Serving the Customer

I believe in good customer service. I believe it's what sets apart a good store from a great store. Let's face it, it's hard to be exclusive these days. Whether you are selling food or kitchenware or both, people go to the same shows and carry many of the same items as you do, often just down the street. And sometimes cheaper. The best example is when a big box store or some other discounter opens up in your territory, offering a lot of the same merchandise and underselling you like crazy. Because of your overhead you'll never be able to compete on price, nor should you have to try. As I see it there are three reasons why people shop at a specialty retailer: 1) because you have edited the selection that is available and chosen your selection based on your expertise and in some cases, taste; 2) because you offer knowledge about the merchandise and what to do with it; and 3) superior customer service.

I won't go into the first two because if you don't have those you're probably in the wrong business. Customer service, however, can often be lacking even in the best stores. Often the best examples of bad customer service can be seen in the restaurant business. I see it all the time and have often thought I could make a nice living going around re-training floor staff in the restaurants I go to around the country. I see servers making countless trips through the dining room with nothing in their hands - wasted trips. Servers passing my table without noticing my wine glass is empty - lost income and an unhappy patron. Bartenders spending most of their time with their backs to the customers - perhaps bad design but the result is bad service. Servers clustered together at the service station, either chatting, complaining, or texting. This kind of behavior doesn't make customers feel very welcome and certainly doesn't make them feel like the staff is interested in them. All of this goes on in retail stores too. Of course, none of this means you should serve up treakle either. Pandering to customers with phony, obsequious greetings doesn't help, but acknowledging a customer's presence does. In the bar business, if you're busy, too busy to help a patron immedately, a friendly smile and acknowledgement goes a long way. If I know the bartender is busy but he or she knows I'm there, I can relax and think about what I want or converse with my partner rather than wondering if anyone knows I'm there.

While I don't believe in the adage that the customer is always right - indeed they are wrong more often then not - I believe in giving them the benefit of the doubt. Starting off by welcoming them, letting them know that you are there to serve them and that they aren't an inconvenience is the best way to begin your relationship. Grudgingly getting off the phone, slouching against the counter, or worse, ignoring them altogether, are all ways to tell your customer that you could run a very tidy retail business if it just weren't for all the customers coming in and bothering you. Be smart, be active, be alert to what the customer needs (even if what they want is to be left alone), be considerate, and you will be able to compete against anyone, no matter how cheap they are.

Blackboarding Specials

I'm fortunate to live near 5 great specialty food stores, two within walking distance of my house... so I often stroll over to see what's doing.  One shop I walk to uses one of those A-frame blackboard signs to promote the specials at the deli counter inside the store. It had the same specials on it for weeks so I suggested to the owner a little update was in order.

"I bet you get the same customers in day in and day out who buy the same sandwich," I opined.  "Yes, you are right about that!" she said.  "Why not promote something else besides the deli– say your latest arrival of locally grown asparagus, a new shipment of figs or chocolate, maybe a cheese sampling."  Brie for free?

The idea is that passersby (and regular customers) do read the sign and will ignore something that isn't interesting or obviously outdated.  At the same time the sign educates the strolling public about the variety of merchandise you offer.  Changing it daily provides a reason to look and can invite someone in who otherwise might have ignored your shop.

Well my friendly shop owner did indeed change her sign and she said people do ask for the things she puts on the board.  In fact the staff also got into the groove and they suggest some really bizarre items just to see if people will inquire… and the upside is that regular customers now are into reading the sign before they enter.  With more than 5,000 items, my magical merchant will need ten years to tell everyone about them--- and that’s OK with her!

If you try this, keep the offers simple, change it daily, list up to three items from different categories/departments and seek suggestions from your staff.  And don't be tempted to repeat or skip a day.  Your public will soon be in on the concept and they'll notice.

Ron Jakubisin

jakubisin.com

 

Julia and a Perfect Bowl of Fruit

This week my wife and I went to see "Julie and Julia," which for those of you who may have been traveling in outer space the past few weeks, is a new movie about a young woman who sets out to cook every recipe in Julia Child's "Mastering the Art of French Cooking" and write a blog about it. The film alternates between the present day struggles of Julie as she cooks, and Julia Child's years spent living in Paris with her husband Paul in the 1950s as she learns to cook. It's a thoroughly charming movie and a glorious celebration of food and cooking that I encourage everyone to see. Besides Meryl Streep's extraordinary performance as the lengendary Julia Child, I particularly loved how the scenes of the two woman cooking in their perspective decades were done so realistically. There are so few cooking scenes in the world of cinema that come off that way. In fact, it's always interesting to see that while filmmakers will go to such great lengths to ensure the realistic tone of the particular world they are trying to convey, and then present a food scene that is completely false. Typically when someone is supposed to be cooking in movies they are at the stove stirring the ubiquitous sauce or cutting up a carrot with an inappropriate knife, letting you know instantly that the filmmamker knows nothing about food and didn't bother to find out. Of course, films are rarely "about" food and yet they will spare no amount of hightened realism as bullets rip through someone's body. I guess we know where their priorities lie. (For a list of some of the very best food films ever, including this one, be sure and see our upcoming 30th Anniversary issue in September.)

