Seated at Third Wave Coffee outlet in Bangalore for the last 2 hrs preparing an important presentation. Done with a cappuccino already and going for the second one.
The cafe has around 32 covers and there are atleast a dozen guests who have been here since the time I arrived. All of them are busy with their devices - someone is writing codes, another is working on something, another on a video call and one is even watching a movie (I didn’t prowl their screens - just giving a distant glance, so not intruding anyone’s privacy).
I would reckon the cafe had no more than 10 bills cut in the last 2 hours and each bill size is around Rs. 600, so that’s Rs. 6,000 over 2 hours. Assuming they operate for 12 hours a day, on a weekend, the cafe would have an average turnover of no more than Rs. 30,000 (weekdays will be still lower).
Like how multiplexes and pubs offer unlimited popcorn or beer for an incremental price, what if cafes offer unlimited cappuccino for a certain price, but to be consumed within, say 3 hours?
This would be a great way to sweat the same table, than letting customers use the real estate for an unlimited period of time and without contributing much revenues.
Of course, this should be an option to consumers and not a forced fit.
Are there any such cafes doing this already in India or elsewhere in the world?
I recall Pizza Corner offering unlimited pizza and bottomless pepsi / fanta in the late 90s in Chennai and during my college days, my friends and I have ransacked the place many a time!
