Impact of Restaurants Interior Design on Consumer Behavior - Research Paper Example

Impact of Restaurants Interior Design on Consumer Behavior Table of Contents Table of Contents 2 Aim 5 Objectives  5 Chapter 5 Background of the study 5 Statement of the problem 6 Purpose of the study 6 Significance of the Study 7 Definition of terms 7 Theoretical Framework 8 Research Questions 9 Limitations 9 Delimitations 10 Assumptions 10 Organization of the study 11 Chapter 2 12 Introduction 12 Service Marketing 12 Service marketing triangle 14 Physical Evidence 17 Interior Design 17 Servicescape 18 Summary 19 Chapter 3 19 Introduction 19 Research design 20 Research approach 20 Research strategy 21 Research Choice 21 Time Horizon 22 Data Collection 22 Reliability and validity 23 Ethical Considerations 23 Sampling used 24 What study materials will you use? 25 What resources will you require? 25 Have / Do you intend to request ethical approval from any other body/organization ? 25 Reference list 26 Appendix 27 Questionnaire 27 Interview questions for manager of the restaurant 29 Aim Investigate how the interior design of Esplanada Furnas restaurant in Erceira in Portugal influences the behavior of customers Objectives   1.     To critically review the literature and research on services marketing, particularly physical evidences and servicescape 2.    To identify through an interview of the restaurant manager the servicescape strategic objectives and what could justify a renovation 3.    To identify through a questionnaire the guest perception of the restaurant interior design and its effects on their behavior. 4.  To compare and contrast the findings and make recommendations to the hotel management Chapter 1: Background of the study Consumer behavior has become a rapid growing application in the study of discipline in marketing. It is rather a complex, dynamic and multi-dimensional process, which aims at reflecting the decision of consumer’s against consumption, acquisition or any disposal activity (Batra and Kazmi, 2008). According to American Marketing Association, consumer behavior is defined as “dynamic interaction of affect ad cognition, behavior, and the environment by which human beings conduct the exchange aspects of their lives” (Batra and Kazmi, 2008). Statement of the problem In the contemporary world of business, consumer behavior has gained importance as the companies give emphasis on this factor so as to continue their business in the long run. The companies concentrate on the mental, emotional and behavioral responses of the consumer regarding any product or service, which indicates consumer behavior (Kardes, Cronley and Cline, 2011). The emotional responses highlight the moods, feelings and emotions of the consumers, which can affect the sales of a particular product or service. Simultaneously, mental responses also take into account the thought process, beliefs, opinions, intentions and attitudes of the consumers regarding a product or service (Kardes, Cronley and Cline, 2011). Hence, the responses are very crucial for the companies, as they have to modify strategies accordingly. The research proposal is prepared in order to highlight the impact of interior design of a seafood restaurant in Portugal, Esplanada Furnas on consumer behavior (Lunenburg and Irby, 2007). One of the main limitations of the study is that if the guests visit the restaurant repetitively because of the food or the layout of the restaurant it may influence the whole decision. Purpose of the study The main purpose of the study is to investigate the perception of consumers regarding the interior of Esplanada Furnas, situated in Portugal. Consumer perception or behavior is significant for the restaurant industry as it helps in indentifying whether the restaurant requires renovation, the food and service needs to be improved. It is important to highlight on service marketing, which takes into account physical evidence and servicescape as the study is based on restaurant industry. Hence, the study will help the restaurant to identify those factors in the environment, which are not preferred by the customers. The consumer behavior is identified with the help of questionnaire analysis, which is distributed among the restaurant costumers. The customers will be provided with a short questionnaire, which includes 11 questions highlighting information regarding details of interiors of the restaurant. Apart from the guests, the manager of the restaurant is also interviewed in order to understand the objective of servicescape of the restaurant and whether any renovation is required (Sondoh, 2007). Significance of the Study The world of interior design keeps evolving itself in the hospitality industry. Therefore it is challenging to explore and research to what extent interior design impacts the guest’s behavior (Lunenburg and Irby, 2008). Definition of terms Consumer behaviour: Consumer behavior is defined as the decision process and actions of individuals, who aims at purchasing any product or service for personal consumption. It actually refers to the emotional and mental process of the consumers during post consumption or purchasing phase of the