FRANCESCA

Francesca: Increasing Customer Retention through Customer Loyalty

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Francesca: Increasing Customer Retention through Customer Loyalty

Introduction

The 2008 recession changed the scenario of the world. Many of the major bank and industries suffered colossal losses during that period. That recession proved disastrous for most of the companies, but some of them comfortably passed through it. Food and restaurants business were less affected by the recession, because of the fact that people in no situation will avoid food. In other words, the food industry has always progressed and people never try to leave this sector alone. The recession in Europe is have the same havoc on companies similar to that of the 2008 recession .This time the major impact of this recession is in Europe itself. The recession that started from Greece has now spread into other European countries like Spain, Italy and Portugal etc. Thus, every industry is trying to cope these hard times and trying to overcome the recession through various techniques .These includes the minimization of cost, effective marketing plans and many other targeted business operations.

With deteriorating economic conditions, the competition among businesses increases. It is evident that some businesses pass through the competition easily, while others have to leave the market. The reason is simple, some businesses are aware about the tactics to attract and retain customers, while others don't. This study is going to analyze how businesses can retain their customers using the framework of customer loyalty. In this connection, Francesca, a restaurant, has been chosen. In United Kingdom, this is small restaurant having one outlet. However, the restaurant outlet is part of a large French chain, which is an Italian restaurant. The following discussion will first of all evaluate the present marketing strategies of the restaurant, and will propose how company can retain its customers by changing its marketing techniques.

Background of the Restaurant

Francesca is an Italian type restaurant, part of a large French food chain. The brand Francesca was created in the year 1997 by Arbogast Francesca Albanese and Bertrand Arbogast. The first chain of Francesca restaurant was opened in the year of 1998, which catered to the traditional Italian Francesca Strasbourg, avenue de la Marseillaise. Over the period of years, the restaurant grew in popularity due to its effective handling of the customers combined with delicious food. The second and third restaurant was opened in the year 2004. In the year of 2006, new restaurant were added to the portfolio which were inaugurated in Paris. In 2007 Francesca became an international brand, following the opening of its outlet in Switzerland and 10 outlets in France. In 2009, the French chain added 25 more restaurants to its portfolio. The outlets were located in various locations like Paris, Motpellier , Nancy etc. This food chain continues to grow, despite the concern of recession and other hard times. In 2012, the Chain planned to shift to other areas and increase its international presence, thus it opened in England and ...