Getting to know each other at Walnut Creek Cheese
Stop by Walnut Creek Cheese on any given weekend and the parking lot is bound to be full, license plates hailing from Ohio, New York, Texas, Arizona and everywhere in between. People travel far and wide to visit Ohio’s Amish Country, but no visit could be called complete without browsing the beautiful shopping complex just off state Route 39.
Throughout the years, customers have come to trust the local business that offers top quality and fresh produce at reasonable prices, often traveling great distances to load up their coolers and build up their supply of deli meats, cheeses, and baked goods, among other things. Walnut Creek Cheese even works with their vendors to be able to offer “special purchase” discounts.
But Walnut Creek Cheese doesn’t solely operate to accommodate the out-of-towners, although they certainly welcome them with open arms. It’s the locals that make the business, from the inside out, and as a result, the company has come up with some unique strategies for thanking their customers and encouraging them to continue to do business with the grocer.
What began two years ago as a seasonal idea and has since developed into a weekly gathering, is the fact that Walnut Creek Cheese offers free doughnuts and coffee every Tuesday morning, from 8 to 10 a.m., at both their Walnut Creek and Berlin locations in conjunction with their Tuesday specials. Customers are welcome to come in with their friends, families, and shopping buddies and sit upstairs at the tables, simply to enjoy delicious glazed doughnuts, freshly brewed coffee and each other’s company, before embarking on their daily errands and shopping lists.
“The morning with the doughnuts really embodies who we are as a company and who the area is, in having good food, hospitality, and just sitting around and talking,” explained Lael Miller, marketing director. “It’s really about who we are, the culture of our store. It’s just an extension of what the community is all about and it’s genuine.”
That genuine concern for getting to know the customers on a personal basis is what’s propelling the company to do business in an entirely different way. Walnut Creek Cheese has turned its focus to creating relationships, building trust, and offering an entire experience.
“That’s really what it comes down to,” said Miller. “Stop talking at the customers and start talking with them.”
As a result, Tuesday morning doughnuts and coffee has really taken off within the local community. Groups come in early, enjoy free doughnuts and coffee, and get to know the staff at Walnut Creek Cheese. General manager Bruce King makes it a point to visit with those sitting at the tables, asking shoppers where they’re from, what they do and who their families are.
“Bruce is up here every Tuesday morning interacting with the customers. He knows a lot of them by first name,” explained Miller. “What Bruce is doing is making the customers feel welcome. It’s all about the relationship with the customer. People are tired of being advertised to.”
So each Tuesday, more than 1,000 doughnuts are offered to guests at the store, but that’s not all Walnut Creek Cheese is doing to keep up with their customers.
Each week, the employees at Walnut Creek Cheese come up with interesting recipes to test in their kitchens, showcasing how they can take ordinary foods and make them interesting again. The recipes are available for free to customers, who can shop for all of the cooking ingredients and supplies right inside the store. The test kitchen is open Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, and yes, sampling the delectable dishes is one of the biggest draws. But that’s not what drives the idea behind the live demonstrations.
“It’s different than just a sampling of food. There’s an interaction there. A lot of people will swing by the test kitchen just to chat,” said Miller. “There’s quite a bit in it for the customer. In offering the recipes, the free food and sampling… all of that is to make them feel like they’re welcome here.”
The social aspect obviously remains a consistent and important component within the four walls of the store, but Miller also takes it one step further, implementing the ever-expanding social media world on the Internet to reach those customers who perhaps can’t make it into Walnut Creek on a regular basis. The Walnut Creek Cheese Facebook page is exploding with “likes” and Miller estimates between 4,500 and 5,000 fans are reached every single day through interactive posts that offer recipes, schedules for the test kitchens, links to weekly advertisements and new ideas.
In the end, Miller believes that Walnut Creek Cheese’s focus on socializing, relationships and building a solid trust between business and customer will drive the business to becoming better as the years go on.
“We’re using social media and gearing ourselves toward what the customer actually needs and wants,” Miller said. “After that, it’s simple. You just follow what the customers need and are asking for. It’s really not more complicated than that.”