products or services (Batra and Kazmi, 2008). Service marketing: Service marketing came into prominence during 1980s when a debate occurred on the topic whether marketing of the services are different from that of products (Hoffman and Bateson, 2011). It can be noted that the services are intangible and thus it possess challenge to the marketers to promote it to the market so that people purchase it. It is perishable and cannot be returned after it has been rendered. Moreover, the most important part ofservice is that it lacks homogeneity as the services are provided to the customers by the human being (Hoffman and Bateson, 2011). These human beings have different characteristics, which have the ability to either motivate or de-motivated customer. Hence, service marketing is quite challenging as compared to that of products. Physical evidence: It refers to the environment where the services are delivered to the customers. It is actually an element of marketing mix which helps the customers to judge the overall innovation and performance of the company. The consumers take decisions based on the perceptions that are obtained from the environment and where the services are delivered. It is a common platform where the customers and companies interact with each other in exchanging tangible commodities, which aims at facilitating communication or performance of services (Hoffman and Bateson, 2011). Servicescape: Bitner (1992) have explained that human behavior is highly influenced by physical settings of an organization. It not only motivates the employees to work hard but also influences the customers to visit repeatedly. The customers aim at seeking evidences that indicates high quality of the services; this is usually referred as the servicescape. The service products are usually unique in nature as their production and consumption are simultaneous (Bitner, 1992). Theoretical Framework The theoretical framework of the paper comprises work development from different researches to conducting interviews through questionnaires. The theories include the concepts that are related to service marketing. The frameworks are developed in order to achieve the main aim of the study. The framework actually helps in developing the steps through which the dissertation is funneled. The main theory that is of utmost importance is that of servicescape. However, the author will start with services marketing and go further into depth by choosing one tool of the 7 P’s, which is the physical evidence and within the physical evidence, the servicescape model will be further analyzed. Research Questions The following research question is formed in order to establish the impact of interior design of Esplanada Furnas on the consumer behavior. 1) Is physical evidence and servicescape significant for a restaurant industry? 2) Identify the perception of the customers regarding the interior of the restaurant? 3) Identify the opinion of the restaurant managers regarding any renovation in the restuarnt? Limitations Limitations in a research are those elements, which cannot be controlled by the researcher. This also place restrictions on the methodology adopted and the conclusions. There can be many limitations in a research, few of which are sample size, instrument sued for the analysis and also the time frame in which the research is conducted (Sondoh, 2007). The main limitation of the study is that it does not take into account the responses of all the customers, who visit the restaurant regularly. It considers a small number of respondents, who are the customers of the restaurants, for the questionnaire survey. Hence, the analysis can be inaccurate as a part of the whole population is considered for the analysis. However, increase in number of sample may lead to inconvenience for the calculation and analysis. Another limitation of the research is the time frame within which the research is conducted and thus the information collected is limited. This limited information has the ability to affect the result to a great extent. Delimitations Delimitations are mentioned by the researchers at the beginning of the research. It sets the boundary for the study and explains the things, which should not be considered in the study. The delimitations include the literatures, which should not be reviewed at all and the population that should be interviewed during the survey and also the methodologies, which should be avoided. The main delimitation of the particular study is its methodologies used for analyzing the results of the survey. Assumptions The assumptions made for completing the survey are as follows: 1) The articles, which are reviewed in the research are considered to be important to be used for the study. 2) The methodology used in this research is the only instrument that can be used for the analysis of the results that are obtained from the questionnaire analysis. 3) The sample is selected from the population randomly; however, priority is not given to the customers in selecting the respondents. 