NEW YORK — Part of the magic of visiting one of Levain Bakery’s neighborhood storefronts — 17 and counting across seven states — is the experience: the sights, smells and personal attention. When the New York-based bakery chain started exploring new revenue streams, replicating its in-store experience was a must, regardless of the distribution channel.
“We thought a lot about how to get the same in-store excitement in an off-site experience and about how we could meet customers where they are,” said Donna Magen, senior manager, specialty channels for Levain Bakery. “Catering was the perfect launch into that. We were excited to explore the opportunity to bring large-format catering to businesses and occasions.”
The company knew the strategic shift to workplace catering would also require a shift in its operational structure, specifically in terms of staffing, packaging and maintaining the product quality Levain is known for.
“We’re a heritage brand, and the look, feel and quality of our cookies is everything,” Magen said. “We had to figure out how to deliver the Levain cookie experience — warm and crispy on the outside and gooey in the middle — to our catering customers.”
Developing a business-friendly catering menu
The Levain team turned to ezCater, a leading online business catering platform, for help with navigating challenges as it worked to roll out the program in 12 of its bakeries.
“They were instrumental in helping us get the message onto our website and the ezCater platform in the way we wanted to be represented,” Magen said. “There were so few barriers to getting started. They didn’t put rules on us, and they held our hand on best practices.”
Magen knew getting the menu right was a key element to Levain’s success. The brand collaborated with ezCater, which has data and insights from more than 18 years of orders, to create a catering-specific menu designed to make ordering as quick and easy as possible. That meant developing packages and bundles that appealed to busy corporate customers, such as its 28-cookie Super Cookie Stash.
“We wanted our corporate catering customers to be able to look at the menu and easily pick out their selections,” Magen explained, “as opposed to someone walking into a retail bakery or ordering from a third-party delivery (3PD) service who has more time to peruse the menu.”
Finding flexibility in a dashboard
Orders funnel into a single, easy-to-use dashboard that helps stores plan ingredients and staffing needs. On the backend, the ezCater platform allows Levain team members the flexibility to update product titles, create custom categorization and experiment with merchandising.
“We wanted to include our seasonal offerings, and being able to switch out our seasonals was important to us,” Magen shared. “The ezCater team suggested promoting those at the top of the webpage. This season, we’re featuring Rocky Road, so it’s front and center on the site. Because it’s merchandised at the top of the webpage fold, it’s getting a lot of traction.”
Part of Levain’s marketing strategy with its B2B catering program is to expand brand awareness and encourage people who try a cookie in the workplace to visit a bakery, order through a 3PD service or become a corporate client.
“Workplace catering is a highly effective marketing tool,” said Cindy Klein Roche, chief growth officer for ezCater. “One person orders, but dozens, sometimes hundreds, enjoy the food. Our data shows that 70% of employees eat again at restaurants they first tried at work. So Levain’s ‘Super Cookie Stash,’ which includes 28 cookies, is sure to create return customers.”
Levain’s goal is to be the No. 1 treat for catering customers and to delight people off-site.
“The point of catering is revenue driving, marketing and creating a bigger ecosystem of customers,” Magen said, “and that’s what ezCater focuses on. Partnering with ezCater was a no-brainer in terms of making sure people off-site have access to what we offer.”
