Post #774058 by AceExplorer on Wed, Mar 15, 2017 12:27 PM

On 2017-03-15 12:08, Or Got Rum? wrote:
Great Example Ace! This is what I meant when I said on page one..."I love great atmosphere and authenticity, but a GREAT well trained staff that makes me feel "WELCOMED and valued" goes a damn long way with me." I think it can be THE most important asset you can have...your Employees. I would refer to them as "where the rubber meets the road".

Thank you, Or Got Rum, we're definitely on the same page. I always like to go back to what the customer would think sucks, and then I try to mitigate or avoid that. Lousy service and unenthusiastic employees hurt a business which is based on service and fun, and a tiki bar environment is such an effort. It should be escapism to a very high degree. Good music, good drinks, good atmosphere with friendly people. You don't have to be "the best" but you definitely cannot survive by being mediocre.

Find out what the BAD situations are, and then work very hard to avoid them. Hiring good people who care about the business is your front-line defense through which you can listen for problems, correct them, and avoid all-out failure.

By the way --- I believe that bartenders are a gateway to discovery. They can get customers out of their rum-and-coke ruts to discover rum barrels, mai tais, and more which will quickly set your bar apart from the other "noise" that's out there. But you gotta coddle your beer drinkers too. They can be good bread-and-butter baseline revenue. It took me a while to learn this, but it is now solid reality to me.

Edit: corrected "front-line defense against" to "front-line defense through which you can..."

[ Edited by: AceExplorer 2017-03-15 12:43 ]