Second Cup\u2019s value proposition was in delivering a superior customer experience in an upscale setting. Although providing good quality coffee was an important business goal, it prioritized the overall experience of buying and enjoying the coffee at its stores. Baristas were considered experts in providing personalized service and in ensuring that every cup of hand-crafted coffee offered the same level of consistency and quality.<\/p>\n
Unlike other coffee brands, it built its reputation by focusing on store experience, quality coffee and loyal patronage through word of mouth promotion rather than traditional channels of promotion.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n Operating Model<\/strong><\/p>\n As a \u2018business that cares\u2019, Second Cup sourced its coffee beans from farms that grew them organically and employed fair trade practices. It established long-term contracts with suppliers to maintain quality, however, these relationships left Second Cup with little control over the price they paid their suppliers at any given point in time.<\/p>\n Second Cup focuses on an asset-light business model by franchising 95% of its stores. The idea behind this model was to give the owner the flexibility and independence in creating a unique store experience that would drive customers to become repeat purchasers. To open a store, owners underwent a 4-week training at the Second Cup Coffee College to learn about the products and the business and were then left to their own devices to make the model work.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Problems brewing up:<\/strong>\u00a0What reversed the success of a premier Canadian java house to mediocrity?<\/p>\n Organizational support. <\/em><\/strong>Franchisees were offered very little support from the head office. When looking for guidance on operational issues, the franchisee owner had to call\u00a0customer support which was i) very hard to reach due to long call wait times and ii) to resolve any given problem the franchisee owner had to approach 10 different people until he\/she got hold of the right person who could offer help. To avoid this cumbersome process, franchisee owners often avoided getting help from the head office and used their best judgment to resolve issues.<\/p>\n Inconsistency in store-run operations. <\/em><\/strong>Due to minimal supervision and support from the head office, individual franchisees ended up being were managed very differently. As a result, consistency in quality and service offered across the stores suffered. Owners of better-run franchises often exited the business due to poor margins, thus leaving the pool of franchises within the hands of the underperforming managers who were inexperienced and inadequate in running store operations according to the Second Cup standards.<\/p>\n Labor and Technology.\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>The baristas were not sufficiently trained to handle wide-ranging customer requests and prepare beverages per the required standards. The average cycle time from order to delivery varied immensely due to the variances in skill levels of the baristas preparing the drinks.\u00a0In addition, specialized equipment (coffee machines, customized blenders, etc.) were often outdated or broken which further impeded the job of the baristas in delivering the\u00a0beverages in a timely manner.<\/p>\n Suppliers.\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>Second Cup had a very restricted supplier list that franchisee owners were made to order from. This resulted in products being overpriced and lacking the desired quality and freshness. This problem could have been fixed if they had added flexibilities around sourcing from local suppliers to order fresh ingredients and negotiate better wholesale bulk pricing and logistics costs.<\/p>\n Lack of Product Quality and Innovation.\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>Customers found Second Cup coffee beverages to be boring, less caffeinated, and poor quality in comparison to the variety and quality in beverages that competitors like Starbucks and Tim Hortons offered. In fact, customers were often unaware of the inherent goodness of the coffee they were drinking (organic, more acidic) due to a lack of advertising on their products, where they came from, and how the beans were processed to offer an acidic coffee with better taste.<\/p>\n Too-asset light<\/em><\/strong>.\u00a0<\/em>While Second Cup had been focused on its \u2018asset-light\u2019 model, Starbucks and Tim Hortons forged ahead to open more stores. In comparison to Second Cup\u2019s 325 stores, current store count stands at 1400 Starbucks stores and 3600 Tim Hortons stores. With far fewer locations to serve, Second Cup was simply inaccessible to customers.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Designing \u2018caf\u00e9 of the future\u2019<\/strong>: A second attempt at revival.<\/p>\n The company had struggled in the past to restore its brand and gain market share. To better align its business and operating models, Second Cup\u2019s new CEO announced a 3-year turnaround plan in 2014 to reinvent the brand as the best coffee retailer and to create emotional attachments with its customers. New stores would feature a coffee bar with \u2018beverage on tap\u2019 options along with a brand new menu featuring more variety in coffee brews. In addition, the stores were to be remodeled to look more modern, feature white walls with adequate lighting and comfortable seating.<\/p>\n Photos of\u00a0a\u00a0remodeled Second Cup store in downtown Toronto.<\/p>\n While the new store offers a better menu and looks unique and differentiated, the fate of this dying brand would only translate into success if the company is able to execute on its new vision and ensure that the franchised operations run under the same banner and brand standards by treating the franchises as customers and collaborating with them\u00a0and training them,\u00a0by seeking new supplier relationships, and finally innovating on its products by taking customer preferences into account.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Sources:<\/p>\n![\"Picture5\"](\"https:\/\/i4tsk12in2b2y7uts14c528g-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/12\/Picture53.png\")
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