
Managing a chain of 100 cafes in Barcelona with lean
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.

Buy your copy here
THE INTERVIEWEE

Read more


FEATURE – In the latest article of his series for Planet Lean, Ian Glenday explains the practical steps an organization can take to properly introduce levelled production in its operations.


CASE STUDY – This Brazilian agrobusiness has developed a unique and clever management system that puts people at the heart of the work.


FEATURE – During a recent Jishuken workshop, Poland-based Schumacher Packaging experimented with a newly-developed App to quickly create standardized work instructions at the gemba.


CALL TO ARMS – Despite the spread of lean principles across the world, only a handful of universities have included the methodology in their programs. This article is a call-to-arms telling us why we have an obligation towards future generations.