On this episode of ScaleUp Radio, I speak to Aasia Baig from The Centenary Lounge, which is a range of cafe’s that are inspired by the 1930’s - especially the railway and hotel cafes of the time.

 

Their first branch opened in 2009 with a railway cafe in Birmingham - they’ve now grown to include more railway cafe’s and a two-story bistro in Worcester, as well as launching their own franchise model.

 

Aasia works in an industry that was obviously affected by the pandemic, and it’s fascinating to hear how she coped with that - and continued to push the business for growth, rather than focus on just surviving.

 

We also covered plenty of other ground, including:

 

 - the benefit of cross training your staff, so that they can drop into other roles if necessary. Also, they have variety in their work

 -  why changing something quickly can help the business, rather than allowing bad processes or practises to become embedded

 - why the location of your business can be vital to your success

 - the development of the playbook that will go with your franchise model, making sure that there is consistency across all branches

 

What’s so valuable about this episode is that, even if you’re not in the same sector as Aasia, or looking to start a franchise - there’s still plenty in here for you.

 

 

 

Aasia can be found here:

 

linkedin.com/in/aasiabaig

 

 

 

https://www.centenarylounge.com/

 

Trail - https://trailapp.com/

 

Flow - https://www.getflow.com/apps

 

Somi Arian Podcast - https://www.somiarian.com/podcast/

 

‘Oversubscribed’ by Daniel Priestley - https://www.waterstones.com/book/oversubscribed/daniel-priestley/9780857088253

 

ScaleUp Radio cannot be held responsible for the content of third party websites

 

Scaling up your business isn't easy, and can be a little daunting. Let ScaleUp Radio make it a little easier for you. With guests who have been where you are now, and can offer their thoughts and advice on several aspects of business. ScaleUp Radio is the business podcast you've been waiting for.

 

You can get in touch with Kevin here:

[email protected]