The same Coin with 2 Sides bonded by the Rim

Owner, Manager and I - luxuriated in an elegant English afternoon tea on the spacious verandah overlooking the sprawling mature garden of a stately home, while a harpist softly plucked soothingly in the plush décor of the drawing room inside. They chose classic, clean, Assam while I sipped my favored aromatic, sensuous Early Grey; reflective of our personalities, perhaps? Ahhh! Deceptive bliss! Different persons, varying (perhaps even conflicting) agendas but with one purpose – to foster better cohesion among the business communities we serve within.

This surprising Tea was spawned by my Reason’s urgency to resolve issues at the soonest possible, while the opportunity still presented itself. It was the result of hours of building bridges, to cement them face-to-face. As I (the shuttle diplomat) played host, explaining the various daintily presented courses, my mind sped to and from the days of training and discussions we’d just completed, about moving the groups forward. I listened as Owner and Manager shared stories of their international experiences with other groups under the same umbrella. Tick, tick, tick went my brain – cultural differences demand segmented positioning, I silently decided. One size simply cannot fit all. Hmmmmm.

But you know, here’s the funny ha ha part – the situation made me think of 2 F&B establishments in London – the Ivy and the Pear Tree. Okay, so you may have heard of the Ivy in central London. This is where glam celebrities get spotted, and it caters to the smart business set and ogling tourists. Now the Pear Tree – that’s a VERY different kettle of fish – it’s a pub that is frequented by a different social class who physically perspire at their work, and their suppliers too. Its attraction was a gaudy stripper at lunchtime on weekdays, when they are heavily patronized. Both the Ivy and the Pear Tree serve Food and Beverages, but provide vastly differing entertainment (ogling at either the glamorous or the gaudy) set in an ambience (posh or basic) that makes their clientele feel at ease so that they return for more. Talk about cleverly securing customer loyalty huh?

And then there’s us, discussing the pulls and tugs of our varying roles. Why? So that we could achieve delivering sustainable profitability to each member in our care; that after all is why they come on board anyway. Or is it? Oh, what the hey – that’s a separate issue anyway. The crux of the issue is to provide appropriate standardized platforms that can be differentiated to suit the culture of each group.

Amid discussions, Manager cast an unfavorable eye over the dainty dish cuddling the crème brulee and decided to skip it. ‘Not MY cup of tea!’ she said, BUT she had never even tried it before! Coaxed by Owner and me she tentatively dipped a corner of a delicate silver spoon into the edge of the trembling yellow confection, and placed a teeny tiny bit onto her expectant tongue. Ooooo! Surprisingly delicious! She actually finished her cupful with delighted relish. YES she did!

That encapsulated the theme of the our discussion for me: Offer the fixed structural set (afternoon tea), and then – without compromising those principles that are set in stone (3 varying courses introduced by the staple scones, double cream & fresh strawberries accompanied by a range of flavored teas) – flexibly keep adjusting (“oh, do try the crème brulee won’t you?”) and re-adjusting the ambience, entertainment, décor, food etc to give people an experience they just can’t resist keep coming back for more to. That’s the supreme marketing mix, isn’t it! SMILE. But uh-huh you've got it, it takes the professionalism of a juggler to carry it off well – that’s what separates the good from the brilliant anyway.