| Why did the downtown restaurant close? | | | | fast. The food was mediocre and the serving |
| The downtown restaurant opened about a year | | | | staff either failed to recognize the inconvenience |
| earlier. I wasn't surprised that it closed. I was | | | | or made excuses when we pointed out the short |
| surprised that it stayed open so long. It was | | | | comings. |
| around the corner from my office. I walked past | | | | So why did the downtown restaurant fail? I |
| it every time I visited the restaurant next door - | | | | suspect that the restaurant owners followed a |
| about once a week. | | | | marketing strategy of hope. Hope is an admirable |
| Have you ever watched a restaurant open and | | | | personal quality. It is a lousy marketing strategy. |
| then watch it slowly starve to death? Have you | | | | I never visited this restaurant because it did not |
| ever wondered why they failed? Or did you know | | | | look inviting. I walked past at lunch time on a |
| what they were doing wrong? Maybe you even | | | | snowy day and the sidewalk wasn't cleaned. It |
| offered constructive feedback to the staff and | | | | looked uninviting. |
| owners only to get a nasty look in return. We can | | | | It had floor-to-ceiling sized windows across the |
| see the self-destruction - while the owners seem | | | | front - but it always looked dark inside - as if the |
| to be oblivious. | | | | lights weren't on. I was never sure about the |
| Why is that? Because we see it from the | | | | cuisine although it hinted at Italian - which is my |
| perspective of a customer. The owners are | | | | favorite. It never looked busy, and oftentimes |
| engulfed in their emotional world of "It's mine - it | | | | looked closed. It lacked music that might have |
| must be beautiful". And maybe they keep telling | | | | suggested excitement to invite folks in. I saw |
| themselves, "Hey, I spent a lot of money fixing | | | | nothing that looked like a grand opening. I saw |
| up this place - people just have to see it my way | | | | nothing special going on. Although my office was |
| - eventually". | | | | just around the corner, I never saw an |
| What business are you in? | | | | announcement or invitation. I never saw anyone |
| One of the biggest mistakes that restaurant | | | | standing outside to welcome passers-by from the |
| owners make is to believe that they are in the | | | | main street of town. |
| food business. Big mistake! Grocery stores are in | | | | Imagine if they had done something just a little |
| the food business. Restaurants are in the | | | | different to create excitement. Imagine if they |
| experience business. The experience at McDonalds | | | | had put balloons outside, hired dancers, held free |
| is very different from that at Boston Pizza from | | | | draws, sponsored a charity event, knocked on |
| TGI Fridays from Ruth's Chris Steak House. Yet | | | | doors, offered coupons, distributed menus, invited |
| they are all in the same business - just different | | | | service clubs to meet... something. |
| segments of it. | | | | Well, too bad that it closed; I was thinking that I |
| Why do restaurants fail? It's usually not the food. | | | | might check it out one time. The food might have |
| Here are three more restaurant failures that I | | | | been superb. But restaurants are not in the food |
| witnessed recently in our neighborhood. | | | | business. They are in the experience business. |
| There was the Middle Eastern restaurant that | | | | They failed to invite me in, which is the first part |
| offered Shwarma in a setting that looked more | | | | of the experience. |
| like a Burger King than a Middle Eastern | | | | This downtown restaurant failed in early 2006 - |
| décor. A big disconnect. And even though | | | | long before the current turbulent times. You can |
| I lived only three blocks away I never received a | | | | imagine that the business owners probably blamed |
| flyer from them. They seemed reluctant to | | | | the market, the location or luck instead of their |
| advertise. | | | | own lack of marketing. Those business lessons |
| Joe's Dinner seemed like a welcome change. They | | | | are even more important today. Many businesses |
| advertised in the paper, on lamp posts and sign | | | | will fail over the next few years and the owners |
| boards. Lots of promotion. However, after three | | | | will blame the "market" instead of being |
| breakfast visits I swore never to return because | | | | responsible for their own success or failure. |
| the service was very slow and the servers | | | | They had a good location and the economy was |
| unfriendly. The young girls were clearly untrained | | | | good yet they still failed. Location is not the |
| and they seemed more interested in chatting with | | | | panacea. Luck comes if you do enough of the |
| their friends than serving customers. Often three | | | | right things. Business will fail in good and bad |
| of the staff chatted openly at the bar. | | | | economies. Only the excuses will change. |
| I looked forward to the opening of the new | | | | Learn from the lessons of these failed |
| English pub. The décor was impressive. | | | | restaurants. I recently spent over $100 on dinner |
| The owners clearly invested a lot of money. Lots | | | | for two at a fine dinning restaurant. The service |
| of wood, a dance floor and it was small enough | | | | was fabulous. We would go again. Be very clear |
| to be cozy. After one breakfast visit, one lunch | | | | on the experience you must deliver. If you run a |
| and two dinner explorations they were written | | | | restaraunt you are not in the food business. |
| off my list. The service made the glaciers look | | | | |