From Tuscany Courtyard To Chikachino: A Transition of Target Market

FROM TUSCANY COURTYARD TO CHIKACHINO: A
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TRANSITION OF TARGET MARKET
Case
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Personal author copy for Qazi Mohammed Ahmed. Downloaded on 17-Aug-2018.

This case was written by Aqsa Mughal (Bahria University Islamabad Campus), Amna Aslam (Bahria University
Islamabad Campus), Qazi Mohammed Ahmed (Bahria University Islamabad Campus), Anum Azmat (Bahria
University Islamabad Campus), Maryam Khan (Bahria University Islamabad Campus) and Omer Arshad (Bahria
University Islamabad Campus). It is intended to be used as the basis for class discussion rather than to illustrate
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either effective or ineffective handling of a management situation. The case was compiled from published
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sources.
© 2018, Bahria University Islamabad Campus.

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From Tuscany Courtyard to Chikachino – A Transition

of target market
This case is written by Aqsa Mughal (Bahria University Islamabad), Anum Azmat (Bahria
University Islamabad), Amna Aslam (Bahria University Islamabad), Maryam Khan (Bahria
University Islamabad), Omer Arshad (Bahria University Islamabad) and Supervisor Qazi
Ahmed. It is intended to be used for class discussion rather than to illustrate the effective
or ineffective concepts that are followed by a serial entrepreneur. Also, this case explains
how a new idea is converted into a business venture following a marketing strategy.

Authors: Aqsa Mughal, Anum Azmat, Amna Aslam, Maryam Khan, Omer Arshad, and Qazi
Ahmed
Affiliated Institute: Bahria University Islamabad
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From Tuscany Courtyard to Chikachino – A Transition of target market
This case illustrates the scenario a serial Entrepreneur usually faces; when there is a need
for change of target market for opening a new business venture. Dr. Amir opened café
Chikachino when already Tuscany courtyard was in operation and successful. The case
explains the opportunities identified and challenges faced by Dr. Amir, in finding a new
market and applying new strategies to gain the market share. Both cafés are successfully
running and are famous for the environment they offer, but are different because of the
menu they serve. This case explains the story of making changes in the business conduct
as to make the new business venture unique and different from the previous undertakings.

INTRODUCTION
Dr. Amir opened Tuscany Courtyard in 2013 at that time it was running inside a non-
commercial building in Islamabad. It became famous when it was shifted to Kohsar Market
F-6 in 2016. Tuscany is a pure Italian restaurant and claims to provide true Italian Flavor.
The restaurant offers an elegant indoor sitting and offers unique experience of an outdoor
street café as well as rooftop courtyard ambiance. Their menu covers Soups, Steaks, Italian
Entrees, Pasta, Pizzas, Paninis and some mouthwatering desserts. Tuscany also has a branch
in Lahore. On the other hand, Chikachino was opened in 2017. It is Located in the
Islamabad’s Posh F7 area. It offers no indoor sitting but similar to Tuscany Courtyard. The
Café’s menu includes 12 varieties of tea and some traditional desi snacks like Chaats, Dahi
Ballay, Dood Jalebi, Bhel Puri etc.
History:
Dr. Amir is a born serial entrepreneur. His father wanted him to study medical and become
a doctor which he actually did, but he knew that he was meant to be something else in life.
After graduating he asked his father to lend him some money so that he could start his own
business that he very eagerly wanted to, but his father refused to help him financially. He
arranged finance himself and opened a Laboratory (Cantt. Lab) that provides reports to
patients within hours. Then after some years of success of the Lab, he opened a Pharmacy.
That business was a success too but soon he realized that Pharmacy is also not the thing for
him to continue, the idea didn’t excite him. He then opened an Italian restaurant in 2013
inside of his home in Islamabad. The restaurant was going good at that time and was
something that was actually making him happy. In 2015, Dr. Amir and the co-owners of the
restaurant, Khurram Khan, Sikander Bakhtiar anticipated a CDA action against the non-
commercial restaurants in Islamabad and bought a place in Kohsar market F-6, just in case
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they have to move their restaurant and it actually happened. In 2016, the café was
relaunched and relocated in F-6 and was named Tuscany Courtyard. The name of the
restaurant is inspired from Italy’s Tuscany region, known for its eye soothing countryside
view. After visiting Tuscany and being inspired by freshly baked, thin crust pizza and other
Italian delicacies, the co-owners decided to open a place which would serve authentic
Italian food. Tuscany Courtyard soon became famous for the served menu and unique
outdoor courtyard ambience it offered.
“We have completely original Italian recipes, with a wide variety ranging from two tomatoes
bruschetta to thin crust, specialty pizzas. We also have a proper Italian bakery on the
premises,” Khan said. “The best thing is that in Islamabad you get the best view and
weather, which creates the best ambiance for a restaurant.” – Khurram Khan
The story doesn’t end here, after a year and a half of success of Tuscany Courtyard, Dr. Amir
identified another opportunity in the market; The lack of a desi road side café that offers

the same Tuscany-like atmosphere but with a different menu.
On a Sunday evening Dr. Amir was enjoying food at Tuscany Courtyard, reminiscing about
how he came up with the idea of Tuscany long ago and how it had now become synonymous
with quality food and graceful service. It was getting cold, he found himself craving for a
cup of tea. He then thought where in Islamabad he could get tea and enjoy the same
environment. With the craving for tea Dr. Amir went to Tuscany’s Kitchen and told his chef
to make him tea with that he instructed the chef “chik ke rakhna”. The cup of tea made,
looked a beautiful khaki color, this is where the word “chino” was derived from. This was
the Eureka moment when Dr. Amir realized he had come up with a unique idea. Dr. Amir
had developed a brand in his mind, but fate was not done yet. He made it part of the menu
at Tuscany and the tea was an instant success, with raving reviews. It was this tremendous
demand because of which Dr. Amir partnering with Col. Khalid Obed launched his idea into
a Café that is– Chikachino.
Identifying a new Target Market:

