If you run a restaurant or café, you know exactly what a tough and brutal business it can be. Small businesses are fortunate if they break even in the first year of operation. With the many start-up costs that go into opening and running a restaurant or other eatery, it is often the small details that can make or break such a business.
The Customer Is King
Have you ever heard the saying ‘The customer is King’? Whilst we might often baulk at this concept in retail, customers truly are the core of business in the hospitality industry. As a new restaurant or café, the customers are the very lifeblood of your success, and pleasing them is what results in customers through the door and filled seats.
New businesses face stiff competition, not just from other businesses in the same industry, but from the state of the economy as a whole, especially in an age where people are spooked about too much spending and not enough saving. How can brand new restaurateurs be expected to compete with these factors and make a success of their business?
Carving Out a Unique Niche
Despite the many difficulties in making a new restaurant business work, there are a number of things that can be done to increase the chances of success, including but not limited to the following ideas:
- A unique aesthetic: The way a café or restaurant looks runs a very close second to the quality of the food. When customers enter a place to eat, they want to experience an atmosphere that is unique. The way a restaurant or café is decorated, and the core of its visual aesthetic, both contribute to its emotional feel. As the owner of the eatery, consider what you are trying to convey. Are you trying to impart an old world feel? Are you looking to impress with futuristic and sleek geometric dimensions, modern angles and shiny surfaces? Consider how the details fit into the whole picture and produce a consistent aesthetic and emotional impact. One way to highlight a feel in this way is to highlight the menu with any one of a range of custom menu boards. Everything from a distressed timber look to a chalkboard is available, and it is possible to order menu boards online.
- Customer service: How do you treat your customers? Do you go the ‘extra mile’ to make sure that they are enjoying their food and having a good time? How do you handle unhappy customers? Customer service is an entire philosophy and is more than simply remembering to say ‘thank you’ at the conclusion of a pleasant transaction.
- Food menu: Last, but certainly not least of all, how does your menu differ from your competitors? Is there anything that you can add that will make it adventurous and unique in this niche? Customers always remember the best food that they have eaten and will keep coming back.
Making a New Business Work
Succeeding in all business is difficult and requires hard work, good ideas, time and dedication. By investing in the details, you go a long way towards ensuring that your customers will keep coming back.