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Bar Owners
Making Customers Feel Welcome
by Alisa
What Makes the Bar Owners in Golden Gai Special?
Golden Gai generates its community and the close communication of the customers and workers within the walls of the bars. This page will focus on how bar owners create the atmosphere within their bar that their customers enjoy so much that they decide to repeat going to the bar.
Information on the customers (who receive the welcoming from the bar owners) will be explained in this section.
From this quote, we can understand how the atmosphere is more vital than the product (the taste of the alcohol and food). It is the bar owner’s responsibility to ensure that the customers feel welcomed and comfortable.
the place, more specifically the atmosphere of the place, is more influential than the product itself in the purchase decision. In some cases, the atmosphere is the primary product.
Kotler, 1973
Greeting
By greeting their customers heartily, they would be able to make them feel welcome in the bar from the moment they enter.
When I stepped into a bar called Kurebawakaru, I was surprised by how readily the bar owner and her assistant welcomed me. They first showed signs of surprise as I obviously was not the usual type of customer they would expect. (The types of customers which are expected in Golden Gai are specifically determined on Kaya’s page.) However, surprised as they were, they immediately welcomed me in and gestured me to sit, placing a menu in front of me so I would know what drinks there are at offered. The bar owner also warned me that the charge will be 2000 yen before I actually decided on my drink, so I had the choice to leave the bar if I considered the charge too expensive.
While spending time in the bar, I was able to observe the ways how the bar owner greeted different customers. Most were regular customers, while a few were like me and were new to the bar. Some examples of the interactions will be listed below.
(As the tone of the conversation cannot be fully expressed in English, the original Japanese will follow)
Making Conversation
Bar owners would frequently talk to customers, engaging them in the conversation. They would ask them random questions, such as when the bar owner is talking with customer A, she would suddenly ask customer B whether he knew anything about their conversation topic. This would help them feel appreciated in the bar.
After sitting down, the bar owner eagerly made conversation with me. She would ask why we chose her bar, what we usually like to drink, and whether we are accustomed to Golden Gai. She seemed to have endless topics to discuss, showing how used she is to making casual conversation which helps customers feel more comfortable and welcomed.
In the case of regular customers, the bar owners would use a rather friendly and joking tone, sometimes even playfully teasing them. On the other hand, for new customers like me, the bar owners seemed to show signs of trying to make them feel as comfortable as they can, not invading their privacy yet also asking basic personal questions to keep the conversation going.
Another aspect that was found was that the bar owners were very good at expanding any conversation. They could keep a conversation going on for about an hour based on one small piece of information they extract from their customers. They would ask the opinions of all the customers who seem to be willing to participate, creating more opportunities for the topic to expand and develop.
Recommendations
Whenever a customer is unsure which drink to pick, the bar owners would immediately offer a recommendation for the bar. This would provide the impression that the bar owner cares about the customer.
The manners of how the bar owners make recommendations differed according to the customer. For newcomers like me, the bar owner would ask what type of drinks they usually drink. Then, using their preference to narrow down the options, the bar owner would recommend some drinks while also informing them which drinks were particularly popular.
For regular customers, the bar owners would provide recommendations based on assumptions of the preference of the customer. For example, I witnessed a case where the bar owner was recommending a new type of beer he had stocked to a customer who apparently enjoys drinking beers.
⬇️ Dialog of my interaction with the bar owner
Connecting People
The bar owners would often connect the customers in their bar, by including them in the same conversation. This would allow the customers to connect and converse with the other customers, enlarging their social circle.
As mentioned in the Making Conversation section, bar owners would often start involving all the customers in the conversation. Regardless of whether the customer is eagerly listening or quietly drinking in the corner, the bar owners would occasionally ask their opinions. This provides an opportunity for all the customers to enjoy conversing with complete strangers, while also enabling the others to absorb fresh opinions and new pieces of information.
In one of the bars I visited, I saw three types of customers: individuals who were obviously interested and eager to share their opinions, individuals who were mildly interested and would sometimes participate in the conversation, and finally individuals who preferred to stay to themselves and would only talk when the bar owners directly addressed them.
Conclusion
The community generated within the bars of Golden Gai is created by the people within those areas, led by the bar owners. The bar owners would contribute to making a unique atmosphere by greeting, making conversation and recommendations, and connecting people.