How To Handle Peak Hours At Your Bubble Tea Shop

Bubble tea stores can get very hectic during peak hours. Throughout holiday seasons, bank holidays and heat waves, bubble tea popularity surges, and stores can often struggle to meet and handle all of this new demand. For some store locations, such as Central London, every weekend can be like this! Having adequate procedures in place is vital to ensure you are prepared for these moments. In this blog, we will discuss how to handle peak hours at your bubble tea shop!

Staff Members

In terms of staff, you typically only need 2 to run a boba store. One staff member takes orders, whilst another prepares them. However, in peak hours, stores can benefit from having more members on hand to help out. Depending on your shop size, location and popularity, anywhere from 3-5 staff members can be suitable at times of high demand. This gives the staff members making orders a bit of respite, whilst also ensuring orders are not forgotten or mixed up during hectic periods.

Efficient Workflow

Regardless of how crowded your store is, having an efficient workflow for your staff is good practice. During peak hours, this becomes vital in ensuring orders are fulfilled in a timely and correct manner. Here are some tips on efficient workflows for a bubble tea store.

1. Layout

Ensure your work stations are laid out methodically, creating a clear step by step system for your staff to work their way through as they prepare each drink. For example, often, the first two pieces of equipment used are the tea dispenser and ice machine. Place these two at the start. Then, you'll need a station for all of the flavour powders and syrups, as well as any fructose dispensers you may have. Shaking machines and topping stations come after this. A small area marked out for service is also a good idea, ensuring the staff members taking orders and preparing drinks do not get in each others way. By designing a smart store layout, you allow your staff to work much more efficiently and in a more stress-free environment

2. Order Taking and Preparation System

As mentioned, usually staff members are designated to either taking or preparing orders. One important way to ensure operations run smoothly in peak hours is making sure the order taking system is clear and simple. A convoluted system risks orders going missing or being prepared wrong. Ensure whichever ticketing system you use makes the order explicitly clear to the staff member in charge of preparation, and is simple to use for the staff at the counter. In today's tech-focused world, there are a multitude of EPOS systems that help to massively simplify these processes. Online app ordering is another great idea, digitalising the ordering process, whilst adding the dual benefit of minimising in-store queues.

Additionally, a screen displaying orders is a great way to control crowded stores. This way, your customers know when their order is being prepared and when it is ready to collect. This also ensures the staff members can accurately determine which orders have been fulfilled, and which is next up.

3. Customer Service

The last thing to mention is customer service. In times of peak business, ensuring customers are satisfied is hugely important. By laying out a simple queuing area, ensuring orders are being delivered promptly, and controlling the atmosphere in your store to create a relaxed environment, you can ensure customer satisfaction. Busy stores often stress people out due to their loud and hectic nature. This is usually a consequence of inefficient operations behind the scenes, with staff struggling to keep up with orders and other tasks. Make sure your staff are friendly and greet customers as they walk in. Additionally, ensure staff are happy to answer any questions or concerns. The more prepared your store is for these peak hours, the less likely it is that a hectic environment will develop.

Final Thoughts

Preparing for busy periods are one of the most crucial practices for bubble tea store owners. Ensuring your shop is adequately staffed is the first step to success. Additionally optimising workflows is crucial, with factors such as store layout and ordering processes being essential. Businesses should stay up to date with new ways that they can further optimise their operations. EPOS systems, online app ordering and more innovative tech-focused ideas are being rapidly adopted by bubble tea stores. These are game changing enhancements that further help to prepare stores for peak hours. Thanks for reading our blog, you now know how to handle peak hours at your bubble tea shop!