John Hathaway is the owner of Shucks Maine Lobster in Richmond, Maine. The company produces value-added lobster products.
SeafoodSource: What are the core or key tenets of your company’s business strategy and how do you feel this foundation guides your business moving forward?
Hathaway: Our goal is not to be the biggest, but to be the best at what we do. We're passionate about Maine lobster. It is the best “celebration” food and best food brand in the world. Our goal is to offer our wild and sustainable Maine lobster in innovative, value-added products to Maine lobster lovers across the globe.
Along the way, we want to share the Maine lobster story. Our story is “Trap to Table." It’s a romantic tale. Maine lobster is caught in the cold, clean waters off the coast of Maine. No one is going to tell the lobsters what to do. Maine lobster is certified Marine Stewardship Council sustainable. Maine fishermen work very hard to make sure the Maine lobster fishery stays sustainable. This is key because people who buy seafood don't want to do harm to a fishery and they want to know where their seafood comes from. Now, with MSC certification's traceability requirements, they know.
As a final touch, we have introduced some simple, yet expensive, technology to the Maine lobster industry in an attempt to offer our customers the most innovative seafood celebration in the world. Our "raw" Shucks Maine lobster meat is world-class. That's why the Maine lobster story is the key to our business strategy.
Success can only happen, though, if you have dedicated, passionate people. Our crews have been with us a long time; they are passionate, hard-working people and, it may be a cliché, but we treat each other as family. Our people are our foundation. They are the reason for our success.
SeafoodSource: You’ve already built a niche for yourself by offering value-added lobster products. What other opportunities do you see within the U.S. lobster market that you would like to build upon?
Hathaway: When our customers buy Maine lobster, they want to buy "food," not an "animal." Chefs don't buy cooked steaks and re-cook them to make high-end dishes. They don't buy live chickens or cattle. That's why we offer raw Maine lobster meat out of the shell. It allows chefs to be innovative. We do the work for them. They love the convenience of not having to buy live lobster. Live lobster is great for a lobster bake on the beach, but not so great for an award-winning chef in Napa Valley or Paris.
While people around the world love Maine lobster, we think the best opportunity is to develop and sell new, innovative, value-added Maine lobster products right here in the United States. The market is huge; the currency and legal systems are the same. The industry hasn't scratched the surface of the U.S. retail market in terms of innovation, value-added, ready-to-eat meals or exploring Maine lobster brand loyalty.
For Shucks Maine Lobster specifically, I could see a series of small "Johnny Shucks" restaurants in the future. People all over the country tell us we produce the best tasting raw and cooked Maine lobster products on the market today. There is a limited amount of Maine lobster. The restaurant route offers us an opportunity to deliver Maine lobster directly to Maine lobster-lovers across the United States. After all, that's where we started—in a little lobster shack in Kennebunkport.
SeafoodSource: As a company with an international clientele, how does your approach to the American chef or consumer differ from how you would market to European or other global customers?
Hathaway: It doesn't. We like to tell the authentic story of Maine lobster. It’s the story of a one-man, one-boat fishery; and, now, we can tell the “Trap to Table” story of how it is MSC-certified sustainable. Chefs around the world – and their clientele – know and love the Maine lobster story. The only place we don't sell is in China. Up until now, they call all lobster Boston lobster. It’s fine to call them the Boston Red Sox, but please, when it comes to lobster, it’s Maine.
SeafoodSource: What do you see as your company’s greatest achievement thus far? What has been its biggest challenge?
Hathaway: Ten years ago, we introduced high-pressure processing technology to Maine lobster. A friend in the lobster business had told me about HPP being used in the oyster industry in Louisiana as a food safety measure. Louisiana oysters could not be sold in California because of the vibrio (bacteria). HPP killed the vibrio. But, what the company also discovered was that HPP actually shucked the oyster inside the shell. They would place a rubber band around the oyster and freeze it. Not only did they now have the safest oysters, but also the most convenient oysters for chefs.
I brought down some Maine lobster to see what would happen. It was amazing. The raw Maine lobster meat just slid out of the shell. I wasn't sure what the real world application would be, but it was so amazing that I bought an HPP machine before having any customers or any clue how we would market the product. The next year, we went to [Seafood Expo Global] in Brussels with our raw Maine lobster meat and a lot of hope. We won two Prix d'Elite Awards for "Best Foodservice New Seafood Product" and "Most Convenient New Seafood Product." Then, it was time to go find some customers.
That was the biggest challenge. Sometimes innovation takes a little time to catch on. We learned by failure, as most often happens. That's what I try to impress on young people when I give talks. "Failure isn't falling down, it’s staying down." Your initial duty is to dream; find your passion. Then, take the first step, even if you aren't sure of where you're going. I try to share the thought that "perfection is the poison of passion." If you wait for perfect, nothing will ever happen. So, we have been learning from our failures for 10 years and building an innovative, successful business model as a result.
SeafoodSource: If you could change one thing about the lobster industry as it stands now, what would that be?
Hathaway: I don't think you could change anything about the Maine lobster industry and still have it be the Maine lobster industry. It’s the most unpredictable business I've ever been in. And, I've been in a few, including opening one of the first private businesses in Russia before the [Berlin] Wall came down.
Most importantly, the people involved in the Maine lobster industry, like Department of Marine Resources Commissioner Patrick Keliher; Dave Cousens, president of Maine Lobstermen’s Association; Patrice McCarron, director of MLA; are the most dedicated and capable stewards any industry could hope to have as leadership. Likewise, the fishermen are totally dedicated to having a sustainable fishery for generations to come. It’s only the lobster that don't cooperate. But then, if they did, it wouldn't be the Maine lobster industry.
SeafoodSource: What impact to do you see the Trump administration and its policies (related to trade, the environment, etc.,) having on the seafood industry?
Hathaway: President Trump is a pro-business and pro-American business leader who takes action. He'll cut taxes and cut needless regulations that strangle companies today and hinder growth. The end result will be more jobs, higher wages for industry workers and stronger, more viable companies.
SeafoodSource: Are there particular things you would like to see federal, state or local governments doing to help and support the seafood (or specifically lobster) industry?
Hathaway: Other than cut taxes and some needless business regulations? No. I'm a free market guy. Your customer will tell you if you're not doing the right thing. As an industry, we need to focus more on innovative and value-added products. In my opinion, shipping our natural resources overseas, whether it is Maine lobsters or trees, without first adding value and jobs here in Maine is not the best way to utilize the best natural resource in the world – Maine lobster.
SeafoodSource: What has been the best piece of business advice you have been given and by whom?
Hathaway: "If you can dream it, you can do it."—Walt Disney. I'm a better dreamer than I am a businessman. My advice to my kids was always, "Take five minutes every day in school and just look out the window and dream." It’s the most powerful part of a school day in the long run. And, of course, my dad, who always told me "Hard work makes good luck."
