C110E RE-OPENING OF POPPY CAFÉ
1. Introduction
Business operation management plays a significant role in the success of a business. It helps to solve current disruptions in business operations. Henceforth, effective operation management planning is required for improving the business function. Poppy cafe is a large food and beverage facility that offers delicious coffee, cake, sandwich, and Thai foods to the customers. It is important to redesign the business and outlet after lockdown to maintain COVID protocols, and safety measures to satisfy the consumers. This report is going to focus on redesigning of seating arrangement, and infrastructure of outlets by following the guidelines of the UK government imposed for the hospitality Sector. The study is going to provide a proposed floor plan and layout for Poppy cafe which will help the organization to conduct business operations by following COVID restrictions and satisfy the customers with attractive outlet designing.
2. 4Vs analysis on the profile of Poppy café
Business operation is the key factor that determines the success of any business. In the food and beverage sector business operation is majorly dependent on the employees and their dedication towards specific jobs. In the service-based sector, it is important to take the necessary steps to complete service through consecutive tasks. The reopening of Poppy cafe in the UK after lockdown is going to be analyzed with 4Vs analysis which includes important business aspects such as Volume, visibility, variation, and variety. 4Vs analysis helps in identifying details of the required quantity of substances according to the customer’s demand.
Volume
Volume refers to the quantity of production required to meet the market demand that goes through certain business operations. It helps to evaluate the number of products needed to be produced by an organization to regulate the supply chain and productivity. As per the view of Chowdhury (2020), all the leading organizations regulate volumes on the basis of customer demand and expectation in order to eliminate overproduction as well as under-production. Poppy cafe needs to regulate the volume of production based on the customer demand to avoid wasting products and resources. Volume helps to monitor the scale of productivity even during a crisis period such as the Covid pandemic. Along with this, the volume dimension is effective for identifying customer base with their requirements which helps to improve business operations to satisfy customers and create an equilibrium condition between demand and supply.
Visibility
Visibility is a significant factor that is mostly required in the service-based industry. Visibility helps to create a value chain by assembling and tracking down all the business processes simultaneously by putting them together. It helps to enhance customer experience by maintaining productivity, product quality, transparency, and on-time delivery. Poppy cafe requires an effective order-taking system, a system regarding tracking down all the orders and display to show customer names according to order number (Martani et al. 2021). Besides this, time management is important to satisfy the customers by providing food and beverage within a reasonable time. Henceforth, visibility is required to provide customers best quality service within the specified timeline.
Variation
Variation of an organization evaluates the change in pattern in customer demand and requirements through different periods of time. Therefore, an organization needs to track down any kinds of change in customer behaviour and demands to identify the market trends and make new strategies for achieving sustainability (Soyer et al. 2019). The possibility of variation depends on the various external factors. It is important for Poppy cafe to monitor variation by analyzing customers’ requirements. Change in customers’ behaviour and requirements can be identified by conducting surveys on the customers or taking feedback from the consumers. Henceforth, Poppy cafe needs to track down the demand for individual products to develop new strategies to improve market trends.
Variety
Variety indicates the distinctiveness among the products produced by a specific organization. It is important to produce products of a wide range of varieties to satisfy customers and achieve sustainable growth. However, a complex operational system is required to enhance the variety in production. Poppy cafes have a simple menu with less variety however, the organization maintains the quality and taste of foods even for vegan people. Poppy cafe needs to develop a variety of items with the help of flexibility, and versatility in business operation management. A variety of products help in improving flexibility in providing service to the customers and cut down the cost as well.
Figure 1: 4Vs analysis
(Source: Chowdhury, 2020)
3. Floor plan
The proposed floor plan is provided below with every requirement mentioned by the management of Poppy cafe for reopening after the lockdown situation. It includes Specific seating arrangements, billing desk, kitchen, washroom, and one-way system making entrance and exit.
Figure 2: Floor plan
(Source: Self-created)
4. Justification of Layout
The layout of the organization has been prepared by following all the guidelines and restrictions of COVID-19 announced by the UK government for the hospitality sector. As per the view of Nhamo et al. (2020), seating arrangement plays a crucial role in redesigning the outlet after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Henceforth, all the guidelines of safe distancing have been followed in the proposed floor plan to maintain a safe distance among the customers. Therefore, a distance of a minimum of one meter has been maintained among the tables and other arrangements of Poppy cafe. Along with this, pathways and specific directions to reach the billing desk and food counter have been provided to avoid gatherings. Furthermore, directions to use washrooms and the exit point have been provided with layouts that are going to help the organization to maintain social distance by directing customers with appropriate signage. This proposed plan is going to be immensely beneficial for Poppy cafe before reopening in the context of following new norms and restrictions of the COVID protocol.
