If we trace the growth of Lean in the UK and other economies it has gradually, sometimes rapidly, followed challenging times - times that demand doing more with what a business has already. Times where quality of service sets the winners apart and where transformation is needed rather than repetition of old practices. Times like now.
A case study:
A busy boutique coffee shop was struggling to make the profits it needed. The plan was to expand into other outlets, but the business model was not generating the confidence to expand. Alturos worked with the staff of the outlet, over different shifts and they examined each and every activity they undertook during the day. When these were pictorially displayed, a number of things became evident.
Three examples were:
- Staff were having to refer to other, more experienced or senior staff so much of the time that it was slowing down the speed at which they could serve customers;
- Whilst back of house layout appeared to be efficient, deeper analysis revealed that the layout in certain spots was resulting in staff tripping over one-another and slowing down service;
- Over recent months they were too frequently running out of decaffeinated coffee. Originally it was thought that it was purely down to supply problems, but the team collected data which showed that demand had steadily increased.
By looking at their business, using continuous improvement principles, a number of opportunities to improve productivity and therefore costs had been revealed.
The team proposed a staff training programme to eliminate the constant referrals from one staff member to another, designed a new layout to overcome the 'hotspots', and guided by Alturos, designed a real time replenishment system, not only the decaffeinated coffee, but all other fast moving lines, to prevent stock outs and gain additional sales. The owner was delighted and had no hesitation in giving his full backing to the team.
The changes were implemented over the following month. The team were really motivated and engaged with the whole process, because they had undertaken the work themselves.
The sales and profits of the shop have been lifted significantly. The owner's confidence in rolling-out his coffee shop brand has been restored. One idea that came out was for existing staff to be heavily involved in the layout of new outlets and the recruitment and training of new staff.
Contact us on 0870 471 7127 for an informal chat about how Lean can support your retail business or you can use our contact form.
Lean in Retail is typically associated with those referred to as ‘retail giants’. But you don’t have to be big – you just have to think big and aim high. The giants don’t use Lean because they are big – they used the method to get big and stay that way.
