Like so many businesses across the country and the globe, COVID-19 and the social-distancing regulations that followed threatened to completely shutter The Tea Trolley tearoom. They had to completely close their dining room to all customers. The loss of income meant cutting staff, cutting hours, and having to completely rethink their model of service. But Rachael faced the challenge head-on and reinvented her business model to meet her customers’ where they were.
Up to that point, Rachel had used SalesVu’s online ordering website primarily for selling digital gift cards, given the in-house nature of the business. But when the dine-in experience had to be put on hold, she discovered that she could quickly and easily flesh out her existing SalesVu website to start offering her unique tea experience online. Rachael expanded the online menu with new categories and products such as tea boxes to-go, desserts, sandwiches, scones, and a large variety of teas. Now 100% e-commerce, The Tea Trolley is able to provide customers with an afternoon tea experience in their own homes.
‘Working with the SalesVu team made it easy and encouraged us to keep going during these difficult times. After the site went live and we started to get some orders, we realized that SalesVu’s online ordering website has been a lifesaver! It is the main reason why we were able to stay open for business’ – Rachael Cox.
In addition to the automated Sales report that she receives weekly to track sales and inventory, she also takes advantage of SalesVu’s Orders report to see the individual orders that were placed on the website. This allows her to corroborate the customer’s contact information, the products that were bought, and the pick-up time for each purchase, making online order fulfillment quick and easy for her team.
‘After the stay at home restrictions are lifted we are curious to see how the e-commerce portion of our business will behave. We will definitely keep the website shopping page because we think it is a great addition to the current way we are operating.’ – Rachael Cox
SalesVu is thrilled to be a part of the Tea Trolley’s journey and to help business owners like Rachel adjust to these challenging times. If you want to enjoy an afternoon tea from home, you can place your Tea Trolley order here.
