VISUAL ARTS CAFE
Dennis Bollington Commercial Manager
The Visual Arts Café previously outsourced as the Coffee Cellar, was owned and operated by the Student Guild in 2016 and commenced operations before the start of first semester. The café itself is located on the ground floor of the Visual Arts building (G14).
Rochelle Stewart was appointed the Manager of the café. She did a great job building on the business generated previously with particular emphasis on providing quality coffee. Shaun Edie the manager of Village Café was also instrumental in getting the café open and operational.
The café and surrounding areas could have best been described as run down and as a result we spent minimum money tidying up the café and surrounds prior to opening under the Student Guild banner. However we were always mindful in spending that it was a potential building site that could have resulted in restricted access and loss of trade. The University’s Eastern Spine Project was being built in close proximity to the café but fortuitously we were able to trade without too many restrictions throughout both semesters in 2016.
Management continued to listen to the wants and needs of students and staff and the menu continued to evolve throughout the course of the year. The fact that it was going to be a building site made it difficult to budget. However, sales exceeded budget by 2.13 times which gave the café a result for the year that exceeded all expectations.
There are no other food outlets within a close proximity and as a result we needed to operate with a reasonably diverse menu. The menu included coffee and cakes, rolls and wraps, gourmet burgers and chips, fresh salads, and a variety of hot dishes for those customers wishing to dine in. Fresh fruit juices, smoothies and acai bowls were also part of the offering.
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The University took back the café site at the end of 2016 for its own purposes and as a result the café has now ceased operating. However all is not lost. The Student Guild will be operating a new and exciting café at the eastern end of the G06 building not far from the old site. This café will be part of the University’s Eastern Spine Project and is due to open during the second half of the 2017 calendar year.