Metro> Expats
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Metro> Expats
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Cooking up a survival plan
By Alexandra Leyton Espinoza (China Daily)
Updated: 2009-10-22 12:09
Beijing could arguably have more restaurants than any city in the world and most start-ups come crashing down within months of their opening their doors. So why would anyone dare risk so much time and money in such a precarious pursuit? Ask Tobi Demker from Sweden who has been there and done that. The 32-year-old is the owner of Purple Haze Thai restaurant & Bar and Purple Haze Bistro and knows the best way to survive in the capital's competitive culinary world.
"We are successful because we have created a personal atmosphere and a place that you would really want to visit," he said. "The competition is fierce so it's really important to establish a unique culture, which reflects you and what you stand for." Demker said that some restaurateurs, both foreigners and Chinese, aim for a level they can't handle. They try to imitate opulent Chinese establishments and create an equally extravagant environment with crazy prices. "This doesn't work," he said. Demker said research was really important. He lived in Beijing for two years before opening a restaurant with his partners. This gave him time to understand Chinese food, culture and most importantly, the language. Five years have passed since he opened his first restaurant and his clientele is expanding. And it's not just foreigners who are walking in the door to taste the food. More and more Chinese are coming to enjoy the Thai dining experience. "We don't distinguish between different groups of clients. We try to reach both foreign and Chinese customers," he said. Demker said he and his partners have tried different tactics to attract more Chinese costumers and have seen a large change here in the Chinese customers in the last few years. "More and more Chinese come from Southeast Asia to encounter Thai cuisine," he said. "They are getting more and more curious about local food and foreign cuisine." Although Demker is Swede, the Thai menu in his restaurant doesn't leave any room for Scandinavian cuisine. "Opening a Thai restaurant wasn't something I planned. The opportunity to take over an old Thai restaurant came along, and it seemed like a good opportunity at that time," he said. "It would have been great to have a restaurant serving Swedish cuisine, but unfortunately Scandinavian restaurants have not proved very successful here." "Maybe IKEA is changing that," he added with a laugh.
Rules on alcohol are stricter here than those in Europe. With the regulations being less consistent, it's easy to make mistakes, he said. Finding the right staff is another issue. "We aim to find honest, hard- working staff who are willing to develop together with us in the long term," he said. "We try to teach our staff to listen to the customer and spend time getting to know individual client needs. That's very important." Location and knowledge of the local area is vital, according to Demker. And this is a lesson he has learned when he tried to open another restaurant in the suburbs of Beijing. "Don't fall for a cheap rent located in a part of the city you aren't familiar with," he said. "There are a lot of restaurants in the city, but if you take your time and slowly build up a loyal customer base, there is always room for more." "You need to be hands-on in a restaurant and the face of the business," he said. "You can't just be an investor and leave the hard work to someone else, just investing won't create success." |
