The future of customer experience is bespoke
Great customer experiences are not mass-produced. They are customised, tailored and made for one place: one menu, one room, one team. That is what guests remember and come back for.
Being remembered
When I think back on my own best experiences at restaurants, hotels and cafés, they have one thing in common: I was remembered. Someone knew my name, what I ordered last time, or picked up the conversation where we left it. It is a small thing, but it changes everything. For a moment you stop being one guest among many and become part of the place.
A place that feels honest
The places I return to feel unique and honest. They reflect the people who work there. Often it seems as if the people were made for the place, or the place was made for them. Nothing feels borrowed. The room, the service, the food and the things on the table all tell the same story, because they come from the same people.
Something unexpected
The best experiences also have something you don't see coming, something you can't find anywhere else. It might be a dish, a detail in the room or the glass your drink is served in. It is curated, but not forced. Tailored, but not intrusive. You notice it and it stays with you, but it never asks for attention.
Bespoke in a mass-produced world
Today almost everything is mass-produced, or chosen from the same catalogues as everyone else. That makes the things made for one place stand out more than ever. I believe this is where customer experience is heading: away from the generic, towards what is bespoke, personal and true to the place.
It is also why I design tableware for restaurants and hotels. The plate, the bowl and the glass are among the few things every guest actually holds. When they are made for the place, they become part of what guests remember.