4) The sample size is small but it can generate appropriate result for the study and the objective can be achieved (Namasivyam and Lin, 2008). Organization of the study This research study is illustrated in five main chapters. As a first step this investigation will represent a solid Introduction, which includes solid information of the background of the study as also a brief explanation of the statement of the problem, this is supported by giving valid reasoning for the purpose of this study. Additionally it is crucial for this research to provide the reader a rich comprehension, about the significance of the study. Regarding the second chapter, this section demonstrates a fully comprehended Literature Review, which includes points such as, Service Marketing, Physical Evidence, Interior Design and Servicescape. The third chapter will provide this research study an organized structure, supported by useful methodology edifices, in order to represent a flow through the thoughts and ideas of the author.
As for the fourth chapter, this section will provide the reader with a brief explanation of how results are to be presented. This means that the data will be presented as well as analyzed and interpreted and the data will be compared to the literature review. The author should demonstrate how the results contribute the existing knowledge and draw out any implications. The last chapter five will provide a summary of the entire study by pointing out the most important points mentioned such as Literature Review, methodology, findings, implications of the findings and the analysis of the data. Chapter 2 Introduction This section of the study reviews the literatures pertaining to service marketing and its elements such as physical evidence and servicescape. Service Marketing Service marketing is an integral part of any service organization and is not a self-enclosed task. The main object of service marketing is the people of the organization. This people are quite reactive and non-passive as compared to the products. Primarily, service marketing was enclosed in the service organizations but slowly it had become an essential part of technology and manufacturing industry. These industries have identified that services are prerequisites of the products that are produced by them. In order to complete a successful deal with the customers, the organization has to prepare a strong service task force, who are responsible for rendering product related services (Hoffman and Bateson, 2011; Bowen and Chen, 2001; Palmer, 1998). Service is provided by the people for the benefit of an organization. Hence, right communication and interaction between the serviceman and customer is essential for the success of the organization in the long run. Offering the best service to the customer is totally dependent on the effort of the serviceman during the delivery of the service. The service employees should have the competency to render the right service to the customers so that it can assist the organizationto achieve success in the short and long run. In this contemporary world, the customers are quite aware of the frauds and misrepresentations that are done by the organizations in order to profit, hence, they are well educated regarding the right quality products and efficient service quality (Hoffman and Bateson, 2011). This has provided an extra pressure on the service industry to study theexact service requirement of the customers. They need to compare whether the customers are happy with their service or if there is a chance of increasing switching cost. Hence, service marketing is very challenging and complex as human minds are not the same for individuals. Different service employees have their own way of offering a service and there is high chance that the customers can get confused of different behaviors. The service people can mistreat or even mislead the customers in order to do their job; hence, it is significant for an organization to train their service employees in such a manner that they give their effort to satisfy customer and do not give any falsified information (Hoffman and Bateson, 2011). According to Baker and Crompton (2000), pure service is intangible in nature; however they aim at adding value to a tangible product. Moreover, it should be noted that services are not transferred from one owner to another like products but the service are provided to the customers, which remains imbedded in the memories, if the service offered is worth remembering. The difference between service and goods is not absolutely clear. While goods contain tangible elements, the services do not contain so (Hoffman and Bateson, 2011). However, demarcating the two, it can be stated that services are efforts, deeds and performances that are rendered to the customers in order to satisfy their needs. Because of its inseparability, perishability, heterogeneity and intangibility, marketing plays a significant role in the service oriented companies. In broader sense, service takes into account all the economic activities that are not products but are consumed at the time of production. Hence, the uniqueness of the service makes it different from those products (Aydin, Gokhan and Omer, 2005). There are 7P’s of service marketing i.e. product, price, place, promotion, people, physical evidence and processes. However, only