This week on pages 26, 27 and 28 (Caterer & Hotelkeeper 7-13 May 2010), Caterer looked at how to attract more women to your pub. As part of that, we offered a top 10 female-friendly tips, which are:
1 A warm greeting and send-off goes a long way2 Cleanliness is key, particularly in the loos3 Soft drinks aren’t just for children, stock some high-end products such as fresh juice4 Good value (not cheap) food and drink will get women in daily5 Keep the scheme evolving and fresh – ie, change the cushions or rotate artwork6 Local provenance will encourage more purchases7 Flexible furniture for groups of ladies or mums with prams8 Staff should be smart, even if it’s just matching branded polo shirts9 Soft furnishings such as cushions and curtains to soften the scheme and relax into10 Ensure your bar looks different at each stage of the trading day – eg, a Bloody Mary tray alongside cereal and pastries on the bar in the morningDesign tips were provided by Melony Spencer from design firm Spencer Swinden www.spencerswinden.com
But did we miss anything? Has anything worked for you that isn't on this list? Perhaps you tried something you didn't think would work but turned out to be a real hit, or vice versa.
I would say that the design, decor and offering of your business need to match your target clientele. A canny marketeer once told me about a trip she took to a wine bar she was doing some consultancy for. "What's your target market?" she asked the owner. "Ladies who lunch, and want to catch up with friends over a quality glass of good wine", replied the owner.
"So why don't you have a single wine glass or wine bottle on display behind the bar?"
Comfy seating, a good cocktail menu, wine selection and healthy option light bites on the menu never fail to draw me in. Couldn't agree more with number 1 on Neil's post, my old favourite pub would always welcome me with a smile, it was a big draw and made me go back time and again even though it wasn't the easiest of pubs to get too.
There's always that suggestions of what to do if you are on a budget: do a good job of refurbishing the ladies' loos and leave the mens. Not ideal, but the idea is that most women care much more about the state of the loos than men do, so if money's tight, that's the best place to spend it!
Totally agree - the ladies loo is very important and I personally get really turned off by unattractive, scummy loos. If they can't look after their loos it makes me wonder how clean the rest of the pub is!