Stepping into Harris + Hoole’s Cannon Street, London store, it’s immediately clear this is a coffee shop with a difference.
Stepping into Harris + Hoole’s store on Cannon Street, London, it’s immediately clear this is a coffee shop with a difference.
“I don’t even call them baristas, I call them magicians,” smiles Danielle Anderson, director of digital experience at Harris + Hoole and a self-confessed flat white coffee addict.
As Anderson sits within the coffee shop chain’s City outlet, the café is remarkably busy considering we meet on the hottest day of the year so far.
We’re here to try out Harris + Hoole’s new app which has been beta tested for the last month and is poised to go live in the App store later this month.
The app is an engaging mix of natty design and intuitive functionality. It allows customers to select the coffee they want that day and order by checking in via the app as they walk into the store. Using its ‘My Usual’ function, shoppers can then select their daily delectation and pay for it on reaching the till.
It also allows shoppers to locate stores; see the store manager’s profile and opening hours; link to the shop’s Facebook and Twitter pages; and store their loyalty stamps digitally.
For the staff, they can see the customers’ picture on their till and address them by name, thus personalising the experience.
Amid the artisan coffee made by trained baristas and vintage interiors creating pleasant surrounds, it could be easy to ignore the elephant in the room: Tesco.
The UK’s largest retailer acquiring a minority stake in the fledgling coffee shop chain has proved controversial. The national media accused Harris + Hoole of misleading customers into thinking they weren’t putting money into Tesco’s coffers.
Harris + Hoole’s independent feel – from its appearance and Samuel Pepys moniker to its top notch customer service – captures the spirit of an indie.
However, without the backing of Tesco, which has also invested in bakery chain Euphorium and bought restaurant Giraffe, Harris + Hoole would not have been able to rapidly expand to its 22 store estate so quickly, or even arguably hired top brass to lead its tech innovation.
But the very fact the coffee chain has hired Anderson – who joined from digital leaders Burberry – also reflects the innovative spirit of Harris + Hoole boss Nick Tolley, and not just Tesco’s deep pockets.
The app, which is likely to include a payment option soon, is the first step on Anderson’s mission to create a seamless experience for a business which has attracted a swathe of column inches. However, as she points out, the foundations of its trade remain a good cup of coffee, regardless of its backers.
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