Lagniappe

                                                                      Lagniappe

 An old woman without a car would walk to do her food shopping at a small store several blocks from her apartment.  When she became ill, a friend agreed to do her shopping.  The old woman wrote out a grocery list for her, gave her the name of the store and her friend went off to shop.

 She returned sooner than the old woman expected.  Did she get everything on the list?  Her friend said she had.  The old woman removed the groceries from the shopping bag and compared them to the list.  Everything was there, yet she told her friend she hadn't followed her instructions.

 “Where did you shop,” she asked.

 "Well, as I was on the way to your store I passed another grocery store closer to your apartment and decided to shop there.  I was able to get everything you asked for and it was closer to home." 

How did the old woman know her friend hadn't followed her instructions?  Because every time she shopped at the grocery store a bit farther off, the grocer put a little something extra in her bag.

Restaurant operator, business owner, when was the last time you gave your customers something extra?  If you want them to be loyal to you, that would show you appreciate them.   If not a little gift, maybe extra courtesy or extra attention.  Could do wonders for your business and make you feel better too.

In my Italian restaurants, I often gave away a big can of the tomatoes I used to make my sauce, along with a good sauce recipe. Years later, customers reminded me of those and other gifts I gave, making a tremendous impression they never forgot.  Isn’t acquiring the loyalty, friendship and good will of a customer worth a can of tomatoes?

An unexpected treat makes a great impact.   How about slipping some cookies or a dessert into that takeout order or that leftovers bag once in a while?  Besides building your business, wouldn't that help a bit to improve your corner of the world? 

    “(Lagniappe) is the equivalent of the thirteenth roll in a ‘baker's dozen.' It is   

        something thrown in, gratis, for good measure.”    --Mark Twain