Many of us have dreamt of opening their own café or pub one day. Some may see it as a way to show their entrepreneurial spirit, unleash their creativity, and uplift their community, while others may choose to open a café, pub, or some other hospitality establishment as a way to share their passion for great beverages and enjoy the marvelous sense of freedom.
Whatever your reason for wanting to open one, there are a couple of things you need to keep in mind if you want your business to not just survive but thrive. With that in mind, here are five brilliant tips to guide success when opening your own café or pub.
Make great customer service your top priority
Ensuring a great first impression is crucial for any business, but especially when it comes to cafés and pubs. Depending on your business model, you’ll need to decide between a table service or a counter service. You can have your customers place an order after which you deliver drinks to their table, or have them pay up front and call them once their order is ready. You can also combine the two and get the best of both worlds.
Make sure to offer power plugs where possible along with free Wi-Fi for your customers to use. By being tech-savvy, you won’t be missing out on customers due to slow or non-existent Internet connection.
Strive to achieve quality consistency
Great customer service goes hand in hand with product or service quality consistency. Far too many pubs and cafés give into temptation and choose to compromise when things get tough. This results in a dip in quality – something that customers never fail to notice and make remarks. Always ensure quality consistency, no matter what.
Not only is this one of those basic ways to increase cafe sales when you need to get the business rolling steadily, but it can also help ensure customer loyalty and increase your chances of making it to the top.
Attract customers with a comfortable café or pub atmosphere
In addition to great service and quality consistency, ensuring a comfortable, relaxing atmosphere that will attract customers is a must when opening a café or pub. Lay the foundation by choosing the right floor plan. Think about how the space will be used. Make sure there’s enough space to fit in barstools, bar chairs, and other essential pub furniture pieces while paying special attention to their style, design, and level of comfort.
Other than making space for comfortable seating areas, you’ll also need to provide enough room for the equipment and ensure your staff has easy access to it. Finally, make sure to give your customers enough room to form a line while waiting to place an order.
Offer extra value to your customers
Good customer service is essential, but that alone won’t make your customers search for you. You want to set yourself apart from all the other local coffee shops and pubs. For that to happen, you need to offer extra value to your customers.
Instead of doing what everyone else is doing, try something new and different. Feature a new product, be playful with your design, or make your café or pub stand out with a service no one else in your area offers. This can be anything from making your mark with an exclusive microbrew or coming up with a unique menu. Also, give snapchilling, #CoffeeInACone, and other cool coffee trends of 2021 a try, and host an event (e.g. acoustic concert or an improv night) from time to time – your customers won’t give a miss to them, and you’ll manage to increase your café or pub’s foot traffic.
Treat your staff as your greatest asset
As with any other business, building a great team is crucial when for café or pub business owners. After all, your main aim is to turn your customers into regulars and ensure an amazing service, and having a team of people who are dedicated and charismatic can do wonders for your brand. Your staff truly is your greatest asset, so make sure you treat it as such.
Learn what qualities you need to look for in staff, and keep your eyes peeled for great staff members. Advertise online, but post a “help wanted” sign on your front window as well. Sometimes, investing in under-qualified but enthusiastic applicants can be a great investment, so remember not to discount them during the hiring process.
Wrapping up
Making profit while doing something you enjoy and love is a match made in heaven and something many aspiring entrepreneurs dream about. Although opening your own café or pub can definitely be an exciting and thrilling journey, there are also tasks that need to be taken care of and risks to keep in mind if you want your business to be a profitable and successful one in the long run. Stick with the tips above, and you’ll be well on your way to opening the perfect meeting hub and ensuring loyal clientele.
