Founded by husband and wife Juliette and Russel Joffe in 1998, the restaurant chain Giraffe has not only thrived throughout recent economic crises; rather, Mr Joffe insists the recession “has been positive for us”. He states, “It has enabled us to review our strategy. This is an opportune time to review your business – and aspects that you might forget in good times.”
The Joffes’ advice for not only surviving but possibly benefiting from times of austerity, are as follows:
Get best supply prices:
“We have gone back to some of our original mission statements; reviewing our staffing, talking to suppliers to get the best prices”
Run a tight ship, but don’t let this compromise the quality of your products or services:
“We don’t cut corners or cut costs. Everyone has to run a tighter business today. The ones that cut corners and costs are the ones that will suffer long-term because standards of service will decline. You need to keep the investment and innovation going. It is important that people see you moving forward rather than stagnating.”
Give customers a good deal:
“We have also been offering vouchers and deals. It’s the norm today. When people go out to eat, they think: ‘Where is there a voucher?’ We have been focusing on our service and offering customers the best value for money that we can”
“We are producing a better bottom-line profit by running a better business. We haven’t let go of any staff as such, just increased sales and not overheads.”
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