Simple ways to add some sparkle to your canteen

A change is as good as a holiday they say. So if your canteen is starting to look a bit worse for wear, here are some simple suggestions to help add some newness to your canteen:

• A new name for your canteen flags a new approach to the canteen. The name doesn’t have to be terribly flamboyant. Simple names often work better – for instance, Carrum Downs Secondary College call their canteen “CD Cafe”.
   
• Simple tactics like incorporating the school name, address or suburb into specials on offer (e.g. Box Hill Burger, Station Street Salad Tub).
   
• Fun words work a treat. Use some fun words for products, e.g. Funky Chicken Roll (think like an advertising guru and let your imagination run wild).
   
• Reconsider how you wrap and present product – brown paper can be very boring! Sandwich triangles and clear poly bags display the product or try a roll or wrap – cut in half to display the tasty fillings and wrapped in greaseproof paper, sealed with an appropriate sticker.
   
• Market your menu e.g. photograph beautifully presented wraps & rolls with a student (seek permission from parents first) and enlarge these photos. These photos not only decorate the canteen but they work a treat at promoting the item. Seek help from a parent who may be willing and able to Photoshop and enhance the pictures. Think like Donna Hay!
   
• Look at the presentation of your canteen as if you were the customer. This sounds obvious, but we often forget to do this.
   
• Does your food look appetising and appealing?
   
• Is your product faced up – i.e. is food placed at the front of the display, orderly, without big gaps? Half-empty shelves or displays make the food look old and less appetising.
   
• Students think like you. Look at your display counter as if you’re opening the fridge door looking for a snack – it’s the food that looks the best that grabs your attention. Brown cardboard boxes are just plain unattractive.
   
• A fun and effective way to draw attention to key food items is to tuck a novelty item in with the display to attract the attention of the students. A silly spider or obvious toy mouse, which changes location occasionally, makes the customer notice items for sale. (We have to say, please don’t use anything that is (1) a health hazard or (2) looks too much like the real thing!)

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