Don’t let your café become a Covid-19 casualty

Every industry around the world has been affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, but none more so than the hospitality industry. Now with lockdown easing, businesses are slowly moving to a new ‘normal’. Many cafes have already sadly succumbed to the pressures of lockdown and have had to permanently close their doors. In this tough new post-lockdown world, how can your cafe avoid becoming part of these statistics?

Make your customers and staff feel safe - Top of the list must be to follow government rules and guidelines, both for your staff and your customers. Investing in the right PPE, hand sanitiser, cleaning processes and one-way systems will ensure everyone feels safe and secure.

Utilise all your space - The number of people you can safely seat at any one time will make a substantial difference to your profits and adhering to the social distancing guidelines will reduce the number of covers you can have at any one time. Take a step back and see if you can free up any space. Maybe there is an unused corner which could accommodate a cafe table and chairs? Do you really need that big shelving unit or storage area? Why not take advantage of Cafe Reality’s planning service to illustrate the most effective use of the space available.

If you have an outside area, make sure it’s used to full capacity, particularly during the summer months when the weather is warmer and people want to sit outside. Think about the upcoming cooler months and perhaps consider installing patio heaters so this precious outside space will still be comfortable and usable.

Cafe furniture - Having the right type of furniture is paramount. Using smaller tables will take up less space and allow more covers. Cafe Reality offers a great selection of all types of cafe furniture in many shapes and sizes, both for indoor and outdoor use, all designed to enhance the look of your business.

Kerb appeal - Ensure your cafe looks fresh, colourful and inviting. The right decoration and cafe furniture play a key part in enticing customers inside, whether they are walking past and fancy a cappuccino and some lunch or they are browsing your website to book a table for dinner.

Customer service - One of the main factors which brings repeat business, it's vital to make sure your cafe stands head and shoulders above the competition with fantastic, friendly and efficient customer service. This doesn’t come naturally to everyone, so consider using role-play in your staff training to demonstrate how your employees can deal with the more challenging customer.