A case of this problem has come to light from Indiranagar area of Bengaluru. On social media platform X, a user named Vikramaditya Shukla shared his experience related to his school friend’s cafe. He told that his friend has recently started his cafe in Indiranagar. An investment of around Rs 60 to 70 lakh was made to start this business, but in the initial days itself a problem arose which was not easy to deal with.
Customers sit for hours taking coffee worth Rs 150
According to Vikramaditya, some people in the cafe order a coffee for just Rs 150 and after that open their laptop and start working. Many customers remain sitting at the same table from morning till evening. During this period they do not place any other order.
This results in many café seats being occupied by the same customer for hours. At the same time, when new customers reach there, they do not get a place to sit. In such a situation, many people return without purchasing anything. This affects both the number of potential customers coming to the café and the earnings.
Owners are hesitant in making rules due to fear of bad reviews
The biggest difficulty faced by the cafe operator is that he cannot directly ask the customers who sit for a long time to leave. The reason for this is the increasing influence of online ratings and reviews. Nowadays, before going to any cafe or restaurant, people definitely check its rating and customer feedback on Google.
In such a situation, if a customer feels bad because of the time limit or any other rule and gives a negative review, then the image of the new cafe may be affected. Due to this fear, operators are avoiding implementing strict rules.
That’s why Starbucks and CCD coffee is expensive?
Vikramaditya also told in his post that after this experience he understood why food items are expensive in coffee chains like Starbucks, Cafe Coffee Day (CCD) and Third Wave Coffee.
He believes that at these places, customers not only pay the price of coffee or snacks, but the cost of seating space and facilities available in the café is also included in that price. In other words, the time spent by the customer at the table and chair is also a part of the cafe’s business.
People gave solutions on social media
After Vikramaditya’s post surfaced, discussion regarding this issue started on social media. Many users advised cafe owners to make clear rules for such customers.
Some people suggested that there should be a time limit for sitting in the café. At the same time, some users suggested the option of charging on hourly basis. One user said that such a rule can be made in the cafe, under which every hour the customer will have to order at least one coffee or something else.
This will also benefit the business from customers staying for longer periods of time and can also help in providing tables for newcomers.