Did you know I was one of the first Chop’t customers? I had just graduated college, and my office in NYC was right above the first Chop’t location on 56th Street in Manhattan. As a recent college grad with a salary to match, yet still a health-conscious eater, I quickly became a regular. I even went as far as knowing that if I got there before noon, I got three free choppings! And if I didn't add protein (I'd bring my own turkey or rotisserie chicken from home), I had a $6.95 lunch that was large enough to last two days. (Yes, I was that person bringing a Ziploc bag of turkey to work. Don't judge. Those were lean times. Literally and figuratively.)
How deep was my loyalty to Chop’t? Well, when I changed jobs a few years later and the closest Chop’t was three subway stops away, and catering wasn't an option, I wasn't about to give up my salads that easily. So, I worked out a deal with the Union Square location that if I could get at least 10 salads ordered from my new office, they would deliver to SoHo. Deal accepted. And just like that, half my office became weekly Chop’t regulars. (Wish I had loyalty points back then...but that’s another POV for another day). Fast-forward to today, and I happen to work three blocks from that very same Union Square Chop’t. And when it's my turn to pick lunch, you know where I'm suggesting.
Ok Julie, we get it, you love salads, especially from Chop’t…but what’s your point?
From that first Chop’t salad in 2006 until now, 20 years later (OOF!), it's incredible how much has changed and, surprisingly (and reassuringly), what hasn't. Other than the obvious, Chop’t has expanded to dozens of locations, added delivery, catering, digital ordering, and more. But I love that I can still walk the line, customize my salad, and have it chopped by a human. (Although, I recently had a delicious salad prepared using Spyce, so I'm certainly not knocking the machines!)
But here's what I find most interesting about my 20-year relationship with Chop’t. I wasn't just a loyal customer. I was basically an influencer before influencing was even a thing (yes, I’m still lamenting on my missed opportunity as an influencer.) I didn't become a Chop’t ambassador because someone asked me to. I became one because I genuinely loved the product. And when I couldn't get it anymore, I found a way to make it happen.
But there's another side to this story that I hadn't really thought about until now. Chop’t said yes.
Think about that for a second. I was a customer asking a restaurant to do something it didn't normally do…. deliver salads outside its delivery area. And instead of saying, "Sorry, we don't do that," someone listened. Someone recognized an opportunity. Someone figured out how to make it work. Now, I don't remember who that person was, and I'm fairly certain they had no idea that their decision would be the subject of a hospitality article 20 years later. But that one yes turned one loyal customer into 10 (or more!) weekly customers. And it created a story that I'm still telling two decades later.
We've all heard the expression, "The customer is always right." And anyone who has ever worked in hospitality knows that's not necessarily true. (Let's be real. Some customers are very, VERY wrong.) But I think there's a difference between believing the customer is always right and making the customer feel heard.
The customer doesn't always have to get their way. Restaurants have rules, systems, procedures, and, of course, a business to run. But I think the best hospitality happens when someone is empowered to think beyond the standard operating procedure and find a way to say yes.
And that's what makes this story so relevant today.
Look at your LinkedIn feed, conference agenda and content. How much time and bandwidth is spent talking about restaurant technology, automation, AI, labor efficiencies, and customer acquisition costs. (Hand raised, I do it too). I believe in innovation and the incredible opportunities technology creates for our industry. But let’s not forget the most impactful customer experience doesn't require a new platform, an algorithm, or a multimillion-dollar investment. It’s as simple as someone willing to pick up the phone, listen to a customer, and figure out a solution.
Don’t (@) me..I'm not suggesting restaurants should start delivering salads all over Manhattan because one demanding 20-something-year-old refuses to take the subway. (Although, in my defense, I did bring them 10 orders!) And I'm certainly not suggesting that the customer should always get what they want.
What I am harping on is that hospitality is about relationships. And relationships are built when people feel valued, listened to, and appreciated.
Twenty years ago, I was a recent college graduate trying to stretch a $6.95 salad into two lunches. Today, I'm a hospitality executive who spends her days working with restaurant brands and the companies helping them grow. A lot has changed in those 20 years. My lunch budget, definitely. My loyalty to Chop’t? Absolutely.
And while I'd like to think I was responsible for launching Chop’t's entire corporate catering business (kidding, kidding), I do know that one employee's willingness to say yes turned me into a customer for life.
So, is the customer always right? Absolutely not.
But sometimes, when a customer asks for something a little outside the box, the smartest thing a restaurant can do is listen.
Hey, you never know when that one yes might turn into 20 years of loyalty.
