If you love gourmet food, you know how exciting it is when a new food market opens in your neighborhood. This happened to me about a month ago when a small upscale market came to town. Since opening the week before Thanksgiving, it continues to be hard to find a parking space regardless of what time of day you go. It’s the buzz around town. I’ve been there two to three times a week as have most of my friends.

So what’s the secret to their success?

• There is truly something for everyone. Beautifully displayed produce. A spectacular display of fresh meat, chicken and fish. A broad array of bread and baked goods including a whole case full of single serving restaurant quality desserts. Their prepared food section could keep you out of the kitchen for months, and there is an entire selection of delectable cheese, coffee, tea and wine.
• Sound expensive? Hardly. Some of the items are a little more expensive than the local grocery chains, but most are comparable. They also have a quality store brand in almost every category. It has really eye-catching packaging and is reasonably priced. In addition, they have clearly marked specials including many “Buy one, get one free” offers.
• Regardless of how crowded the store is, there is always ample sales staff who are at the ready to assist you. Without asking, they walk up to you to make sure you can find what you are looking for. Check out is fast and easy with enough cashiers to handle the crowd, even on the day before Thanksgiving.
• Everything I have bought has exceeded my expectations.

Case #2

My son is a chef and a rising star in the Philadelphia culinary scene. My wife is a Jewish mother who equates food with love, there is no shortage of pride, and, unfortunately for him, advice from her. She tells him what he needs to do to start a successful restaurant. Over and over again. Simply offer great food, attentive service, reasonable prices, and clean bathrooms. More often than not, he rolls his eyes but continues to appear somewhat interested. After about a hundred times, he parroted the advice verbatim as soon as she brought up the subject. She got the point. She was repeating what he learned in Restaurant 101.

What do these stories have in common?

It’s not Today’s Sale. It’s not the inventory. And it’s not quick delivery. It’s the whole buying experience. To be a great business, you need great products, good value, attentive staff, and legitimate sales and promotions. In other words, have a business where the primary goal is to satisfy your customers. It seems intuitively obvious, but I bet when you think about it, customer satisfaction is not on the top of your list in practical terms. So, consider this. In the next few weeks, before you make any decisions, think broadly. How will your decision impact your customers’ entire shopping experience? When all is said and done, customer experience is the bottom line. Are your customers having a pleasant experience? Will they tell their friends about you? Will they look forward to coming back? When the answers to these questions is consistently yes, I bet you’ll have more business than you’ll know what to do with.