one P is chosen for executing this research. Physical evidence is one of the important aspect in service marketing as with the rise in competition, the companies are concentrating on this aspect in order to develop competitive advantage. Service marketing triangle In the contemporary world of business, the service marketers had experienced challenges that revolve around few problems. The main problem is related tounderstanding the expectations and needs of services of the customers so as to provide them the right type of service. It is difficult for the service employees to make services tangible and present it to the customers. Moreover, it is challenging for the service men to keep the promises that are made by them to the customers during the service delivery process. It is worth mentioning that the service marketing triangle assist the service marketers to overcome the challenges. Figure 1: Service marketing triangle (Source: Zeithaml and Bitner, 2000) The three main points of the triangle are employees, customers and organization. There are many marketing processes in between the three point i.e. interactive, external and internal marketing. These marketing activities are executed successfully in order to maintain a good relationship with the external and internal customers. Internal marketing: It refers to the marketing process, which enables the service marketers for delivering the exact promises to the customers. Internal marketing assists an organization to reveal its internal departments and individuals, who are actually each other’s customers. The employees not only interact and provide services to the external customers but they also train their colleagues (Kotler and Armstrong, 2011). Interactive marketing:The process ensures that the promises made to the customers are considered andquality services are also delivered in order to satisfy them. Through interactive marketing, the employees actually communicate and deliver the services to the customers and are also known as the mouth of truth. This interactive process can be decisive as in this process the organization reflects what it can do and how they can meet the expectations of customers. At this interactive session, the service can fail or succeed and thus victory is dependent on the competencies of service man (Mi Jeon, 2008). External marketing: The association between the organization and customers is known to be the external marketing process. It actually reflects the promises that are made by the organizations to the external customers by referring to the service and products they are offering. The organizations are seen to make promise to the customers regarding the offers and how the service will be delivered. Hence, these activities play a pivotal role in increasing the expectation of the customers (Henry, 2008). Physical Evidence Physical evidence is significant for delivering service as it has the ability to bridge the gap that exists between the expectation of the customers and delivery of services. It helps in developing a positive image about an entity in the eyes of the customers. Physical evidence is also referred as tangible cue for evaluating services even before the purchase. It also assists in assessing the satisfaction level of the customers. However, servicescape is one of the most important elements that are employed for positioning an organization (Henry, 2008). Interior Design There are three types of perception that defines the human behavior such as operational modes that concentrate on elements of environment significant for accomplishing a task. The responsive mode highlights the scenic beauty that an individual perceive. Inferential mode focuses on those elements which help in supporting the knowledge regarding environment (Robson, 1999). Robson (1999) had stated that an environment provides information at three levels, which is defined by a successful environment. The beauty of the internal environment of a restaurant not only enhances the interest of the customers but it also increases the number of visits. The customers gives emphasis on the beauty of the interiors as soothes their eyes and helps in spending quality time with their dear ones. Servicescape Bitner (1992) had asserted that behavior of human behavior is often influenced by its physical setting. The human behavior indicates both employee and customer behavior. The customers usually seek for evidences that give the ultimate quality of intangible services only by observing tangible elements, which are known as servicescape. Services are usually unique in nature as it is consumed at the time of production. This product consists of both tangible and intangible components; for example services provide by the attendants in a restaurant. Here, the service offered by the attendants is intangible in nature but they are applying the services in order to satisfy the customers with tangible products. According to Bitner (1992), servicescape is defined as the built environment that has artificially constructed physical surroundings against the social or natural environment. Namasivayam and Lin (2008) had stated that servicescape is the physical environment