Planet Lean: The Official online magazine of the Lean Global Network
Managing a chain of 100 cafes in Barcelona with lean

Managing a chain of 100 cafes in Barcelona with lean

Emi Castro
January 23, 2018

THE LEAN BAKERY - For the past decade, lean has fuelled the growth of a chain of cafes/bakeries in Barcelona. With 100 now open, the Retail Manager explains how lean helps them manage a booming business.


Interviewee: Emi Castro, Retail Manager, 365.café


You might have heard our story: a business in trouble discovers lean and turns things around so dramatically it is now booming. Our chain of over 100 cafés/bakeries in and around Barcelona has been growing so much over the past decade, and if we have been able to manage this growth it is thanks to lean thinking.

Our lean experiments started in our main workshop (more on that in a few weeks), and only reached our "shops" a little later. But when they did, they truly transformed our way of working.

In the short video interview below, Eva and Conchi (two of our coaches) and I explain how we manage the shops day after day, how we organize the work, and how lean is helping us open new cafés quickly and easily. There will be two more episodes on the retail side of our business in February, so make sure to come to Planet Lean next month.

Thanks for watching!


You can read all about the 365 story in The Lean Bakery.

The Lean Bakery book cover

Buy your copy here


THE INTERVIEWEE

Emi Castro photograph
Emi Castro is Retail Manager at 365.café in Barcelona

Read more

Michael Ballé on rewards and recognition in a lean company
April 3, 2014
Michael Ballé on rewards and recognition in a lean company

FEATURE - The author addresses the ongoing debate on rewards and recognition, explaining how an optimal relationship between team members, team leaders and group leaders will influence motivation.

Continue reading
Lean around the clock
November 25, 2021
Lean around the clock

FEATURE – With one of the biggest lean events of the year just four days away, John Shook tells you why you should participate and what you can expect.

Continue reading
The lean turnaround of the San Diego Zoo Global
April 19, 2017
The lean turnaround of the San Diego Zoo Global

CASE STUDY – Lean thinking is transforming San Diego Zoo Global, helping this century-old organization provide a better experience to its visitors and a better life to its animals.

Continue reading
Why dialogue, and not discussion, supports real innovation
March 15, 2016
Why dialogue, and not discussion, supports real innovation

OPINION – It might seem like a subtlety, but the distinction between discussion and dialogue is actually fundamental as we try to find new ways to unleash organizational creativity.

Continue reading

Read more

No items found.