For restaurants, cafes and any other establishment that provides food you may be forgiven for thinking that customer service and the quality of the dishes you serve are the only things that matter. After all, as long as people are enjoying great food served by polite staff is the standard of their appearance really that important?
Every ingredient in the customer experience is important
A fantastic restaurant experience isn’t just made up of the food and service but everything about the customer journey. Decor, atmosphere and indeed the appearance of the staff are all essential, and you don’t want anything to let down your efforts in the kitchen down.
If staff, either front of house or in the kitchen, are not dressed smartly or appropriately then it will reflect poorly on your business, and distract your patrons from fully enjoying the experience. After all, if your staff’s uniforms are dirty customers won’t know whether everything else is cleaned correctly.
Consistent Brand Identity
When it comes to choosing where to eat, consumers have dozens of choices and sometimes even more, so it is imperative that you differentiate your eatery from the competition, and you do this with effective branding.
However developing a brand requires a consistent message, and your staff uniform is an important part of this. For example, if you’re trying to portray sophistication and classy dining you’re going to deliver an inconsistent tone if your staff are wearing t-shirts and jeans, while employees dressed in suits and ties would be out of place in a casual diner.
Health & Safety
For restaurants and other eating establishments health, safety and cleanliness is of utmost importance, and staff uniform is as important in this regard as it is in appearance, particularly in the kitchen.
Preventing burns caused by spills and splashes from hot food is one of the main jobs of kitchen staff uniforms, while they are also designed to be fire retardant. There are now also stricter regulations regarding non-slip footwear in kitchens.
Inevitably a chef’s jacket is going to get dirty – if it didn’t then they are probably not working hard enough – which is why they are typically reversible so that they can turn it around and continue to present a clean image to the customers when required.
Medco are one such company who provide a variety of high quality catering uniforms that are available in a range of colours with over 30 different trim options.
A lot of dedication and thought goes into creating a strong restaurant brand, so don’t let something as simple as scruffy staff clothing undo all of that hard work.
This guest blog was written by John Rooney on behalf of Medco, stockists of a wide range of chef and catering uniforms to help you develop a strong and appropriate brand image.
For more information click here