Where exactly is your store located? What does it look like there?
The book canteen is located in Berlin-Moabit in Mitte, right on the Spree. The book canteen is a mixed concept between gastronomy and bookshop on 400sqm of interior space, with the bookshop portion being 150sqm. There is an open all-day concept: we are open from 10 a.m. to 10 a.m., 7 days a week. The bookshop is not, of course, because it has to adhere to the retail closing times, but the gastronomy can stay open longer and we have enjoyed great popularity here for 15 years.
What is the general concept of your store? What is special about it that makes you stand out?
Our real unique selling point is of course that we have a combination of two different businesses. We have a bookstore and a restaurant. The whole thing is packaged in an all-day concept that allows our customers, especially our neighbors and residents, to spend the whole day here or to have a place where they can come together, enjoy spending their free time, but also have a quick bite to eat during their lunch break. Synergy effects that both businesses really accept very well. We have bookstore customers who of course also like to have a coffee on the side, and you've probably seen a few times that bookstores now also have coffee machines. We go beyond that: we have a complete restaurant, we have a kitchen, we have events and weddings, so we also cover the whole program that the "normal" restaurant covers.
Of course we have a very strong connection here in the neighbourhood. We have been here for 15 years, we have seen children grow up here, we have accompanied families from children's literature to the first school books and even the literature to accompany them to university. They have now become an integral part of our business and it makes an incredible difference to us whether customers or guests just stop by for a bite to eat or quickly buy a book and maybe have a quick chat with a bookseller, or whether they really use a shop as a space for experiences and meetings and also spend part of their life here. That creates incredible customer loyalty and is also a lot of fun! We have a lot of space where you can sit down and relax and end your day or start it. I think that sets us apart from a bookshop that may now also have a coffee machine or maybe offers a few soft drinks. We really are two completely equal partners when it comes to catering and bookselling.
How did you find Pickmotion? In your opinion, how do you fit in with Pickmotion?
We actually became aware of it through other booksellers, because we also like to go to other shops in our free time and that's where we saw the postcards for the first time and they really appealed to us. Why? We have a really broad target group here in the all-day concept. That ranges from small children who play in the play area here, to teenagers, schoolchildren, students, and the older generation. As far as the young target group is concerned, the Instagram-savvy generation, they think the format of the postcards and the association with Instagram is really cool, that's really great. Then there's the Polaroid format, which in turn appeals to associations with older people, the way it used to be. That was of course the perfect mix for us. We tried it out with a small range first and then we increased it incredibly because it really became a box office hit with us and we really had a lot of demand, especially for the postcards!
The book canteen is not only a beautiful but also a cozy place to linger. In addition to warm meals and delicious drinks, you will also find a large selection of books and of course our beautiful PICKMOTION cards. So be sure to stop by! You can find the book canteen here:
Book canteen bookstore & bistro
Dortmunder Strasse 1
10555 Berlin
https://www.buchkantine.de/
