The distinguishing factor between café-bars used to be the standard of coffee… but that doesn’t seem to apply any more. The real difference in winning and keeping customers is now appears to be based on the quality of service. By Ian Boughton So, is customer service is the next big battleground for the café-bar trade? [Read more]

You can’t outspend the big chains, says Britain’s top lateral-thinking author… but you can outrun them. “Only the paranoid will survive…” As business philosophies go, that’s an attention-getter.  It came from the chairman of Intel, the computer chip people, and it has a major truth behind it – it means that if you do not [Read more]

The café-bar trade may not after all be entirely isolated in its position on outside tables, chairs, awnings and barriers. For many years, the trade has fought a constant battle against local authority planning departments and county highways departments – often both at the same time.  Even many of the councils who have spoken of [Read more]

Chris Brown, Turpin Smale Catering Consultancy www.turpinsmale.co.uk As an operator you want distinctive, high quality food that will make you a great margin and keep the customers flocking back.  What do most of the small guys do?   Buy standard, worthy items from 3663 or Brakes; make a sandwich or two and keep life simple.  This [Read more]

As the café-bar boom continues, so the number of suppliers to the trade increases.  The coffee trade is lucky to have many supremely professional and knowledgeable suppliers… but like any industry, there are some less than reliable ones too. How does an independent operator tell the difference? How can you be sure a supplier is [Read more]

It is fashionable in the coffee world to refer to the first wave of coffee bars, the second wave, and so on… but where do we stand now? What next for the British coffee bar? This is an exciting time to be in the café bar business. And it is also an exciting time to [Read more]