Thread by @wernshen

With a heavy heart, I pulled the shutters on our Taylor’s outlet yesterday and bade farewell to our chef, Hassan.

Business hasn’t been great, and we had to make the tough decision to pull the plug.

A thread.

If you’ve visited us before, then you’ll know that the flavors aren’t the issue. And at an average ticket price of RM15-20 for a complete meal with drinks, we’re not what you’d classify as an expensive joint either.

So, what went wrong?

In a nutshell, it was the combination of the lack of F&B experience and wrong location.

In the beginning, we were overly optimistic - we assumed that if the food was good, people would come.

And come they did!

We had an amazing first month that well exceeded our own projections. Besides our friends and family, we were received by the Taylor’s student population with open arms.

Special shout to the TBSS for their strong support 🙏 https://t.co/3w4xqdY14Atwitter.com/i/web/status/1…

We filled a gap at the Taylor’s F&B scene - a distinct lack of food from the sub Indian continent - and quickly won over customers from India, Pakistan, and of course, Bangladesh.

We ensured our portions were big enough for a student appetite, and that prices were fair.

In month 2, we saw an increased diversity in our customers. Locals were trying our food, and even students from China, Japan and Korea were spotted enjoying it too.

My partners were actively collecting feedback, and we quickly developed chicken alternatives to beef dishes.

We also jumped on the opportunity to sponsor various student activities and participate in cultural day events representing Bangladeshi culture through food. https://t.co/bkRMm56k1Ftwitter.com/i/web/status/1…

And in month 3, we expanded the menu to include quick snacks like handmade Shingara and trendy Bangladeshi roti rolls. https://t.co/zyrSccWO9Dtwitter.com/i/web/status/1…

In our minds… we were doing everything right. We were growing and bound for success.

Except we weren’t.

A quick review of daily orders confirmed it, and a 2 week long semester break drilled it into our over inflated egos.

As a new restaurateur, I quickly learnt that the 2 most depressing sights are a completely empty dining room and an incredibly demotivated chef.

We recognized the problem, and our dependency on students. So we put the team to work to develop new items, while we tried our best to push the brand on delivery platforms like Grab.

These efforts helped us a little, but that’s where the second issue came into play - our location.

Too often, we would have delivery orders ready… but no rider assigned after half an hour.

It seemed like we were in a delivery rider black hole zone. https://t.co/6AdT0atxU7twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

We had such a beautiful and aesthetic dining area… but no one besides the students, staff and occasional parent actually walked in.

Less than half the student population are on site, and less than a quarter of those came to our area. It looked dire. https://t.co/3M3hyi3EUetwitter.com/i/web/status/1…

So we made the drastic decision to move.

Our issue was never with COOX as a provider, so naturally we scouted their other locations.

That’s when we arrived at Glo Damansara - an empty mall, but a location with extremely high delivery potential.

With this second breath of life, we immediately set to work. We equipped the kitchen and started the ball rolling. https://t.co/KMnSjM8nSRtwitter.com/i/web/status/1…

I won’t lie and say that business has been booming - this thread is all about giving you a transparent look at the restaurant business from the point of view of a newbie - but business could be better.

However, the positive is that we now have renewed energy! https://t.co/M400h4jRBltwitter.com/i/web/status/1…

So that’s how we started the year in Taylor’s, and have now found our new home at Glo Damansara.

We do still need your support, and would really like for you to try out our food.

In fact, we’re so confident in our flavors that we’re working with COOX to offer 35% OFF!

There’s no minimum spend to get this discount, but you will need to order via the COOX app.

Alternatively, you can dine in at our spacious seating area to taste our food fresh from the stove.

If you do, please drop me a PM so I can personally come and thank you 🫡 https://t.co/tvJX314X0Atwitter.com/i/web/status/1…

Lastly, thank you for reading along this thread. I hope to see you soon at Darun! https://t.co/pKQST4VMbntwitter.com/i/web/status/1…

@zurtryx I fully understand that this may not suit everyone's comfort level, but I wanted to be completely honest and transparent with you about the situation so you can make your best judgement.

Wishing you a great week ahead, and looking forward to the chance to serve you our food ☺️