A question that’s always interesting to ask people who run or manage cafes: how do you compete with Starbucks? This is a question that’s been tackled several times. Here are some of the best reads about this: Quora – How do you compete with Starbucks in the coffee industry? My favorite answer here is from Peter…
Matchaya is a Japanese confectionery and tea outlet in Singapore. They have two locations, one at Icon Village on Gopeng Street, and another at The Cathay. They also do popup stores from time to time. The founders, Kaelyn Ong and Kevin Chee, tested the waters with several popup stores before taking the plunge and investing in physical…
What happens when you get an unexpected influx of customers? A well-trained team will knuckle-up, chin down, and attack with everything they have to see you through the rush whether it lasts an hour or an entire day. It happens every holiday season in retail as well as during promotional periods. So, what do you…
Artistry is a popular cafe and art gallery in central Singapore, at 17 Jalan Pinang in the Bugis area. It was launched in 2012 by co-founders Prashant and Marcel. They were initially just a gallery serving coffee and deserts, but have since expanded to include a full menu – Duck Confit Pasta, Crab Burger and…
Being a restaurant owner with an online presence, you understand the importance of online reviews quite well especially if it is on Yelp. Yelp allows the loyal reviewers to spread the word about the good and bad experiences they had with any restaurant or food chain, enabling others to make an informed choice. A study…
Here’s a popular question on Quora: What’s the secret to a successful coffeeshop? There’s a great answer by Peter Baskerville, which we’ve reproduced here with some light editing: 1.Consistently serving the finest espresso It is rare in business to discover a product where consistently offering 100% quality is the best commercial decision you can make….
There are a lot of coffee shops in this world. In spite of this fact, Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf (CB&TL) has managed to dominate the industry. The brand is worth $500 million and has more than 1,000 branches in operation worldwide. How did it reach such great heights? It’s fun and innovative market strategies…
Customer feedback is critical to any business. After all, a business only exists because it’s solving a problem for its customers. So keeping customers happy and satisfied is at the heart of every business. “We see our customers as invited guests to a party, and we are the hosts. It’s our job every day to…
The giant has arrived. Amazon is now in Singapore. The online retail behemoth launched its “Prime Now” service here on July 26th. This is Amazon’s first foray into Southeast Asia, and their global expansion seems unstoppable. As a brick & mortar retailer, should you be worried? I wouldn’t panic just yet. Amazon has been in…
Let me guess: You have followed all the best tips found on the Interwebz. You create fresh content daily. You use the right hashtags. You post 3 times a day. You reply to everyone who comments on your posts. Yet. The number of followers on your Instagram account remains pitiful. You don’t even remember the…