Niche Marketing: Rallying Point of Cats

(Image credit: Choco Cat Café in Open Rice)

Do you like cats? In Hong Kong, there is a cafe using cats as a gimmick to create a market niche. What we have here are real cats. Many cat-fans pay visit to lunch, tea or dinner and enjoy the moment of playing with cats in the cafe. Let us see how Choco Cat Cafe works.

The super stars

Choco Cat Cafe is a small restaurant and a little bit crowded when it is full. There are more than ten cats hiding, walking or sleeping around. They are the super stars attracting newcomers, and fans who pay frequent visits. People can touch and hug the cats freely if they allow you to do so. Each cat got its own name, unique outlook and temper. They are cool, and often ignore people. Though the chance of playing with a cat is not a guarantee, people are enthusiastic in taking photos and seeing the cats enjoying themselves around.

(Image credit: Choco Cat Café in Open Rice)

Customers

For people who favor cats, they may want to take a look. Fans will definitely pay frequent visits because they want to make friends with the cats. The cafe can test customers in two unique aspects. Are you allergic to cat? Go there to have a drink and find it out. If you are fancy at rearing a cat simply due to the lovely photos circulating in the Internet, please on hold for a while, go there several times and find out whether you can get well with the cats before buying one home.

As Choco Cat Cafe is a place for foods and drinks, anyone who are hungry, thirsty, have no feelings or do not fear cats are the potential customers. Whereas, people who hate or are allergic to cats will say: “no” to this cafe absolutely. In addition, some people do not feel comfortable to eat and drink with so many cats hanging around freely. Big social gathering is less likely to be held there. Teens and youngsters in small groups, and couples are the main customers who enjoy staying there since the interior decorations create a comfortable and relaxing atmosphere. The customer base has shrunk, but is still acceptable for a market niche.

(Image credit: Choco Cat Café in Open Rice)

Foods and Drinks

Same as Modern Toilet, foods and drinks are not the gimmicks. Customers do not have a high expectation on the food quality. The comments are average to a little bit above-average so far. The outlook is more appealing than the taste. Though it is not expensive, the dish may be too small for most people. Guess this is a strategy to encourage consumption on more dishes to boost up the average sales per customer. It is clever and yet dangerous because this may drive away customers to have the dinner somewhere else.

(Image credit: Choco Cat Café in Open Rice)

Hygiene

Hygiene is an important factor for people to choose a restaurant. Having so many cats hanging round freely, this factor is particularly called in question. The reports are positive so far. The owner and the staff keep the cafe clean. However, cat hairs are still in the air. An improvement on the ventilation installation may make the place more comfortable to linger.

(Image credit: Choco Cat Café in Open Rice)

It is not difficult to find so many cats and put them into one place. The critical points are to keep the cats and the cafe clean, and deliver customers satisfaction well. The management issue is a strong threshold barrier to any competitors who want to enter this market niche. However, this does not mean Choco Cat Cafe can stop improving. Higher quality of foods and drinks can help in reinforcing the customer loyalty and competing against other restaurants in driving in more customers.

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Have you ever thought of eating in a bathroom theme restaurant? The weird idea has been used as a gimmick by a restaurant named Modern Toilet. For more details, welcome to take a look at the article below:

Niche Marketing: Will it be Digging One’s Own Grave?