If you haven’t heard of Damian Griffiths, you may have heard of one of the restaurants his company owns: Alfred & Constance, Les Bubbles, Alfredo’s, or Doughnut Time might ring a bell. Doughnut Time, especially, has become a veritable phenomenon since opening in 2015. In the 21 months after the first shop opened, Doughnut Time has expanded to 27 outlets across four cities. I sat down with Damian to discuss Doughnut Time, as well as the challenges of the hospitality industry, and his plans for the future.
The concept for Doughnut Time, Damian says, came from an existing bakery concept, where doughnuts were selling out daily. These doughnuts were made by hand, and continue to be made this way. The look and feel of artisanal craftsmanship is even reflected in the shops, with a sort of rough-around-the-edges appearance. Damian says that these days, it’s about more than just the product. All the other factors – the team behind the product, the marketing, the branding, and even site location – come into play when selling a food and beverage concept.
When it comes to developing and marketing a brand, social media plays a huge role. An Instagram-able product, such as the doughnuts of Doughnut Time, makes the path to success a whole lot easier. An active social media presence helps create a sense of relatability, as many people use social media extensively. For Damian, keeping the product relatable to customers played a part in the success of Doughnut Time.
With such huge growth in a short of time – opening an average of 1 to 2 shops a month – Damian admits there were challenges to maintaining the integrity of the brand and product. Keeping the product consistent with the idea of artisanal craftsmanship was difficult to coordinate across so many sites. Ensuring that everyone gets the same product is easy with machines, but it’s not so easy when the product is handcrafted by humans. Doughnut Time managed to pull it off and has proven to be a massive success from Brisbane to Melbourne and everywhere in between.
While Doughnut Time has been hugely successful, there’s really no telling exactly which food and beverage concepts will take off. Damian says that at some point, you’ve got to have a little bit of faith. Things can be overthought, to the point that you can discourage yourself from going forward with your idea. But that’s not to say you can’t test an idea before going all the way with it. Doughnut Time itself started out in a bakery, and Damian looked at the success of the product and took a leap of faith that the product could do well all on its own. Customers are always looking for something new and fresh, and artisanal doughnuts happened to fulfil those criteria.
When it comes to finding new “star” employees, Damian says the process is easiest when the business is growing. People love to be part of a business that’s up and coming, where opportunities are ever expanding. Damian’s CFO had started out on the night shift for the Limes Hotel. As the business grew, so did her opportunities, and she was brought up through the company. Damian finds it much harder to find new talent when the business is matured and maintenance, rather than growth, is the main goal.
The hospitality industry can be a challenging place to work in, not least because of the odd hours that can run late into the night. Because of these unique challenges, Damian says it’s important to create a sort of familiar culture. If employees feel like family, they’ll be more likely to keep coming back to work putting in their best effort.
Transparency is also important in hospitality. If a customer has a problem, they won’t hesitate to write about it on the internet. Damian finds it extremely important to address customer concerns on the spot as soon as possible. He adheres to this philosophy in all aspects of business, always responding to messages in a timely manner. When it comes to irate customers, Damian says, often they just want to be heard. Sometimes lending an ear is all you need to do.
So what’s next for Doughnut Time? There may be an overseas expansion to Japan, once the many logistical hurdles are cleared. But Doughnut Time is not Damian’s only focus – with the Alfred and Constance group, he plans to continue working with the other concepts and even develop some new ones, in the years to come. With hard work, ingenuity, and a little bit of faith, Damian is sure to continue finding success.
You can follow Damian Griffiths on Instagram @damian_griffiths, and Doughnut Time @doughtnut_time. For locations and other information, visit http://www.doughnuttime.com.au.
Damian’s Key Takeaways
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These days, it takes more than just a good product to succeed – you’ve got to develop ambience, and a branding and marketing strategy, as well.
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A social media presence – especially if you’ve got an Instagram-able product – is a must.
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Respond to customer’s complaints as soon as they arise, if possible.
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Don’t take criticism too personally, but take it seriously.
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Maintain transparency about your business with customers and staff.
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Hiring from within can help retain the best talent and boost employee loyalty to the business.
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A friendly, familial work environment will also help keep the ship running smoothly.
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Damian recommends personal hero Danny Meyer’s book, Setting the Table, which you can find here: https://www.amazon.com/Setting-Table-Transforming-Hospitality-Business/dp/0060742763
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When expanding your business, keep consistency in mind: once your brand is out there, people expect certain things from it.
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Finally, take that leap of faith – nothing is ever guaranteed to succeed, but if you’ll never know unless you take the chance.
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