We could think of nothing better after seeing such a film than to go to our local favorite, Chez Panisse, and have something to eat. It was late so we had a salad each and shared one of their amazing pizzas along with a glass of wine. Everything was great but the best was yet to come. Our server, Martin, knew us and brought us out one of the dessert selections, a small wooden bowl containing a sliced peach, two ripe figs cut in half, and a bunch of the smallest Thompson seedless grapes I've ever seen, all laid out on a fig leaf and accompanied by two small glasses of Moscato d'Asti wine that turned out to be a perfect complement to the fruit. There are few restaurants that dare to put fruit on the dessert list unless it is in the form of a tart or other pastry. To do this, of course, the fruit has to be perfect and perfectly ripe which ours were. It was a sublime taste of late summer and no one does it better than Alice Waters and her crew and, we felt, it was a most fitting tribute to the late Mrs. Child who, although known for her French pastry, would have loved this simple and oh so satisfying dessert.  

2020 Lessons

After spending two information packed days with retatilers, industry experts and vendors at Retail2020 in San Francisco last week. I have a billion takeaways, but here are a few quick lessons I learned that you might also implement in your lives/stores. And to anyone else who attended event - let's start talking here and let us all know what you garnered from attending.

From Phil Lempert's consumer panel - Consumers don't always identify with brand names in the kitchenware arena as I thought they would. It was interesting to see the struggle they had naming cookware brands, but still they knew the uses for cookware and what they wanted.

From Harold Lloyd - Visit 26 stores a year to keep my retail knowlege fresh and insightful. Also be sure those stores aren't simply specialty food and kitchenware stores, but stores that cater to specific consumers. Watch the trends and pay attention to how they are merchandising and talking in those stores.

I also learned some working habits from Harold - splitting my week into 55 hours for work, 55 for sleep, 55 for family and 3 for me - does that math work out? Yes, but perhaps it doesn't apply to the publishing industry. But it's certainly a goal for the year 2020!

Another thing is to divide my periodical reading amongst my staff and have them report back to me their findings - great story ideas, new trends, and for me publishing design trends. This works for consumer magazines as well. Another great idea was to pay your team a bonus for vacations - that is while they are on vacation to pay them a bonus or reward if they come back with a great idea from a specialty food or kitchenware store. I love it - I have some ideas how to implement this with my own staff.

If you were at The Gourmet Retailer's Retail2020 Conference, let me know what you learned. If you weren't and have great business or management tips to share with other retailers, sound off now!

And here are some photos from the event I wanted to share. Cheers!

   

New Products and Old Friends

Not having been to the Gourmet Housewares Show in a few years (it was still called Gourmet Products Show), it was a treat for me to attend this year and to see so many great new products and run into several old friends from my houseware days. Although the show was small this year, there was a committed group of buyers at the show and vendors said they were writing business. In fact, many of the retailers and vendors who attended our Retail 20/20 conference just prior to the show said they were going because they wanted to insure that the show continues and all of them seemed excited about the prospects. Penny Sikalis, vice president of GLM and the show manager, told me during the show that it has been decided to keep the show in San Francisco for the foreseeable future. This is a good thing because for many buyers it is very appealing to come to Bagdad-by-the-Sea (as columnist Herb Caen called it), arguably the greatest food city in America. And the views ain't bad either. I remember looking forward each year to coming to S.F. in the spring (when I lived in New York) after a long winter. We used to place a lot of orders at the show, discovered many new and exciting products, visited stores and restaurants, and got a bit of sunshine, much to the envy of our colleagues back in the Big Apple. The thing we loved best about the show was that it was and still is very focused on the kitchen and the table. It was muchg easier to meet one-on-one with our suppliers, resolve problems, make deals, and discuss the year ahead. Because I'm more on the food beat at TGR I don't normally travel to housewares shows, but now that GHS will remain in San Francisco I'll no doubt be attending more regularly since I live just across the bay in Berkeley. Once again, I'm looking forward to it.

Gourmet Show Tips

With the August 8-10 Gourmet Housewares Show opening this weekend, exhibitors are crossing their fingers to discover how they fare in the Gourmet Golds competition. Selecting judges from top industry publications – including The Gourmet Retailer  - ensures that the winners in each category are truly the best of the best.

Gourmet Housewares Show exhibitors have been submitting new products introduced to the trade market between March and August of 2009. All submissions undergo a prescreening process and the finest products are selected for the Gourmet Golds Display.

Drawing from upwards of 100 entries the judges will have their work cut out for them. Selecting the top three in each of the following divisions: Cookware/ Bakeware, Kitchen Electrics, Gadgets, Cutlery, Accessories, Tabletop & Textiles, Gourmet Gifts & Specialty Foods, and Green by Design. In addition, a Best of Show Award will go to the one entry with the highest overall score.