Walnut Creek Cheese is located at 2641 SR 39 in Walnut Creek and can be reached by calling 330-852-2888 or 877-852-2888, online at http://www.walnutcreekcheese.com, or on their Facebook page.
Throughout the years, customers have come to trust the local business that offers top quality and fresh produce at reasonable prices, often traveling great distances to load up their coolers and build up their supply of deli meats, cheeses, and baked goods, among other things. Walnut Creek Cheese even works with their vendors to be able to offer “special purchase” discounts.
But Walnut Creek Cheese doesn’t solely operate to accommodate the out-of-towners, although they certainly welcome them with open arms. It’s the locals that make the business, from the inside out, and as a result, the company has come up with some unique strategies for thanking their customers and encouraging them to continue to do business with the grocer.
What began two years ago as a seasonal idea and has since developed into a weekly gathering, is the fact that Walnut Creek Cheese offers free doughnuts and coffee every Tuesday morning, from 8 to 10 a.m., at both their Walnut Creek and Berlin locations in conjunction with their Tuesday specials. Customers are welcome to come in with their friends, families, and shopping buddies and sit upstairs at the tables, simply to enjoy delicious glazed doughnuts, freshly brewed coffee and each other’s company, before embarking on their daily errands and shopping lists.
“The morning with the doughnuts really embodies who we are as a company and who the area is, in having good food, hospitality, and just sitting around and talking,” explained Lael Miller, marketing director. “It’s really about who we are, the culture of our store. It’s just an extension of what the community is all about and it’s genuine.”
That genuine concern for getting to know the customers on a personal basis is what’s propelling the company to do business in an entirely different way. Walnut Creek Cheese has turned its focus to creating relationships, building trust, and offering an entire experience.
“That’s really what it comes down to,” said Miller. “Stop talking at the customers and start talking with them.”
As a result, Tuesday morning doughnuts and coffee has really taken off within the local community. Groups come in early, enjoy free doughnuts and coffee, and get to know the staff at Walnut Creek Cheese. General manager Bruce King makes it a point to visit with those sitting at the tables, asking shoppers where they’re from, what they do and who their families are.
“Bruce is up here every Tuesday morning interacting with the customers. He knows a lot of them by first name,” explained Miller. “What Bruce is doing is making the customers feel welcome. It’s all about the relationship with the customer. People are tired of being advertised to.”
So each Tuesday, more than 1,000 doughnuts are offered to guests at the store, but that’s not all Walnut Creek Cheese is doing to keep up with their customers.
Each week, the employees at Walnut Creek Cheese come up with interesting recipes to test in their kitchens, showcasing how they can take ordinary foods and make them interesting again. The recipes are available for free to customers, who can shop for all of the cooking ingredients and supplies right inside the store. The test kitchen is open Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, and yes, sampling the delectable dishes is one of the biggest draws. But that’s not what drives the idea behind the live demonstrations.
“It’s different than just a sampling of food. There’s an interaction there. A lot of people will swing by the test kitchen just to chat,” said Miller. “There’s quite a bit in it for the customer. In offering the recipes, the free food and sampling… all of that is to make them feel like they’re welcome here.”
The social aspect obviously remains a consistent and important component within the four walls of the store, but Miller also takes it one step further, implementing the ever-expanding social media world on the Internet to reach those customers who perhaps can’t make it into Walnut Creek on a regular basis. The Walnut Creek Cheese Facebook page is exploding with “likes” and Miller estimates between 4,500 and 5,000 fans are reached every single day through interactive posts that offer recipes, schedules for the test kitchens, links to weekly advertisements and new ideas.
In the end, Miller believes that Walnut Creek Cheese’s focus on socializing, relationships and building a solid trust between business and customer will drive the business to becoming better as the years go on.
“We’re using social media and gearing ourselves toward what the customer actually needs and wants,” Miller said. “After that, it’s simple. You just follow what the customers need and are asking for. It’s really not more complicated than that.”
Walnut Creek Cheese is located at 2641 SR 39 in Walnut Creek and can be reached by calling 330-852-2888 or 877-852-2888, online at http://www.walnutcreekcheese.com, or on their Facebook page.
Published: September 2, 2011
