousins, friends — everybody. I have a huge family. It’s like a tribe of 200 people in the area between New Hampshire and Massachusetts.
Courtesy of Cedar’s Foods
Having that time with them is extremely important. We play cards or watch football or basketball. Everyone loves the Celtics and the Patriots.
I also love karaoke. If you wanted to categorize me or my life as a song, it would be Frank Sinatra’s “My Way.” Every word of that song is my life. I have to sing it at least three times a week. I also like “How I Love You” by Engelbert Humperdinck, and I’m working on some others. I’m not a star, but I do- have a good voice.
I’m always coming up with new ideas
Even with my hobbies and spending time with family, if I’m awake, I’m thinking about how I can better the business. I always want our customers to walk down the refrigerated aisle and find something new.
While innovation has always been important to me, I’ve never believed success comes from fighting your competition. We want the whole industry to grow because when more people discover new food products, everybody benefits.
A lot of the way I think about success goes back to my family’s story. Whether I’m in the office or outside, this company is my life.
I sleep around 11 p.m. or midnight
Most nights, I watch a movie, although occasionally, I watch the news. I go to bed around 11 p.m. or midnight, before I wake up and do it all again the next day.
I believe if you don’t have bad intentions toward anyone, you’ll sleep well, wake up positive, and enjoy your day. That’s how I’ve always tried to live my life.
What motivates me today is the same thing my father taught me years ago: make the highest-quality product possible and treat people the right way.
If one day I can’t improve this company anymore, then somebody else should be CEO.
When people remember me, I don’t want them to remember how much money I made. I want them to remember that I was a good person.
