Situated on the Thames Embankment, Gordon’s has the honour of being London’s oldest wine bar – a fact evident and celebrated in its stunning 19th century aesthetic, which appears to have changed very little since the venue first opened its doors in 1890. But while the look and feel of this historic venue may not have changed much, its operational needs certainly have.
We talked to Amanda Whiteside, administration manager at Gordon’s, about the challenges faced by this landmark family-run venue in today’s increasingly tough business climate and how Square has furnished the team with the solutions needed to improve operational efficiency, enhance the customer experience and save a small fortune in fees.
Key challenges and how Square offered solutions
- Struggles with integration: Amanda confessed that the previous solutions used by Gordon’s created efficiency bottlenecks due to a lack of integrations. “I can’t name and shame but the systems we’d been using for years struggled to integrate contactless payments with ordering certain devices and product information. None of it gelled.” Square’s robust integrations helped things run much more smoothly.
- Consistently excellent customer experience: The team at Gordon’s prides itself on creating a consistently excellent customer experience for its diverse range of guests. “It’s a family-owned business, it’s family-run, we are all really passionate about what we do”, Amanda told us. “So I think we are genuinely invested. And I hope that comes across to our customers.” Square’s easy-to-use hospitality solutions inform and empower staff at all levels, allowing them to focus on delivering the human touch to their customer service.
- New operations:Although Gordon’s does not generally accept reservations, it has recently opened up a new area called “The Cage” for private gatherings. This necessitates a booking system that also integrates seamlessly with the venue’s POS. What’s more, the venue also hopes to introduce its “Deli-To-Go” offering in the near future and hopes to diversify its offering without creating operational pitfalls.
- Brand aesthetic: The unique aesthetic of the venue is a key part of Gordon’s customer experience. Therefore, new systems had to be simple and unobtrusive so as not to detract from the bar’s iconic look. Square’s sleek, minimalist and aesthetically pleasing hardware solutions were more than up to the task.
Gordon’s’ implementation and training journey
Gordon’s is a family-run venue with a very flat management structure. The team works very closely together and prides itself on its communication and harmonious relationships among the different teams. As such, the staff at Gordon’s found it easy to get up and running with Square. The intuitive interface of Square’s software and hardware solutions made it easy for both front and back-of-house teams to hit the ground running.
“We have five different places to prepare the orders for drinks and food”, Amanda told us. “And so that really has to work simultaneously so that we can deliver people’s orders quickly and all together to ensure that level of customer satisfaction. And Square delivers that for us. It’s been a real joy.”
Square’s impact on business operations
Gordon’s has only been using Square for a short while. Nonetheless, it has already begun to notice tangible benefits for both the team and their valued customers.
These include:
Improved customer experience
With its relaxed, sociable and inclusive atmosphere, gorgeous surroundings, and equally sumptuous food and drink, Gordon’s aims to keep customers coming back time after time. Amanda furnished us with tales of how the team would see numerous couples come in for their first date – and then return years later to celebrate anniversaries. The team understands the importance of delivering a consistently excellent customer experience in order to ensure that customers always have a reason to keep coming back. By ensuring that service staff are as informed as possible, communication flows freely between the front and back of house, and payments are taken quickly and efficiently, the team is able to ensure that the bar’s operations are always conducive to an unforgettable customer experience.
“Square has been an innovative product for us. The ability to have a system that is truly integrated – it allows us in the office to look at sales trends, it allows our people who are working on front of house to have the information at their fingertips literally, and to provide great customer service.”
Seamless integrations for easy diversification
Square’s simple and seamless integrations have helped Gordon’s Wine Bar to reach new heights of operational efficiency to improve the customer experience. But they’ve also aided the business in diversifying its offering, allowing customers to experience the Gordon’s brand in new and exciting ways.
Gordon’s now offers online shopping, which connects seamlessly to the brand’s WordPress website with Square’s e-POS solution interacting with inventory management and reporting systems in real-time, so managers can see what’s selling well online as well as on-site.
As well as opening up new revenue streams, this has helped the team to grow the Gordon’s brand and add to its sense of inclusivity.
Improved forecasting
Forecasting is a hugely important part of any business operation – but none more so than in the hospitality industry, where the margins are often as wafer-thin as the deli meats and cash flows can be only one quiet day away from peril. The seasonal nature of the wines and foods sold by Gordon’s places even greater emphasis on the importance of forecasting.
Amanda was pleased to tell us that Square’s robust suite of reporting tools allowed her and the team to map sales trends in real time and improve forecasting accuracy. This results in better-informed purchasing and staffing choices and improved cash flow.
Processing fee savings
Since adopting Square’s suite of business solutions, the team at Gordon’s have made substantial efficiency savings. These include an estimated £10,000 per year in processing fee savings alone. This is on top of an estimated £15,000 in hardware savings when compared to the bar’s previous provider.
It’s clear to see how Square has helped the team at Gordon’s save money, increase operational efficiency and improve their customer experience. But what could Square’s suite of business solutions do for you? Get in touch today to see how you could remove barriers to success, increase revenues and make huge efficiency savings with Square.