One Way path has been proposed in the floor plan to avoid hustle and gathering among the customers and employees. All the customers have a single and specific direction to reach the billing counter or food desk or exit point. Besides this, there is free space behind the entrance gate for implementing a sanitizer spray machine which can be used by the customers for sanitizing their hands before taking a seat. The seating arrangement has been designed by keeping a similar distance among all the tables while the tables for 6 people have been designed at two extreme walls of the cafe. All the nesting arrangement has been designed segregated within the outlet of the cafe by maintaining similar distance among them. The washroom has been located in the floor plan at the back-end near the one-way exit point to direct all the customers in a single pathway to avoid unnecessary gatherings (Restaurant.org, 2021). Henceforth, the one-way movement towards the food counter, billing desk, or washroom makes the panning suitable according to the COVID guidelines and restrictions.
Figure 3: COVID protocol for the hospitality sector in the UK
(Source: Musfiratun, 2021)
The billing counter, food desk, and takeaway desk are situated at the front of the sitting arrangement so that all the customers can easily reach the specific point in the following single direction. As opined by Chamass et al. (2021), it will help to reduce the hustle and maintain occupancy in the cafe. The seating arrangement has been forecasted in three categories including tables for 4 people, 2 people, and 6 people consecutively. In the middle section of the outlet, a row of 5 tables has been designed with the capacity of having twoopeople. On both sides of the central row, five circular tables are designed in each row with a capacity of a maximum of four people in a table. At both lateral ends of the cafe, there are sitting arrangements of a total of five tables that have the incapacity of a maximum of six people. All the tables have been arranged by maintaining a distance of one meter among them. Signage has been used to direct the customers and delivery persons for takeaway service into a particular direction by following one-way movement. Besides this, the billing desk, food counter, and takeaway counter have been separated to avoid unnecessary crowds by maintaining a safe distance. Sanitization machines can be implemented at both ends of the entrance and exit. A digital display has been designed for mentioning the food order by following an appropriate sequence to invite customers at the food desk one by one to receive food service.
Figure 4: Layout of the proposed plan
(Source: Self-created)
This proposed plan and layout have been fabricated to provide Poppy cafe an effective outlet design by maintaining all the restrictions and guidelines of the UK government regarding COVID-19. It will help the organization to redesign its outlet with specific sitting arrangements and layout by ensuring customers’ safety as well.
5. Recommendation
The business scenario of the hospitality sector has been changed after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. It is important to redesign outlets and business operation management in order to conduct business sustainability in the new normal by following government guidelines and restrictions. Following recommendations are given to Poppy cafe which needs to be taken into consideration for reopening after the lockdown situation:
It is important to focus on a one-way path to avoid gathering inside the outlet. The organization needs to use direction signs inside the cafe to provide direction to the customers in a specific direction and control the movement (Restaurant.org, 2021). It is going to help in managing safe distances among the consumers inside Poppy cafe. Sanitizer machines need to be installed at the entrance and exit for the consumers. Along with this, thermal checking of customers should be mandatory before entering the cafe.
The seating arrangement is one of the major factors in the post-covid situation. Henceforth, Poppy cafe needs to follow the proposed floor plan to maintain a minimum distance of one meter among the tables and billing desk. It will help the organization to maintain a safe distance and the guidelines of the UK government for the hospitality sector. Along with this regular sanitization of tables, billing desk, food counter, washroom, and every touchpoint are required as a safety measure.
Poppy cafe needs to prioritize food safety and hygiene before reopening the outlet. All the employees and cooking staff need to be instructed to use masks, head shields, aprons, and gloves during preparing foods and serving to the customers (Cdc.gov, 2021). Along with this, online transactions need to be promoted in the bullring to avoid direct touches with consumers. Sanitizing hands need to be considered as regular practice by the employees at Poppy cafe. Regular thermal checking needs to be mandatory for the employees and staff of the organizations. Besides this, free vaccination needs to be provided to the employees to resist the contamination and transmission of Coronavirus.
The organization needs to promote takeaway service in the post-covid period to avoid gathering and over-occupancy in the cafe. Therefore, the hierarchy of Poppy cafes needs to develop a website for taking orders, online payments, offering the best deals, and tracking down the orders. Besides this, the organization needs to recruit some delivery persons and train them for maintaining health and safety measures according to the COVID-19 protocol. They need to ensure that all the protective measures are being taken while giving home delivery to the customers.
6. Conclusion
The study has summarized important information on business operation management of Poppy cafe based on the 4Vs analysis. All the dimensions of the 4Vs analysis have been discussed in the context of Poppy cafe based on the customer’s needs and demands. It has provided knowledge on effective business operation strategies that need to overcome the uncertainties regarding the COVID situation and lockdown. The study has provided a proposed floor plan including seating arrangements, billing desk, washrooms, the one-way path for entrance and exit according to the COVID-19 protocols for the hospitality sector. Along With this, justification has been made in the context of the proposed floor plan with movement layout by maintaining the norms of social distancing. A proper flow and layout have been discussed with specific signs and directions to control the customers in the cafe. Moreover, effective recommendations have been discussed here which need to be followed by the management of Poppy cafe before reopening after lockdown to ensure customers’ safety.
Reference
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