SLA: healthy, fast, and delicious food

Since 2013, SLA has been working to introduce more people to healthy and tasty food. It should be accessible to everyone. All the products are organic, and the kitchen is practically zero-waste. Each branch has its own inspiring ambiance, because SLA believes that healthy eating should be fun and easy.  

Josephine Kuenen and Nikki Groenendaal have been working at SLA since 2018 and 2016, respectively. They have witnessed the company's growth and have grown with it. Below, you can read why these surveys are so important for the healthy meal provider and how they use the results to continuously improve the organization.

Company: SLA
Industry: Hospitality
Branches: 12  
Customer since: 2019
Spoken with: Josephine Kuenen, Head of Operations & Nikki Groenendaal, Operations Manager

Why does SLA choose Secret View for mystery shopping research?  

Josephine: "Besides Secret View being a great, flexible partner, I also identify strongly with your vision and approach. Having real customers visit, without any preconceptions or prior knowledge of our concept, is something I value. These are people who represent our typical customers. We're growing rapidly, adding five branches each year, so it's helpful to have people with fresh perspectives on our concept who can provide feedback."

"As a company, we embarked on a growth journey. We wanted to introduce more people to accessible and healthy eating. This meant that alongside our regular customers, we also had new, different customers who might need some time to adjust to our concept. Secret View brings a more diverse audience to our establishments."

Nikki: "As a manager, you can't always be present. That's where mystery shoppers come in handy. They provide very specific areas for improvement. Each shopper evaluates differently, just like our real customers do. While one might focus more on the food and service, another might pay more attention to the overall experience and hygiene. This naturally balances out the scores."

How is the mystery shopping research structured?

Nikki: "For the research, we selected the two most critical customer journeys: lunch and dinner. We alternate between lunch and dinner in each round. So, in one round, a shopper assesses the lunch experience, and in the next round, it's dinner. They always order a signature dish for one person, but additional items can be ordered. In the dashboard, we see how the different customer journeys compare to each other."

"Of course, the focus is on the food and presentation, but it's also important that customers feel welcome and understand our concept. The appearance of our branches is also crucial."

Josephine: "Our managers and business leaders have a say in shaping the questionnaire. This keeps them engaged in the research. Additionally, the support from Secret View is valuable. We work together to adjust the weightings of our questions to better align with what we consider important."

How do you internally handle the results at different levels?

Nikki: "Earlier this year, we developed a bonus system for everyone at SLA, which includes scores from Secret View. The goal is to make people more engaged with the results. We do have some turnover among SLA team members, so we put a lot of effort into involving everyone."

"I immediately check new scores. Managers and business leaders receive all the scores by email and WhatsApp when there are new results. We print out the questionnaire and display it in the store. The results are also available on our intranet. If targets are met, we celebrate! For example, if a branch scores lower on clean restrooms twice, we focus on improving that aspect. Everyone's participation in the organization is appreciated. We use the findings to further enhance our concept and organization."

Are there other ways in which you measure customer experience?

Nikki: "We closely monitor our social media for positive comments, which we also share internally. We also keep an eye on online review platforms such as Google and Facebook. Reviews on Uber Eats and Thuisbezorgd also count."

"We conduct our own comprehensive visits with our questionnaire twice a year. During these visits, we thoroughly evaluate a branch on 200 points, going through every detail. We take our time, including sitting down and listening to our customers. This provides insights into how things are going there. These are all valuable additions to Secret View's ongoing customer experience research."

Curious about what mystery shopping research can do for your hospitality business?

We have years of experience in various industries with mystery shopping research. We assess customer experiences for restaurants, supermarkets, clothing stores, and other sectors. Take a look at our cases or contact us for a demo.