Here are some highlights from the upcoming show:

Greystone Brand, Wine Things Unlimited, will be
expanding their collegiate collection of glassware, plates
and wine charms at the 2009 Gourmet Housewares
Show. Sure to be a favorite is the unique Party Plate-
designed to hold both food and a wine glass with just one
hand. Non breakable and dishwasher safe, the party plate
is a great addition to any gathering.

 

New for Fall 2009, the iSi North America Creative Whip is a multifunctional tool for today's imaginative home chefs. Replacing the need for a hand beater, emersion blender, stand mixer, frother, whisk and any other kitchen tool designed for beating and incorporating air into other ingredients, the Creative Whip is a handy tool that meets any chefs needs. Show attendees will be able to indulge in some sweet and savory Espumas (the Spanish word for foam or mousse) being served up by local Chef Frank De Luna from the San Francisco Bay Area.

Totally Bamboo will be launching new products at the Gourmet Housewares Show, one of which has been accepted into the Gourmet Golds competition under the "Green by Design" criteria. Totally Bamboo introduced  the world's first dishwasher safe cutting board GreenLite series.  At the Show they will present the latest addition to this series - the GreenLite Pizza Peel.  It's a classic made even better because it's bamboo, lightweight and dishwasher safe.

The Rice Plus Multi-Cooker with Fuzzy Logic Technology by Cuisinart features pre-programmed menu options, a 24-hour programmable finish time and an automatic "Keep Warm" setting that activates after cooking is complete.  One of the Multi-Cooker's most distinctive benefits is Fuzzy Logic Technology, which is comprised of a built in "brain" that senses fluctuations in cooking and automatically adjusts operation to ensure perfect results every time.   In addition, the unit has Quick Cooking and Reheat functions, making it one of the most versatile pieces of kitchen equipment a home cook can possess.

Centered in the culinary capitol of the US, the Gourmet Housewares Show in San Francisco continues to attract top of the line exhibitors and smart retailers looking for the best the gourmet industry has to offer.   Please visit www.thegourmetshow.com for additional updates and more detailed information.

From Julia and Julie to Your Store

Every so often Hollywood brings us a delicious treat that brings people closer to food and wine – good news for us in retail!  On Friday "Julia & Julie" a picture that documents the year blogger Julie Powell prepared the 524 recipes in Julia Child's "Mastering the Art of French Cooking" will open in theaters across America. The life of Julia Child is depicted in flashbacks throughout the movie as Julie romps through her kitchen and online odyssey.  Meryl Streep plays Julia Child, bringing that larger than life personality to the big screen and into the hearts and minds of foodies everywhere.

Like the 2004 movie "Sideways" which helped increase interest in wines and spiked sales for that category, Julia & Julie should have positive impact for Gourmet and Specialty Foods. Julia Child's style of cooking show may be passé today with its emphasis on ingredients, prep and technique but it resonates with everyone who has ever watched their grandmother or mom in the kitchen.  Modern shows are basically contests and reality driven formats where chefs don't tell us how to cook as much as how to win a challenge.  Perhaps Julia & Julie will emphasize the idea that cooking is a learning process and the challenge is to do it yourself (and risk making a mistake) rather than opening a can of soup.

So how can you capitalize on Julia & Julie?  For starters if you have "Mastering the Art of French Cooking" put it in a prominent location along with kitchen implements that Julia Child often used like a wisk, cooper bowl, roasting racks, pot holders, apron, cutting board, knives and tongs.  Add signage to attract attention like "Boef Bourguignon is Back!" or "A Few of Julia Child's Favorite Things!"

If you have the ability to do cooking demonstrations, prepare some of the recipes.  Or, if you give out samples, make up Julia's infamous Potato Pancake--- the one she dropped, then put back together in the pan while saying "You’re alone in the kitchen and no one will know."

Julia & Julie is a fun comedy that embraces what our industry is all about--- getting people to buy, cook and enjoy food!  Bon Appetite!.

Ron Jakubisin

jakubisin.com

Last Chance!

Gourmet Retailer Magazine, the leading voice for specialty food and kitchenware retailers, educational conference Retail 2020:  Surging Ahead in Challenging Times opens tomorrow with a welcome reception sponsored by Fortessa/Schott Zwiesel.

 

This intensive 3-day conference, which is designed to help retailers thrive in difficult times, will be held at the Bently Reserve in San Francisco from August 4 – 6, just prior to the Gourmet Housewares Show. Specialty independent retailers and industry experts will meet in a retreat environment to discuss the nuts-and-bolts strategies for maintaining growth and profitability and a culture of fun and customer service.

Featured speakers, including consumer guru Phil Lempert, and Joe Wheeler, co-author of The Ownership Quotient, will provide the vision and tools as independent retailers listen and share business successes.  Panel discussions include The Perfect Storm:  Solutions for Today’s Challenges, featuring industry experts from Bill Snyder, President of William Glen inSacramento, Calif.and Larry Uhl, President of West Point Market, Akron, Ohio. Registration is still open at www.Retail2020.net.  You can also come to the Bently Reserve at 3301 Battery Street in San Francisco and register on-site. Registration opens at 2 p.m.