Andiamo is an upscale Italian restaurant group that has eight restaurants in the metro Detroit area. It was founded by Joe Vicari in 1989 and continues to provide customers scratch-made, fine Italian dishes with fresh seasonal ingredients daily. 

The company has expanded over the years to include seafood and Greek restaurants, a showroom for entertainment, and even a food truck to meet customers wherever they are located. Its marketing strategy centers around a well-established brand, consistent quality/service, excellent word-of-mouth, and the outspoken family-man owner Joe Vicari himself.

During the darkest days of the COVID pandemic Joe Vicari was heard everywhere speaking on behalf of not only his restaurants but the restaurant industry itself, which many remember was shuttered, or partially shuttered, for months at a time. This was devastating to many restaurants, but Andiamo survived.

For Case Study 1, please do the following:

Conduct research on Andiamo. Learn as much as you can about the company from its Website and information gleaned through the Walsh academic databases, other online research (such as mainstream business publications such as The Wall Street Journal, Fortune, Forbes, etc.) and even consider some ethnographic research (visit the websites, restaurants that are located nearby). 

Prepare a summary report on the issues surrounding Andiamo given the post-pandemic restaurant environment and changing consumer behavior. Write this report as though you work for a think tank and have been asked to prepare a white paper with the following information:

1)    List at least two emerging trends in customer relationship management in the restaurant industry, especially given the vast changes and competitive challenges restaurants are facing in a post-pandemic world. You have decided to focus solely on Andiamo as an example (although if you want to add some counter examples, please do).

2)    Discuss the changes in restaurants and consumer purchase decisions and behavior.

3)    Discuss Andiamo customer relationship management and how you perceive the value for its customers. You may find Chapters 6, 7, 8 that discuss the “value for customers” extremely helpful.

4)    Present some recommendations to Andiamo on how it can continue to grow and respond to post-pandemic consumers.