that encompasses several elements such as design, overall layout and decoration of an entity. It also takes into account different elements of atmospherics like lighting, temperature, music, colors and scent. The servicescape is significant as it has the ability to influence the emotional, cognitive and physiological state of mind but it can also affect the behavior positively. Hence, service organizations include hospitality entities for manipulating, which have the capability to affect the servicescape effectively. It aims at enhancing the customer satisfaction that encourages repeat purchase (Namasivayam and Lin, 2008; Blackwell, Miniard and Engel, 2006). In this research, the main aspect of servicescape is the layout. Here, layout highlights the overall structure of any organization or unit that helps an individual to build a perception regarding its success and reliability. In case of a restaurant it helps the customers to enjoy their food in an ambience where color, texture, graphics, lights and few other elements are appropriate enough to support repetitive visits. Summary Service marketing has gained importance in the past few decades. Hence, the service marketers need to generate adequate information so as to fulfill the needs of the customers and meet their expectations. In course of marketing, the organization can encounter challenges pertaining to marketing of services. However, the challenges can be overcome with the help of the service marketing triangle that incorporates internal, external and interactive marketing. The three marketing process assists the organization in establishing an efficient interactive system between the external and internal marketing environment. Chapter 3 Introduction This section highlights on the process that will be employed for executing the research. It firstly describes the research philosophy, which is critical realism. Further it lays emphasis on the research approach, which are generally inductive and deductive in nature. The strategy used is case study; whereas the method employed is both qualitative and quantitative. The time horizon selected is cross sectional and the data collected for the research are primary and secondary in nature. The primary data is obtained from semi-structured interviews, which are with the help of open and closed ended questionnaires. The first set of population chosen for the interview is the restaurant manager and restaurant guests; however, the sample chosen are restaurant managers and 70 guests. Research design Research design is essential for any study as it highlights whether it will be explanatory, investigative or descriptive in nature. In order to depict the influence of the restaurant on the consumer behavior, descriptive research design is selected (Saunders, 2009). This research design will be involving the epistemology, which inquires how the knowledge is developed, the acceptable knowledge, in certain discipline (Saunders et al., 2012). Having the three acceptable knowledge choices, the author seeks to apply the realism field, in order to prove the relevance of the method utilized. By utilizing realism as an epistemology structure, gives the reader a greater understanding what Crotty argues about, that realism philosophy is that there is a reality, which is independent of the mind. Hence, the antagonism of realism and idealism is valid (Crotty, 1998 cited in Saunders et al., 2012). As realism gives the reader a wider understanding regarding the research topic, hence it is selected for completing the dissertation. Research approach Research approaches are significant for any study as they give a guideline regarding how the research is to be executed. Induction, deduction and abduction are significant research approaches, which are employed by the researchers for undertaking any research. Both inductive and deductive research approaches are used by the academic researcher for completing a project (Saunders, 2009). In order to examine the affect of the interiors of the restaurant, the researcher will employ deductive approach, which aims at collecting information regarding the topic from a number of sources basically primary and secondary in nature. Research strategy The researcher will choose case study method for conducting the research. However, the questionnaire method helps in understanding the perception of the customer regarding the interior design of the restaurant. The respondents’ for the survey are selected randomly from a number of sources (Saunders, 2009). Case study method will be used in this case as it gives emphasis on a particular restaurant and its interior designing. The authors aim at examining the reaction of the customers of the restaurant by giving emphasis on the interiors and whether it has succeeded in satisfying them. Research Choice Both qualitative and quantitative data will be used for conducting the research for the dissertation. The advantage for both the approaches is that it gives detailed information regarding the topic. Time Horizon The research will be completed within three months. The research proposal is developed in the first few days after selecting the topic. The first week, the