Sapon Taweelerdniti, Writing group H iPad caf Memo DATE: September, 2012 TO: Sam Johnson

FROM: Sapon Taweelerdniti

I suggest that the iPad caf concept should not be adopted or implemented to other Boswells bookstores right now. Because such concept might result in 1) Harming the revenue of Boswells book after summer season. 2) Not attracting for future potential customers. 3) Demoralizing our staff member. The following information is my supporting evidence Hard factors (Financial performance) evidence No No iPad* iPad iPad Revenue caf caf caf caf caf Month April May June July August Bookstore 34K 33K 35K 36K 36K Boswell's beans 3K 3K 5K 6K 6K iPad caf 0 0 (2.8K) (2.8K) (2.8K) Total 37K 36K 37.2K 39.2K 39.2K *note that construction cost of such caf is about $40,000 for each branch A quick look in the bottom line would say that the concept increases the monthly revenue by 5-7%. The revenue breakdown shows that the income from Boswells beans doubled and the income from selling books also increases by 10%. The increase in revenue greatly correlates to the numbers of customer who enter our shop. It would take less than 2 years to break even $40,000 that we have invested.

Sapon Taweelerdniti, Writing group H You probably notice that we began our marketing trial test in summer period. There is another interesting piece of data that we should be careful about implementing the iPad caf idea. It is the customers age breakdown survey. It said: 40% of users are 13-20 years old 25% of them are 21-30 years old

In extreme case, it means that 65% of our customers might be in the school/university. From my analysis, it cannot be concluded that iPad caf concept or the summer school break/seasonal effect is the real cause that affected our increase in revenue for the past 3 months. Even if the iPad caf concept did work somehow, the revenue after summer season would be drastically affected. Furthermore, the iPad caf concept might attract the wrong group of future potential customers. Soft factors (image, atmosphere, customer perception) These factors have been collected by interviewing our staff members. Part-time staff members disliked iPad caf concept because: o Young customers created bad atmosphere and were noisy. o Customers were messy, leaving food and drinks behind. o It distracted them from their main job of helping customers in bookshop. o Customers stayed and used internet for too long. Sarah and associate managers supported the staff members because: o iPad caf damaged our staff morale. o Our staff was trained for books not for IT.

Sapon Taweelerdniti, Writing group H o It damaged the upscale image of Boswells books Counter-arguments for my own recommendation Wellesley is a small and college town so that the ratio of students visiting our shop is very high. It is possible that other Boswells books branches in big cities might have a lower ratio number and might not have the same problems we are now facing here in Wellesley. The notion that our staff members are not happy about the iPad caf idea is probably not the major problem. For example, we can fix problems by having some dedicated staff members who are well trained in IT or using more computer software to handle customers. Possible solution As I have mentioned earlier, the seasonal effect might interfere our trial result. If it is feasible, the trial period should be extended for another quarter or two to make sure that whether iPad caf concept or seasonal effect is the real cause of increased revenue. I look forward to talking more about iPad caf idea with you in the next meeting.