Project update 2: Eye to eye

A LOT of pubs would benefit if the people in charge could only stand back and take a fresh look at the way they run the business. Unfortunately few licensees find the time. This is one of the benefits Sell More, Save More is bringing to all three of our pubs.

The fresh pair of eyes our business development champion Carl May of Catered 4 has brought to our high street venue, Barcena in Burgess Hill, West Sussex, have helped pinpoint some obvious areas for improvement.

Carl spent a day at Barcena last month to find out what makes the business tick - and what could make it tick even better, as rookie licensee Richard Podesta works hard towards his goal of increasing turnover by 40 per cent.

Operational issues​

Carl was quick to spot some obvious quick wins to be had - such as opening the external door and closing the inner door to welcome customers, rather than the other way around. He also recommended dealing with the damp in the toilets.

But overall it was operational issues which Carl believes need to be addressed as a matter of urgency, and which should see a real change in the months ahead.

Stock-taking is one area which has been inadequate in the past, with the previous bar manager running his own system for wet stock, and nothing in place for dry stock. An independent stocktaker will be carrying out a full audit of wet and dry stock shortly.

Richard also needs to keep better records on his staff, particularly on

training. Carl is planning to host a series of customer service training sessions with staff, covering areas including upselling, product knowledge, customer care and complaint handling which will follow 360º esp training from Diageo.

Among the key recommendations from Carl were:

- exterior furniture, heaters and screens to convey a more 'open for business feel' and increase seating space

- painting the outside of the unit with a more welcoming colour scheme

- keeping the first porch door open and fitting a ceiling light inside

- redesigning and painting the Barcena sign on the frontage

- supplying newspapers and magazines for customers which will need to be varied to meet each customer group's needs

- applying etched glass film on the lower half of the frontage, to give a more secure feeling inside and help with the overall image

- making more of the wi-fi connection available in the bar

- a complete audit of business projections and profit forecasts

- regular staff meetings and making sure all staff are aware of new plans and changes.

Richard comments: "A lot of what Carl said has been very helpful, and I'm acting on some of it straight away, such as updating our front window.

"Trade is steadily improving, and the food side is increasing rapidly. But it would be nice to spread our trade out a bit more, over the week and over the day on Saturday. We are now looking to the entertainment champions to help us that way."

SOFT DRINKS​

With Barcena attracting different customer types throughout the day, our soft drinks champion Coca-Cola Enterprises (CCE) can see huge potential in the category.

Pete Johnson, shopper marketing manager - social occasions for CCE, says: "Soft drinks will play a crucial role in the day session for the café style-operation, with interesting flavours and large bottle serves the way forward."

With the venue needing to compete on the quality of its drinks - rather than devaluing itself with pricing tactics - CCE believes it is well positioned to help, with the glass contour bottle for regular, Diet and Coke Zero to the fore, alongside its 275ml Schweppes juices and Appletiser.

Pete believes the launches of Peartiser and Schweppes's Straight Cut this year give Barcena further options to capitalise on the natural sales link between food and soft drinks, with menu features and displays adding excitement. "The evening session offers further opportunities, and CCE and Diageo will work together to create fantastic mixed drinks with premium spirits and Schweppes ranges," continues Pete.

"A first step will be questioning whether post-mix tonic is a false economy. Schweppes Russchian will add some theatre later in the year, served with vodka."

Staff training on quality of serve and quality of service, through CCE's new Make It Special training package, is also a priority at the high street venue with Coke firmly believing making the most of the 'drinking experience' will be one of the keys to its success.

WINE​

Barcena already offers a good range of wines, both branded and unbranded - but wine champion Pernod Ricard believes the range would benefit from increasing the number of rosé wines sold from one to three, as rosé is currently one of the fastest growth areas in the on-trade.

Category management director Tim Foster adds: "While the range includes several well-known champagne brands, there is only one sparkling wine on the list. There could be an opportunity to increase the number of sparkling wines and offer a white and a rosé for sale by the glass.

"Choosing a glass of chilled sparkling wine is a growing trend among many consumers and it could do well in an outlet like Barcena.

"Improving the quality of the glassware - currently standard cash & carry glasses - would also benefit the pub," continues Tim. "What works well in a quality bar such as Barcena is serving wine by measuring it into a jigger and then pouring into a quality looking rounded wine glass - the sort you get at home, and not normally in a pub," he says. "It does wonders for the customers' perception of your wine offer and makes it seem like a special occasion."

THE INTERIOR AND EXTERIOR​

Refurbishment specialist Mercury Facilities Management recognises that the major challenge at Barcena is in retaining the venue's thriving daytime café business while attracting the wine bar crowd at night.

Mercury marketing and development manager Brian Canavan believes the bar suffers from location problems being set back from the eye line and hidden behind by two rather large bus stops. "The poor signage and lack of lighting are two areas that can help Richard achieve a quick fix once we know his final vision for Barcena," he says.

Brian believes a refurbishment carried out under the previous owners was poorly executed, and has resulted in too much of the bar being closed off from external view. "Mercury will look at alternative layouts and fittings to help get the wine bar feel that Richard wants to achieve in the evenings," he says.

The company is also looking closely at the cellar, following the issues previously highlighted by Innserve (The Publican, March 5). Other actions identified, budget permitting, include:

- layout and décor

- toilets

- fixtures and fittings

- signage and exterior lighting

- co-ordinating with the other champions' recommendations to provide a structured project plan.

As for the smoking ban, Barcena is landlocked and the only option is a pavement licence to make full use of the very wide pavement at the front. Watch this space for details.