RichardsRendezvous Cafeterias, sandwich bars and street markets

We’ve seen the arrival in recent times of cafeteria chains opening up on the Rock, I assume all vying for top spot: Can they all survive healthily?

We have a British one – Costa Coffee, originally owned by two Italian brothers, which keeps on growing their presence on the Rock, with another branch opening soon in the Mid Town development (they already have one in the World Trade Centre building and at Atlantic Suites). Oh yes, there’s even a tiny Costa Coffee at the entrance to Tuckeys Lane, literally coming off Main Street.

The American one – Starbucks, the second largest coffee house chain in the world with thousands of stores spread across 80 countries, has opened an already much frequented one here, opposite the Catholic Cathedral and recently opened a second much smaller one at the entrance to Main Street where I noticed customers are already making use of it.

There is also a Spanish one - Rodilla, also part of a chain on the Spanish mainland has stores in 350 locations, mainly in Madrid but also in other cities in Spain, Italy, Portugal, Mexico and now Gibraltar, at the bottom of Engineer Lane entering the northern end of Main Street towards Casemates.

As I walk by, it doesn’t seem that busy as far as I can make out. They are all mainly in the centre of town: As I have absolutely no clue about business, are they all chains or franchises?
I wondered if there was a difference between the Spanish one and the other two. Well yes, it seems there is.

Rodilla, just like Subway, Pret a Manger, and the Spanish bocadillo de jamon one which was situated where Starbucks, opposite the Catholic Cathedral, are not really cafeterias but offered sandwiches, bocadillos and other combination takeaway lunch foods – a quick service eatery or takeaway and I do see Rodilla also serves coffee etc in the actual establishment, just like any other cafeterias but I assume the sandwich business may be the major difference and possibly the reason for them not hanging around for too long?

Maybe that is why Subway and Pret a Manger, not being cafeterias as such, eventually had to close down and leave. I would have thought selling sandwiches with a variety of fillings, wraps and other goodies would be a best seller, considering the number of office workers on the Rock dying for a snack at around lunchtime. I don’t know.

I find it strange why those establishments don’t survive here.

Maybe there are other reasons. Also the large spacious store, mainly selling a variety of nuts and toffee apples opposite the Gibraltar Parliament building, doesn’t seem very busy either. Maybe they have other ways of selling their products, wholesale or whatever.

However, rents are not insignificant on Main Street, are they? I don’t know.

Serving morning coffees at whatever time of day and afternoon and then serving drinki-poos into the evening is certainly popular around town.

It seems all those other, non franchise or chain establishments including coffee, wine, beer, spirits and soft drinks etc distributors or individual owner-managed establishments do alright, with the odd one here and there not doing so well.

I’ve always wondered why some do well and the odd one doesn’t.

Is it because of location, management, staff, the coffee they serve not being great or some other reason? It’s a bit of an enigma to my mind.

On a different note, but still in the retail genre, I’m prompted to think about, the rise and fall of street markets on the Rock. They’ve come and gone like the four seasons.

We’ve had then setting up in a number of places and all seem to be short-lived, except the small one at Casemates (not sure if the Sunday one in Ocean Village is still going).

Do we have another example of not hanging on long enough and let the community get used to one being there and start approaching it on a more regular basis?

Or do we wait for shoppers and an ambiente to be created with more crowds on our streets before setting up? Perhaps it’s another chicken and Egg reason again.

Maybe, but look. The Calentita event is very successful, so why not have a street market, yes, with one or two food stalls also, on a fortnightly or even monthly basis?

The Piazza is clearly the venue for such an event.

I understand the Government provided those identical market stalls when it was set up on the boulevard a couple of years ago but that was short-lived also.

Well, again, holding out and seeing how it goes for quite a while at the Piazza and maybe alternating with Casemates and seeing which works better, but without giving up.

That seems to be the key to all this. Street markets work everywhere else, why not here?

Let’s observe a little.

Taking advantage of every little space to promote the green theme.

Beautiful setup with the colourful, flower beds along Main Street. The more the merrier.

And a popular scooter and bike site, whilst promoting ‘leave your car at home.’ The message is ‘on your bike!’

See you soon.