design:retail - January 2015 - (Page 34)
searching for steve jobs
034
The Dinner
Club
ROBERT HOCKING
RETALE MATTERS
robert@retalematters.com
@rhockinguk
W
H E N S T UA RT
LANGLEY found a
woman in distress
outside his dining club, he was
worried. A compact man with big
ideas for a food business built entirely on word of mouth, he knew
an unhappy customer had broad
implications on his success.
"Is something wrong?"
"Yes, I feel ill." [Food poisoning
can be deadly, literally for the patron
and figuratively for the restaurateur.]
"I'm the owner, I'm sorry..."
She cut him off: "This is entirely
your fault."
This wasn't going to go well.
"I was at one of your events two years ago. I
came on my own and ended up meeting the man
who'd become my fiancé. I've just found out I'm
pregnant and my morning sickness is kicking off!"
One more surprise in a surprising business.
I met Langley at an event where he shared how
he got his start. He explained that he set out with a
dream to be in the food business, but with almost
no money to make it happen; circumstances he described as making all the difference for his success.
The approach taken by many budding restaurateurs is to find a location, sink tons of money into it-
$225,000 according to RestaurantOwner.com-and
hope the customers come in. Langley had $7,500,
no location, and needed to find customers who'd
be willing to pay before knowing what they'd eat or
where, for him to get his business started.
Langley's business, The Disappearing Dining Club,
is essentially about creating experiences centered on
food, and those experiences literally can happen anywhere. Starting out, he had access to a kitchen but
nowhere for people to eat, so he needed to improvise-
and that's when retail spaces came to mind.
JANUARY 2015
DESIGNRETAILONLINE.COM
Walking past shops one day, he wondered what
went on after they closed and thought: "Why can't
dining and retail live together? Shops are nice
places to be, the clothes make an incredible backdrop, retailers need exposure and they're closed
at night-and I need underused space, so there's a
direct benefit to the both of us." His first foray began by negotiating the set-up of a dining table at
the back of a clothing shop and inviting people in.
As he puts it, "Customers don't think about shops
the way most retailers do, simply as rails, change
rooms and a cash till. They see fantastic spaces
they're attracted to, because they come in hoping
to find a different and better version of themselves.
Eating in a shop makes sense because they already
go there with a mind to hanging out. I simply give
people a reason to come and spend time."
He said he marvels at retail's common complaint about getting customers. "You don't need
more money, you need better ideas," he says. "It's
easy to do things if you've got the money, but what
do you do when you don't have it? This was what
faced me when I started out: I had the same end
in mind, but I couldn't sacrifice,
so I needed a different approach.
The only capital I had was 'creative
capital,' and that outlook made me
think differently about creating
reasons for people to pay attention.
And it has colored everything I do.
Our view of 'better' isn't about being more efficient, it's about being
more creative."
There are many fascinating
things about Langley's philosophy,
but most of all is his fervent belief
that necessity truly is the mother
of invention. And few have demonstrated the truth of this more
than he has: to take retail environments and make them spaces
people want to hang out in? Four years after his
first "dinner club," he's hosted dinner parties in
stores (among other venues) all over London and
counts 40,000 happy customers on his database.
And retailers now turn to him asking if he can add
to their spaces.
His business today still is about surprise settings,
dining with strangers and creativity. Although his
success has given him the freedom to be "less creative," he explains that having to dig deep, to think
through what will ultimately make people choose
the unfamiliar over the familiar lies in figuring out
what moves people.
Over the years, Langley has had numerous
business-types tell him his concept will never
work. But, his history of no money and no space
has morphed into a growing reputation and his
first permanent location-located in the back of a
clothing shop.
ROBERT HOCKING IS A LONDON-BASED RETAIL BRAND CONSULTANT
WHO LOVES RETAIL BUT HATES SHOPPING-AND CONTINUES TO
SEARCH FOR STORES THAT WILL CHANGE HIS MIND.
Photo by ROBERT HOCKING
http://www.DESIGNRETAILONLINE.COM
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of design:retail - January 2015
design:retail - January 2015
Contents
Editor’s Note
Show Talk
On Trend
We Love This!
Designer Picks
Innovation
How’d They Do That?
Postcard
Mingle
Have You Heard?
The Visual Eye
Searching for Steve Jobs
West Elm
Winning Windows
Birchbox
Holt Renfrew
Visual Products
Products
Backstory
design:retail - January 2015
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/20200708
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/20200506
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/20200304
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/20200102
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/20191112
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/20190910
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201907
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201906_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201906
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201905_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201905
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201904
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/2019_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201903_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201903
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/20190102_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/20190102
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/20181112_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/20181112
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201810
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201809
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201808
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201807
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/20180607
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/20180405
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201803
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201802
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201801
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/20171112
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201710
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201709
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201708
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201707
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201706
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201704
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201703
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201702
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201701
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/20161112
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201610
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201609
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201608
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201607
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201606
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/20160405
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201603
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201602
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201601
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/20151112
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201510
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201509
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201508
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201507
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201506
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/20150405
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201503
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201502
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201501
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/20141112
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201410
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201409
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201408
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201407
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201406
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/20140405
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201403
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/designretail/201402
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/designretail_201401
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_20131112
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_201310
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_201309
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_201308
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_201307
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_201306
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_20130405
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_20130203
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_201301
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_20121112
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_201210
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_201209
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_201208
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_201207
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_201206
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_20120405
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_20120203
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_201201
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_20111112
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_201110
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_201110v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_201109_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_201109
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_201108_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_201108
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_201107
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_201106
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_20110405
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_201103
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_20110102
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_20101112
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_201010
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_201009
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_201008
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_201007
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_201006
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_20100405
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_201003
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_20100102
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_20091112
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_200910
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_200909
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_200908
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_200907
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_200906
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_200905
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_200904
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_200903
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_200902
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_200901
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nielsen/ddi_200812
https://www.nxtbookmedia.com