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Views from Across the Pond

Café Olivia Adds Value, Volume to Store Traffic

Blog post and photos by Trevor Cole

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To accommodate the influx of customers, most garden centers and nurseries in England have restaurants or cafes on the premises. Britons come to shop, spend quality time and enjoy a meal or a cup of tea in an unhurried way.

While the food business is far more competitive in the United States than in the United Kingdom, it’s always puzzled me why more U.S. garden centers do not offer the same amenity.

The seed originally sown at home in England started to germinate when I observed the customer patterns in my own stores:

1. On any given Saturday, the early crowd walks in with a Starbucks in hand. I thought, "They should be buying that high-dollar coffee from me."
2. Nearly any event at our stores that involved serving food -- from our annual Holiday Open House to our summer outdoor cooking demonstrations -- attracts large crowds, many of whom ended up spending more time at our store.

Last February, we got serious about the concept. We hired a chef and started preparations. It proved more complex than I’d envisioned: renovating an under-used office library into a café, sourcing used restaurant equipment, converting our employee breakroom into a commercial kitchen, spending two days getting certified in food preparation, dealing with the endless regulations of the health department and of course narrowing down a workable menu.

All along, I felt strongly about being local, sustainable and environmentally aware.

• Our coffee comes from a local micro-roaster who roasts the beans the day we order them so they are fresh, the key to good coffee.
• Our ice cream comes from a popular regional creamery and is hand-dipped.
• We offer simple sandwiches, paninis, salads, quiches, specialty coffees and teas, homemade desserts and ice cream.
• All the vegetables come from local sources, and by Spring we hope to grow most of our produce in our display gardens.
• Laurie, our chef, makes the desserts, scones, muffins and bread from scratch.

We named the restaurant after our daughter, Olivia, who already is featured in all our radio, TV and print ads. Café Olivia opened in mid-October, and we had nearly 40 reservations the first day.

We provide seating inside the café for up to 25 guests or outside in a cozy courtyard, anchored by a fountain. We provide free Wi-Fi and a flat-screen plasma TV to encourage customers to relax and linger.

For large groups, such as a local garden club that booked a store tour that culminated with lunch at Café Olivia, we seat guests in the outdoor furniture pavilion overlooking an array of fountains and our Nature Garden. The idea is to attract customers and provide them with a nice place to sit back and spend time with us.

Some customers shop while waiting for their orders. Other customers call-ahead for take-out and pick up additional items when they check out. Some customers make it as an excuse to meet friends for lunch or a snack.

Whatever the case, Café Olivia adds value and volume to our store traffic.

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Café Olivia Adds Value, Volume to Store Traffic

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Sounds good. Do you serve a good English Cuppa - Typhoo with 2 sugars please. Hope to visit soon. Ray Miller, Doddington, PE Posted: 2/26/2012 10:54:06 AM This is a good overview. I have eaten in the Cafe and found the food very good. Deserts are always a must. And the sandwiches rather large and filling. Keep up the good work, Laurie/Trevor Vickie, Huntsville, AL Posted: 11/23/2010 5:53:56 AM Sounds fabulous - Can't wait to visit! Sue, Kent, England, AL Posted: 11/15/2010 11:41:42 PM