Larry Bud's Atmospherics (JNV4)

Larry Bud's Bar and Grill is a local establishment with a different approach to building customer rapport through atmospherics.
My job was to find out what makes Larry Bud’s special and how they could recreate a similar experience at their second location.

Larry Bud’s is a local sports bar that decided in 2012 that it was going to expand to a second location on the other side of the city. Coincidently, the capstone project for a Consumer Behavior class was to examine a local business and see how the environmental factors and atmospherics help or hinder the customers’ expectations.

This project gave me an opportunity to meet with the owner, Larry Harmon, to help establish the quality of service in the new location by looking at the atmospheric elements of the original location and see what we can do to bring the best customers experience.

Understanding Larry Bud's

What separates Larry Bud's from many of the local sports bars is their sense of family, which is portrayed through the presentation and service of the establishment. The initial feel of the restaurant is to appeal to the working class through a sense of “aged” furniture and faded sports memorabilia. The grab is to trigger comfortable memories of days passed.

Initially, the bar started off with a limited budget, which led to a diversity of furniture. An assortment of chairs and different height tables conveyed that a ton of money wasn’t dumped into the aesthetic. The banners of local sports teams collected over the decades show that this was not something that money could buy, but an experience that Larry Bud wanted to share with his patrons. The atmosphere unintentionally displayed the dream of Larry, by putting his heart into his business.

Customer service was also trained to treat people like family, to the point where the waiters/waitresses would sit down with customers and talk about sports. While the service may be slower than other establishments, the quality of care by the wait staff makes up for that. Making the customer feel comfortable is the highest priority.

The layout of the bar is similar to most, dimmed lighting with televisions close to the ceiling to ensure no occlusion from other visitors sitting (or standing) in the way. Tables and chairs are not anchored to a specific location, so customers could rearrange seating to fit their group size without having to have a host dictate seating. The empty space in the restaurant floor is relatively small, which encourages parties to sit close to each other and be sociable.

Through this familial atmosphere, Larry Bud's does not employ security. By showing respect and comfort to patrons, even the rowdiest of sports fans are considerate of others. This atmosphere of camaraderie and comfort is something that Larry Bud wanted to reinforce into their new location.

Larry Bud's was able to transition to the new location with lower costs by adopting a “traditional design”, rather than budgeting for the latest and greatest equipment.