Decisions, Decisions

Tom says:
The other day, my friend and fellow restaurateur, Pam, asked Maureen if we were sleeping at the space yet.

I wish. Because that would mean the floorplans were approved and we were into the demolition/renovation stage. We had Spiller's print five sets of plans; one for each of the four city offices that needs them (already delivered) and one for us, more to work on decor than for posterity. These guys also printed the Coming Soon signs that now hang in the windows.

I've scheduled preliminary walkthroughs with some departments while the plans are being reviewed as a proactive attempt to identify any immediate red flags. Plan approvals aside, there's more than enough and then some to keep us busy.

Goals achieved this week included meeting with Swanson Advertising to finalize the black-and-white version of the logo so they can move forward with color comps. Maureen and I were initially attracted to different logo possibilities and then to different iterations of each of the possibilities. Was this going to be our first, big creative difference?

In a word: no. Our discussions were swift and productive thanks to invaluable input from our Web designer who evaluated all possibilities and iterations across the ways the logo will be used (print, Web, signage, uniforms, promotional items). That, in turn, made it easy for Swanson to guide us to a final version that is versatile, represents our brand and that we both love.

I also met with the vendor who'll supply our china, glassware, flatware, etc. I couldn't have scheduled it for a better time either. I thought we had until early February to make our decisions and place our orders, but it turns out the lead time required for pricing and order fulfillment means we pretty much have to select our tabletop this weekend.