Eating in

Last month, Woolworths launched its new wine bar at its V&A store. This chic, European-style café is the first of its kind, but it’s also an upward extension of the in-store dining concept that is fast gaining ground – and popularity - in South Africa. Woolworths has initiated the trend, and currently operates 36 in-store cafes across the country.

The in-store café is so much more than another eating alternative in an overcrowded shopping centre. Managed correctly, the relationship between the brand’s food retail and foodservice enhances the customer’s perception of the food on offer – its variety, quality, preparation and freshness. It also gives the retailer the opportunity to demonstrate to greater extent and effect its customer service. For a while, the customer-turned-patron finds himself before a business-in-action performance, the quality of whose output is immediately discernible. The retailer has a captive audience of real and potential shoppers.

It’s a no-brainer that all the food and drink on the menu is available in-store. In-store dining offers the retailer an effective method of sampling products and building sales. It’s all about a synergistic dynamic. First World department stores may insist on placing their cafes on the top storey, exposing customers to as much store merchandise as possible. Not so Woolworths, whose cafes are strategically positioned adjacent to the food quarter.

The in-store café is the next stage in the product lines’ evolution, and it adds to the customer’s options. Depending on his mood and schedule, he can purchase food in-store for home preparation, make use of the “to go” and self-service facilities or sit back and enjoy table service.

Another pro of the retailer café is its almost automatic generation of additional in-store traffic (although it’ll be interesting to see whether the Woolies wine bar becomes a destination in its own right).

One of the challenges retailers face when creating a food service facility is deciding on its size. Rent is high, space is at a premium and retail space is always going to generate more income than foodservice. At the same time, the in-store cafe is perceived by the customer as an added value offering, and it procures for the retailer exactly that – value.

Marketing tool, product showcase, mark of hospitality, business extension – such is the versatility of the in-store ‘diner’.