PEOPLE POWER IS THE MAGIC INGREDIENT.

CLIENT PROFILE.A high street fashion leader with 250 stores across the UK, River Island’s flagship head office in Hanger Lane, West London is base to 750 employees.

CHALLENGE.River Island is one of the high street’s most visible fashion retailers with stores throughout the UK and a head office in West London. Its brand is youthful, outgoing and confident — demonstrated by the fact that Rihanna will be designing her first collection for them in 2013. River Island prides itself on being a dynamic ‘people’ business — its approach is all about engaging, talking, listening and sharing in the world of fashion. Its head office is Chelsea House, a nod to the company’s previous name of Chelsea Girl with its association with the fashion hub of the King’s Road in Chelsea.

A PEOPLE BUSINESSIn choosing a foodservice provider the overriding criteria for River Island was that its partner should be a good fit with its people. Great food was a must, an innovative approach was vital, consistency and a streamlined approach hugely desirable. But if that magical ingredient — fantastic people — didn’t grab them from the outset, those other factors lost their potency. As Facilities Manager Andy Mitchell says, ‘We are a highly collaborative business and our foodservice partner needs to mirror that. Every single person our hospitality partner employs, from the chefs to baristas to foodservice assistants, is an ambassador of the River Island brand. That’s something we trust them to build into their recruitment process. And they do.’

These guys are constantly hands on, innovative.

RESULT.“The River Island brand is all about individuality, quirkiness, pushing the boundaries — Eurest totally got that, and with their combination of great people and attention to detail they have worked very hard to benefit the customer and align with our brand”

CASE STUDY

SOLUTION.FAST-CHANGING WORLDIt didn’t all happen by magic of course — trust and a willingness to keep meeting and exceeding the changing demands of the business laid down their roots early in the partnership. “The culture of River Island is fast-paced, an ever-changing environment,” says Facilities Manager Andy Mitchell. “We work five to six months ahead because that’s how fashion operates; our partners need to understand that, be prepared to flex and be dynamic. Eurest was all those things and more — these guys are excellent at dealing with change which makes them constantly hands on, innovative, and always operating with foresight.”

CREATING A FOOD BUZZOperating on the belief that exemplary standards of foodservice can help boost staff retention, the Eurest team started creating its constantly-evolving foodservice offer. “There’s no such thing as a static menu here,” says Andy. “They’re constantly refreshing what’s on offer in the deli bar, and our Head Chef Ben Ford loves to mix things up and keep surprising people as well as more regular treats: he operates a payday-themed special once a month, and other similar events, barbecues, world events, sports. It’s about keeping things lively and interesting — people here really respond to that.”

ENERGY AND SYNERGYAt River Island there’s a real belief that the most important ingredient in outstanding foodservice is outstanding people, and building that synergy is something Eurest works work very hard to keep developing at Chelsea House. The visible part of that is the front of house teams, but there’s more than just the relationship-building that happens at the coalface.

An annual customer service survey is a regular part of monitoring how the service works but the partners also organise quarterly meetings attended by a rotated team of 10-12 people from across different River Island teams.

These are an opportunity to informally share ideas and gauge responses to initiatives introduced by the Eurest teams.

Ben has gone further and set up ‘how to’ cookery sessions with variable themes such as ‘how to bake a great cake’ ‘how to make the perfect roast potatoes’ ‘easy curries’ or ‘sweets and treats’ — events that not only tap in to the enthusiasm created by the quarterly meetings and changes in the food offer, but also build on the great relationships already established between the partners. “Ben and his team are ideas people who brim with a very infectious enthusiasm,” says Andy Mitchell. “There’s never any danger of things standing still while he’s in charge of the food offer.”

COMMUNITY BUILDINGRiver Island’s charity and community profile is a big part of its business vision, and it holds regular fundraising events giving myriad opportunities for involvement by Eurest. “As well as regular bake and cake sales to raise money for our nominated charities, the Eurest team also hosts special events such as a health and gym event where people take part in a sponsored weight management programme which is backed up by healthy menus in the main servery,” says Andy. “The Eurest team’s involvement makes all the difference in the effectiveness of these campaigns.”

DRIVING UP STANDARDSRiver Island embarked on Eurest’s Centre for Excellence programme in late 2011, involving an audit of performance and delivery, focusing particularly on teamwork. After a few months the benefits began to shine through, resulting in even more effective levels of delivery and visibly improved teamwork. “The programme resulted in an even more joined up service,” says Andy. “In effect they raised their own bar.”

From the start Eurest said, how can we do this better?

RESULT.BRAND ALIGNMENT“The River Island brand is all about individuality, quirkiness, pushing the boundaries if you like — Eurest totally got that, and with their combination of great people and attention to detail they have worked very hard to benefit the customer and align with our brand,” says Andy Mitchell.

BUILT-IN INNOVATIONThe Eurest team at Chelsea House constantly finds new ways to challenge themselves to become an even more credible partner and add value. “Rather than waiting for us to ask for new things they will bring ideas to us, say for example suggesting a cashless system in the servery. That’s hugely valuable, and it’s something their people are very hot on,” say Andy, adding that the management team is one of the best he’s ever worked with.

Another gratifying aspect of this value is the sense of ownership customers have about the foodservice area: people don’t just use it for eating but also for meetings and huddles. “That’s a great feeling,” says Andy. “It’s their space.”

“From the start Eurest’s position was: ‘How can we deliver better hospitality?’ How can we do this better?’ and that question underpins everything they do. It’s a hugely collaborative process and Eurest are both receptive and proactive. Their people make it work.”

WHAT MATTERS TO YOU

UNDERSTANDING YOU

GREAT PEOPLE

GREAT FOOD

GREAT SERVICE