introduction section is prepared after gathering information from relevant source regarding the topic. In the middle of first week, the literature review is prepared after collecting information from the articles that are available in the electronic sources. Followed by the literature review, the methodology is prepared, which defines the methods that will be used for conducting the primary research. Three days are spent in gathering the responses that are obtained from the respondents of the questionnaire (Saunders, 2009). The results from the questionnaire are analyzed with the help of analytical tool, Microsoft Excel. Among the two main time horizons, cross sectional is selected as it helps in depicting both the months and the activities done during the time. Data Collection The secondary data for the introduction and literature review are collected from the electronic sources; this includes articles from journals and newspapers. However, the primary data are collected from the questionnaires that are duly filled up by the respondents (Saunders, 2009; Kruger, 2008). Primary research: These parts explain the interviews and questionnaires (open and closed) that are conducted in order to depict the success of the interior designing of the restaurant. The main advantage of the research is that it takes into account the perception of general public. Secondary Research: In order to support the author thoughts the research will be backup with knowledge, evaluations, interpretations or conclusions of experts, hence secondary research will assists in conducting the research. Pilot testing: Pilot testing will be employed in order to understand if the questionnaires and interview are feasible. It is significant as it will help in understanding whether the research will give a positive result and it can be trusted for conducting further researches. Reliability and validity Reliability: The reliability of a research has impact on the process. Meaning that it refers back to the research findings as well as the research techniques and tools that have are utilized. Reliability depends on various sections, as for the participation and the researcher. Validity: It plays a great role in the measures of the research. Meaning how valid or to what extent does the authors research measure, that needs to be assessed (Saunders et al., 2007). This section goes in to depth with the critical realism as also quantitative and qualitative research (Saunders et al., 2007). Ethical Considerations a. Consent: For this research a fine dinning restaurant, Esplanada Furnas in Ericeira, will be working closely together with this investigation. The Hotel, which is being preferably chosen for a successful research, has confirmed the authorization to do the investigation both interviews and questionnaires, that will be present in the Appendix. b. Deception: Not applicable c. Debriefing: The participants will be debriefed with both written and oral questions. Questionnaires are prepared for the restaurant managers and customers. d. Withdrawal from the investigation will be clarified in a form that will be distributed to the participant, before any interviews or questionnaires will be conducted, with a request signature and date. e. Confidentially: The information will be confident and only use for academic purposes. The authorities that will have access to the information are those who will evaluate the work. Will not be disclosed any time of number regarding to revenue, only percentages to protect the restaurant. f. Protection of participants: Since this work is for the good of the researcher and the restaurant involved there will be no risk for the participant of physical, psychological or emotional harm g. Observation research: It will not be important due to the questionnaires and interview and is not that reliable. h. Giving advice: The objective of this work is to give advice in the end if is necessary or not to refurbish the restaurant. i. Research undertaken in public places: This section is not applicable since the researched are not done in public spaces j. Animal Rights: Not necessary for this research, not applicable k. Environmental protection: Not applicable Sampling used Convenience sampling will be used by the researcher in conducting the research. It indicates that the researcher will collect data according to the convenience of reaching the respondents in a short span of time. The main advantage of employing a convenience sampling is that the results are collected from the reliable sources and based on the convenience of the sample. However, the main disadvantage of the sampling is that it can generate biased results, which are not at all reliable for the success of the research. The managers are interviewed so as to decipher the fact whether they are in favor of any renovation in the restaurant. Moreover, they are concerned about the revenue and they know the restaurant better than anybody. Simple probability distribution is used for deducing the results of the survey. The guests will answer the questioners randomly, every guest has the same opportunity to answer, and every table will be asked if they would like to participate. Are payments