Effects of Restaurant Quality on Customer Retention and Suggestions for Itsudemo Oy
Dang, Phuong Thao (2020)
Dang, Phuong Thao
2020
All rights reserved. This publication is copyrighted. You may download, display and print it for Your own personal use. Commercial use is prohibited.
Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-202004084760
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-202004084760
Tiivistelmä
The thesis commissioner was Itsudemo Oy, a Japanese-style restaurant chain. The company has been growing and expanding to different cities in Finland. Along with the expansion, the company wanted to know how to improve restaurant quality so that they could not only serve more customers but also serve them better. The objective of the thesis was to find out how to improve the restaurant quality of Itsudemo Oy. By quality improvement, the company aimed to increase customer satisfaction and retention.
To achieve the objective, quantitative research was used in the thesis. The author firstly conducted secondary research from many publications to examine elements of restaurant quality and their determining effects on customer satisfaction and patronage intentions. Based on this research, the conceptual framework containing these theories was formed and tested its applicability in the context of sushi buffet restaurants in Finland. Primary data collected by the survey method was used in the evaluation of the conceptual framework. Software products, SPSS and SmartPLS 3 were utilized to support the data analysis process. After the evaluation, the revised conceptual framework applicable in the context of interest was presented. This framework and the analysis of Itsudemo’s current quality were used by the author to provide recommendations for quality improvement.
The results suggested that to customers in Finland, food quality, especially tastiness and presentation, and price-to-value were two strongest determinants of satisfaction and revisit intentions towards sushi buffet restaurants. Employee services and physical environment affected behavioral intentions indirectly through its impacts on customer satisfaction. The analysis of the current situation and perceived quality showed that the case company was highly rated by customers in terms of food presentation, diversity in food offerings, location convenience and comfort of the restaurant atmosphere. However, they also had rooms for improvement in terms of food tastiness, pricing, and overall customer satisfaction.
In conclusion, the case company was recommended to focus on improving the key factors that had strong impacts on increasing satisfaction and encouraging the positive intentions of customers. Also, periodically conducting restaurant-quality measurement to find out customers’ preferences and perceptions was advised to help the company stay engaged with customers, take advantage of upcoming consumption trends and provide better quality to serve customers.
To achieve the objective, quantitative research was used in the thesis. The author firstly conducted secondary research from many publications to examine elements of restaurant quality and their determining effects on customer satisfaction and patronage intentions. Based on this research, the conceptual framework containing these theories was formed and tested its applicability in the context of sushi buffet restaurants in Finland. Primary data collected by the survey method was used in the evaluation of the conceptual framework. Software products, SPSS and SmartPLS 3 were utilized to support the data analysis process. After the evaluation, the revised conceptual framework applicable in the context of interest was presented. This framework and the analysis of Itsudemo’s current quality were used by the author to provide recommendations for quality improvement.
The results suggested that to customers in Finland, food quality, especially tastiness and presentation, and price-to-value were two strongest determinants of satisfaction and revisit intentions towards sushi buffet restaurants. Employee services and physical environment affected behavioral intentions indirectly through its impacts on customer satisfaction. The analysis of the current situation and perceived quality showed that the case company was highly rated by customers in terms of food presentation, diversity in food offerings, location convenience and comfort of the restaurant atmosphere. However, they also had rooms for improvement in terms of food tastiness, pricing, and overall customer satisfaction.
In conclusion, the case company was recommended to focus on improving the key factors that had strong impacts on increasing satisfaction and encouraging the positive intentions of customers. Also, periodically conducting restaurant-quality measurement to find out customers’ preferences and perceptions was advised to help the company stay engaged with customers, take advantage of upcoming consumption trends and provide better quality to serve customers.