Page 41 - Conveniece World Magazine Nov/Dec 2020

CAFÉ CONVENIENCE P&C outsiders, prove inspirational So, just how similar is the non-P&C café to a P&C one? Mr Brick says that because of how different their purposes and cliental are, that it’s not much. “I think regular cafes have a totally different offering to the petrol and convenience sector,” he said. “With regular cafes, it is about an experience, about socialising and perhaps more about savouring your meal, enjoying the company you’re in and the physical environment you’re doing that in. “The petrol and convenience sector on the other hand caters to people with busy lifestyles, who are on the go. The tradie who needs to grab lunch, while refuelling or the inner-city worker who needs to grab a bite for breakfast on the way to the office.” However, one thing that Mr Brick knows both cafes have in common, is the increasing customer expectations. “Consumer expectations are always increasing though, and we see this demand for better quality, greater choice, increased freshness in P&C, the same as any other industry,” he said. “These demands push operators to review what equipment they adopt and how they use it, in store processes, food packaging and presentation and the food itself. This continual drive forces innovation and progression and is great for the category and our industry in general.” While on one side, Mr Brick says that there is minimal inspiration drawn from a regular café to one amongst the P&C channel – Mr Gronow says that there are many things cafes in P&C can take from non-P&C cafes. “We cannot afford to get complacent, despite being leaders in the industry,” Mr Gronow said. “Non-P&C cafes tend to have a very singular focus: food and coffee. Therefore, most of these cafes have their fingers on the pulse in terms of shop designs, interior layouts, coffee technology etc. “The P&C channel are multi-faceted operations. Not only do we have to focus on food and coffee, but we have to maintain all of the required health and safety/operations standards of a service station. “At Bowser Bean Café, we take a lot of inspiration of ‘regular cafes’ for these reasons.” NOV/DEC, 2020 CONVENIENCE WORLD 39 TO PAGE 40