or rewards/incentives going to be made to the participants? Not applicable What study materials will you use? The study materials used for the research are articles and questionnaires, which will provide with successful answers. The questionnaire will be both close and open ended that will assists in obtaining better results. The interview is scheduled with the manager of the restaurant after preparation of the proposal and it will be approved through Skype interview. The interview questions will be sent to the managers for approval prior to the distribution to its customers. What resources will you require? Not applicable Have / Do you intend to request ethical approval from any other body/organization ? No Reference list Awara, N. F. and Anyadighibe, J, A., 2014. The Relationship Between Customer Satisfaction And Loyalty: A Study Of Selected Eateries In Calabar, Cross. Interdisciplinary Journal of Contemporary Research In Business, 5(9), pp.110-125. Aydin, S., Gokhan, O. and Omer, A., 2005. Customer Loyalty and the Effect of Switching Costs as a Moderator Variable: A Case in the Turkish Mobile Phone Market. Marketing Intelligence & Planning, 23(1), pp. 89-103. Baker, D. A. and Crompton, J. L., 2000. Quality, satisfaction and behavioral variables. Annals of Tourism Research, 27 (3), pp. 785-804. Batra, S. and Kazmi, S., 2008. Consumer behavior. New Delhi: Excel Books. Bitner, M, 1992. Servicescapes: The impact of physical surroundings on customers and employees. Journal of Marketing, 56, pp. 57-71. Blackwell, R. D., Miniard, P. W. and Engel, J. F., 2006. Consumer behaviour. Mason: Thomson. Bowen, J. and Chen, S., 2001. The relationship between customer loyalty and customer satisfaction. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 13 (5), pp. 213-217. Henry, A., 2008.Understanding strategic management. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Hoffman, K. and Bateson, J., 2011. Services marketing: Concepts, strategies, & cases. Connecticut: Cengage Learning. Kardes, F., Cronley, M. and Cline, T., 2011. Consumer behavior. Connecticut: Cengage Learning. Kotler, R. and Armstrong, G., 2011. Principles of Marketing.14th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Kruger, W., 2008. Research methodology. Cape Town: Oxford University Press. Lunenburg, F. and Irby, B., 2007. Writing a successful thesis or dissertation.  London: Crowin Press. Mi Jeon, S., 2008.The influence of perceived loyalty program value on satisfaction and attitudinal and behavioural loyalty. New York: Michigan State University. Namasivyam, K. and Lin, I., 2008. The servicescape: The handbook of hospitality operation and IT. NewYork: Elsvier Ltd. Palmer, A., 1998. Principles of Services Marketing. Maidenhead: McGraw-Hill. Robson, S. A., 1999. Turning the tables: The psychology of design for high-volume restaurants. Cornell Hotel and Restaurant Administration Quarterly, pp. 56-63. Saunders, M., 2009. Research methods for business students. New Jersey: Pearson Education. Sondoh, S. L., 2007. The effect of brand image on overall satisfaction and loyalty intention in the context of color cosmetic. Asian Academy of Management Journal, 12(1), pp. 83–107. Zeithaml, V. A. and Bitner, M. J., 2000. Service marketing: Integrating focus across the firms. New York: Mc-Graw- Hill. Appendix Questionnaire 1) Is this your first visit? Yes No 2) How often you visit the restaurant to enjoy the seafood? Regularly Once a week Thrice in a month Occasionally 4) In which content do you usually visit the restaurant? Business Family Romantic 5) What is the most important feature of the restaurant that attracts you to visit repeatedly? The Food The Interior Design The View All of the above 7) Does the interior of the restaurant make you comfortable and happy with your family? Yes No 8) What is the main feature that you want to highlight to your friends? Food Interior Service 9) Do you like the interior Design? Yes No 10) Which one in specific? The layout The Furniture The old Ship Theme Other (please indicate which one) 11) Do you recommend for any renovation? Yes No 12) What would you recommend the owner to renovate? Interview questions for manager of the restaurant 1) Since when do you own/ manage the restaurant? 2) When was the last renovation? 3) What made you renovate the space? 4) Was there any increase on the profit afterwards? 5) In which aspect did you concentrate on while planning the renovation? 6) Your restaurant being located in a traditional village with other restaurants providing the same product, do you think that you could different yourself from the competition through interior design? 7) Do you think the interior design is your best asset? 8) Are the customers happy with the interior of the restaurant? 9) What is the feedback regarding the overall ambience of the restaurant? 10) Is the innovative interior of the restaurant successful enough to draw enough customers and make them content with the overall foods and services? 11) Have the customers recommended any renovation plan for the interiors of the restaurant? 12) Are you planning in renovating again soon the restaurant? Why? 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