The Goeken bakery from Bad Driburg entered virgin soil with their cafe concept for the city of Paderborn
- Customers are attracted by boxes of light in the counter front. The vertical panes of the glass top give free view on the bakery goods
Matthias Goeken’s production capacity has always been exploited supplying 27 sales outlets, his own stores and various outlets in supermarkets within a radius of 30 km of Bad Driburg. For a long time he was afraid of making his dream come true to open a cafe with seats. Goeken wanted to combine a cafe with sales of ice cream and bakery products. In Korte Einrichtungen he found a competent shop fitting partner who realized his ideas.
Extra challenge: the building had yet to be built. And Goeken wanted to open his cafe during the “Libori summer festival”. Usually more than 1 million people visit the Libori festival in Paderborn in summer every year. He did not want to miss those potential customers. His object is located right across from the fairgrounds. Goeken could open his cafe on time before the festival. Today he reflects positively: “To us the cafe was a big challenge but also an experiment. Looking back on all the problems we encountered during construction and the experience we had to make in the service area, I can now say that it was well worthwhile.”
The extra challenge for the shop fitter: Korte Einrichtungen arranged the complete interior on an extremely limited space of 90 sq meters and still had to incorporate all components of the Goeken concept.
The square floor plan was a real challenge for the architects. A quarter of the round entrance space and the stair case leading to the offices on the first floor extend into the store. A supporting pillar in the middle had to be incorporated in the concept. The stair case leading to the cellar is positioned rather unfavorably close to the wall. Half rounded elements in the counter, several room partitions and seats now brighten up the square shape of the store itself.
Street Sales
- During warm weather you may enjoy the specialties in the patio
The beginning of the pedestrian zone suggested street sale of ice cream. Goeken offers a range of 16 different tastes which he has delivered to his store. Because the facade design is mandatory, a glass frame divides the counter. “Regrettably we could not place the counter anywhere else and we could not convince the developer of anything else to save us this partition in the middle,“ says Goeken. Nonetheless customers have a good view of the ice cream variety. The sliding windows can be lifted. “
During the winter months they remove the ice cream counter and replace it by a presentation counter. Then they can prepare fresh sandwiches in front of the customers. The devices for the sandwich units are fit in the rear panel. When ice cream is sold, however, the snacks are prepared in the back of the shop. A large refrigerator keeps the ingredients fresh. Cleaning facilities and work spaces also exist. Shelves on the walls have enough room for the required tableware. The beer dispensing equipment is placed in the alley to the store. The preparation room is not a separate room but merely divided by the bread shelf.
Bakery Products Zone
- Rose pictures and lamps adorn the cafe walls. The seats are of the same red color as the roses
The bread shelf has three levels and an overall length of 1.87 meters. The upper two shelves are used for bread and the lower level contains baskets for bread rolls. The bread cutting machine is placed underneath the bread shelf. It was not possible to incorporate a wider shelf because the ice cream area adjoins to the right and the baking ovens adjoin to the left. But still the shelves offer sufficient space; they are continually refilled and never show an empty rack. In the snack area, Goeken prefers multi hearth furnaces to scallop his bread rolls and fan ovens to bake his bread rolls – both made by Wiesheu. Oven, fermentation room and the trays are assembled on top of each other and form an entity.
The pastry is presented in a half rounded counter which fits six trays. The special form gives enough working room behind the counter. And enough room to show an attractive assortment of pastries.
Furthermore, the counter form accommodates the column in the middle of the shop and leaves enough passage room for the customers to the snack area.
Snack & Co.
- The coffee is brewed in a semi-automatic machine
The snack counter adjoins the alleyway in the back of the shop. It shows the same design as the bakery counter however rectangular and completely refrigerated. The snack counter has a rounded tray rack. Here it is also possible to lift the counter panes for quick self service. A small angular corner became a seating area in a coffee shop style. Schärf coffee is brewed in a semi-automatic coffee machine. During the first couple of months, a Barista machine brewed the coffee specialties. “We had to admit that dream and reality are often far apart” states Goeken. Because a cafe with seats requires more service personnel than self service does. It is too expensive to have one person only attending the coffee machine. “We needed some time to find the right motivated staff. Because it is also important to work as a team”, Goeken accepts.
Round forms are dominant in the sitting area of the cafe featuring 40 seats. As a welcome addition, Goeken rented the patio from the city. Wide wing doors give way to the clients coming from inside onto the patio offering another 50 seats. On a warm sunny day, the clients enjoy Goeken’s specialties under irremovably fixed sun shades. When relaxing in the shadow underneath the high trees even Matthias Goeken can forget all his stress and worries during the construction period. He reflects “I am not sure if I would ever build another cafe with seats; but I am certainly happy I was able to make the experience.”