Dining Q&A: Laker's
If you have been a student in Beijing, it’s likely that one of your first Western meals after arriving was at a branch of Laker’s. At the time of their fifth anniversary, we spoke to owner Jacky about the secret formula that has helped Laker’s create an empire of nine stores in Beijing and what the future holds for the mini-chain.
What inspired you to open the first Laker’s store?
I wanted to capture something of the community spirit that makes bars and cafés in Europe and America so special. Traditionally, China does not have a culture of hanging around in bars, and it is even looked down upon by older people, so I wanted to provide a safe and welcoming place that encourages Chinese people to try something new. Of course, we also wanted to give foreigners a taste of home, too. That was our first slogan, “Your Home in China.”
What is the secret of Laker’s success?
I have no idea, it’s probably just luck! [laughs] I wasn’t in the food and beverage industry before I started Laker’s, but like I said above, I knew I wanted to spread some of the “community spirit” I had seen in restaurants and bars while traveling abroad. In our first year, we opened five stores. After that, we slowed down a little bit and tried to take stock.
What do you consider to be Laker’s unique selling point?
The way we choose our locations is definitely one of ourunique selling points. Basically, we choose to locate our branches in one of three types of areas: travel and tourism hotspots (for example, our branches at 798 and Mutianyu), near universities (for example, our UIBE branch), and in community areas with lots of families (for example, our branches in Shunyi). We believe each one of these locations has a unique advantage.
What is the most popular dish on the menu at Laker’s?
Our most popular dish across all our stores is the Laker’s Special Pizza. However, in the future we are hoping to develop our burgers into a signature dish by making them one of Beijing’s most authentic burgers. We believe that there aren’t any truly authentic burgers on the market in Beijing right now.
Has the recent smoking ban affected business at all?
We actually started prohibiting smoking in our stores before 9pm a year ago, out of respect to our customers with children, so our customers are already used to the idea. I wouldn’t say it has affected business at all.
What does the future hold for Laker’s?
We have just opened our latest store at Zizhuqiao (in southwest Beijing). The food scene in central Beijing is already so crowded, so when we looked at that area of town and saw that there weren’t any Western restaurants or bars, we wanted to get hold of the market early.
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Photos courtesy of Laker's
