Destination profit: Part two

Location, location, location
The location of your deli can have a huge impact on creating the ‘destination’. If the deli is in a popular tourism area, business can be seasonal so you need to consider how to attract people, for example, on a cold Tuesday in February, “so maybe try loyalty cards, e-newsletters and social media,” says Edward Berry from The Flying Fork. “Post on Facebook ‘come and see us on Tuesday, we’ll be tasting tea/ cheese/wine’. To get people to browse longer, consider putting in a coffee machine, serving lunch and include a few stools in the window for people to sit on.” Location is key for Farmers Fayre Farmers Shop & Kitchen as it is on Stoneleigh Park, a business park in Warwickshire. “On site there are 100 shows a year,” says Nicole Reece, managing director. “It’s very diverse – everything from dressage events, car boot sales to fishing shows. We adapt our products to suit the market and make sure products are seasonal. I’m always looking for new products and the more local they are, the better. If you have a good rapport with a local supplier, they will network on your behalf. We use 40 local suppliers. You don’t need space to give a customer an experience; it just needs to be innovative.

Mainstreet Trading Company is in St Boswells on the Scottish Borders and combines a bookshop, café, deli and homewares shop. Owner Bill de la Hey says, “As we’re in a rural setting, people rely on us. You have to be a destination to get people through the door. We like to think of Mainstreet Trading Co as a destination in itself.” Bill’s wife Rosamund was in publishing and it was her idea to open a bookshop with a café. Bill says, “It’s difficult to operate a big bookshop in a rural location, you need other draws so we added the deli and housewares shop to create a real destination and to keep people longer. I buy something because I like it – I do research by going into other people’s shops and attend trade shows.” A family can spend at least half a day at Mainstreet Trading Company, he says, as there are four departments to visit. “We do a lot of PR ourselves, we write articles, and social media helps to bring people here.” Papadeli in Bristol opened a cookery school six years ago. Catrin McDonnell, director, says, “Having a cookery school helps bring in customers as they get to see behind the scenes, try out ingredients and learn how to use them in dishes. People who’ve attended courses at the school buy ingredients in the deli and it all helps to create a sense of belonging and family.”

Events
Holding regular events at your deli is a great way to create a ‘destination’ and attract people into the shop. It could be tastings with small producers, talks by experts or you could form a partnership with a third party. As Scott Winston from Scott Winston Fine Foods says, “Events and masterclasses can be a great way to engage a customer base and set you apart. A healthy calendar of events done well, can give you much needed additional revenue and help build your local profile.” Delilah Fine Foods has teamed up with nutritionist Dr Sally Bell for several events such as a women’s health evening where the deli will provide a menu fine-tuned to the topics being discussed. Sangita Tryner says that “Events really bring in people to the shop.” Food and wine pairing events are a regular feature at Delilah’s Fine Foods such as the recent sold out Italian food and wine evening. At this event, eight wines varieties were matched with Italian food. For Mainstreet Trading Company, it’s a massive part of the offering. Many events feature bestselling authors, chefs and celebrities, or there are panel discussions with a variety of experts. “It helps to pull in people from Edinburgh, an hour’s drive away,” says Bill. Form an events plan for the year, so you can promote it well in advance. Vhari Russell from The Food Marketing Experts says, “Create events and samplings that will pull in customers. Eventbrite, the ticketing web site (eventbrite.co.uk) is a great platform on which to share events and promote them to a larger audience than your own.”

Local community
Building up awareness among the local community in important because even if your deli is in the heart of a tourist area, business will be seasonal so you need to keep the regulars coming in. Nicola Reece from Farmers Fayre says, “You have to communicate with your customers.” The deli uses Facebook to ask people to nominate a charity which Farmers Fayre adopts for a year and holds six events to raise as much money as possible. “Get a charity on board,” says Reece. “Think about what’s going to be popular which will also get local media coverage and social media engagement.” As part of Sports Relief, Farmers Fayre brought in skiing machines and asked people to do a 30 minutes “ski” on the machine with a £10 entry. “Our target was 175 miles to raise money and all proceeds go to Lam Action charity.” Joining the local chamber of commerce is a good idea as you can meet other small business and keep abreast of what’s happening in the area. Broad Bean Deli is part of Ludlow Chamber of Commerce. “The more we can do to encourage people to visit Ludlow the better,” says Alice Evans. “As a destination deli, we want people to make a day of it.” At Papadeli in Bristol, every year a giant 5kg Easter Egg is raffled for a local charity. “We’ve been doing this for years and customers love it,” says Catrin MacDonnell. “We regularly attend charity events and donate vouchers or cookery class. It’s all part of being a local business. Winning awards also helps – we’ve been runner up in the Observer Food Monthly awards for several years – it’s amazing how many people come and visit as a result.” To be a successful destination deli, you need to know your customers’ preferences and create a ‘journey’ for them by offering unusual local products, holding interesting talks and tastings, providing knowledge and advice and above all, giving them a reason to dwell longer.

For the article in full download the April issue here.

Image: Westmorland Family