What food retailers should learn from Tennis

One could argue that tennis is one of the most civilized activities. This past week I was lucky enough to spend time in Indian Wells California at the Pacific Life Open tournament. Those who know me surely would agree that my beat is much more pedestrian – the aisles of a supermarket or the kitchens of a restaurant; but I went not to just watch tennis ... but also to check out the foods.

Supermarkets, restaurants, and tennis tournaments all cater to large groups of people, each with their own unique tastes; and trying to satisfy all these needs can be a daunting task. After all, even Starbucks one of the best when it comes to customer service (who's coffee combinations number over a thousand) just announced scaling back their offerings in order to do a better job in delivering on that famous Starbucks experience.

However, if you have ever watched a tennis tournament you have experienced the power of the "thank you". The tennis referee at the men's finals between Novak Djokovic and Mardy Fish was able to use his dulcet tones to instantly quell the sold-out and at times overly enthusiastic stadium attendees with just two words.

And it was the same civility that I found at the dozens of food "tents" scattered around the Indian Wells Tennis Garden. The offerings far exceeded my expectations (as did some of the prices): salads made on the spot with exotic or organic ingredients from Melissa's Produce, fresh meats grilled on outdoor barbecues to be added to a colorful array of Mexican sauces and peppers for one of the best fajitas I ever tasted, a shrimp burger (which was a tasty alternative to a more traditional beef burger) and even a delicious Maine style lobster roll.

I knew I was in for a food extravaganza when I noticed that rather than the traditional Budweiser everywhere stands, there were Don Julio tequila margarita thatched huts in their place. So what could food retailers learn? To celebrate! What I found the most important was that the people working in the food venues at the Pacific Life Open were enjoying themselves as much as those attending the matches. Trying to feed thousands of people at a time (3 meals a day) is certainly a daunting and tiresome task as anyone who has worked in a food stand or attended a county fair would attest; but the folks standing behind their counters weren't rushing the customers, they took the time to explain some of the more unusual offerings and actually seemed to be happy to be there. My suggestion to the food retailers and restaurants of the world? Make sure to attend next year's Pacific Life Open. For food ideas, service ideas and maybe even to recruit employees that actually know how to say thank you, and mean it.