Tuscany’s brand image was of a high-end family place. Dr. Amir wanted to offer same
quality food and service but to a different market with a different menu. He wanted to grab
the attention of youth especially and offer them a traditional homemade kind of tea with a
street cafe environment; something old with a touch of gold to it.
Tuscany courtyard has a pure Italian menu, offering variety of Italian dishes with an
authentic Italian taste. It offers an indoor as well as outdoor sitting. The outdoor sitting has
the ambience of an actual courtyard. And the interior of the restaurant feels like a vintage
Italian villa with all the painted walls decorated with famous art pieces. Tuscany’s
restaurant target market is the high income to middle income families and young
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generation of the city. Mostly high-income families visit the place, who love to dine out in
a high-end restaurant and are fond of the pure Italian cuisine.
On the other hand, café Chikachino has a traditional menu as that of a street café. It offers
12 different kinds of tea with desi snacks. The tea is served in clay made pots. The café has
no indoor sitting but an outdoor picnic table sitting on the roadside. Chikachino’s target
market is high income to middle income group of youngsters in the city. Families less
hangout to a place like this. Mostly, friend groups visit the place.
THE TRANSITION:
Culture:
Tuscany’s inside gives a feel of a vintage Italian villa with its old Italian architecture, dim

warm lighting and artistic décor. Its outside is decorated with brown cane tables and chairs
representing a courtyard. The restaurant is considered a high-end place to dine out because
of its expensive menu and attracts mostly the high-income families of the city. On the
contrary, Chikachino offers a place to chill around with friends on the roadside, decorated
with picnic tables and chairs. Menu is offered on affordable prices, a little high for the basic
desi snacks it offers but people love to pay for the roadside cafe. The tea is the main element
of the menu which is offered in Clay glasses in a traditional way. Both the restaurants offer
outside sitting but the change in culture is prominent; from a calm and decent family place
to a roadside talkative chilling eatery.
Organizational culture plays a major role in the making of brand image. A change in the
business conduct is always a challenge for the serial entrepreneur, as it involves building of
the brand image. Dr. Amir very carefully thought of the culture for his new restaurant and
he is successful in differentiating it from that of Tuscany’s.
Trends:
Behind Chikachino, the main idea was a place that offers the same traditional tea in a new
way, fitting the new trend in the market of roadside eateries. Another new thing that was
introduced by the café Chikachino is that, it is operational 24/7. There were other places
but, Tuscany was the first to be successful in introducing the roadside concept in Islamabad.
Dr. Amir followed the same trend for Chikachino.
“The tea is offered in a brown clay cup, keeping in view numerous health benefits. The aroma
of the special CHIKACHINO tea is stimulating enough. The fragrance, the strong and the
distinct taste is bound to mesmerize you. Whether you are a chai lover or not, you must try
the CHIKACHINO tea once and who knows you might get hooked to it. And if you do, the
good news for you is that the café is open 24 hours a day.” - (Islamabad Scene)
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Demands and Preferences:

Tuscany is successful in making its customer happy and offering them high quality food and
decor. Tea was first made a part of menu at Tuscany, it was the high demand of that tea
which made Dr. Amir think of a different idea that is Chikachino, for which Dr. Amir made
sure of everything according to the customers’ demands and preferences, also taking into
account the new trends in the city, that is why in just three months the Cafe became famous
for its offerings and environment. Chikachino started with a very small menu, offering only
the items that have a high demand (Chaats, Samosas, Pakoras, Pizza Paratas, Dood Jalebi).
Competition
Chikachino is not the first café that offers Tea as the main element of its menu. This concept
has been successfully implemented by the café Chaaye Khaana. Chaaye khaana is known

for its high-quality service. It’s a direct competitor of Chikachino in terms of the tea element.
But its menu is entirely different from that of Chikachino. Whereas Tuscany as its menu is
Italian has a lot of competitors in the market still it stands out to be unique among them
because of its preposition.
Marketing:
✓ Logo and use of colors
For Tuscany elegancy was used in every aspect to attract the high-income families to the
restaurant. Purple colored lighting was used at its launch event as the color indicates
royalty. Dr. Amir knew that a trendy place like Chikachino, needs something exciting to
attract the youth of the city so its logo is designed in bright yellow color which is an eye-
catch.
Chikachino’s Logo
(Source: Adapted from https://www.facebook.com/ChikachinoIslamabad/)

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✓ Launch Events
Dr. Amir used celebrity endorsement to attract the people to the place. Tuscany and
Chikachino for both the launch was arranged by city’s favorite Rezz PR and Events. A large
number of local residents attended the launch where they were greeted by Models Maha,
Kanwal, Ammara, Nimra, Zainab, Zara and Sabeen. Another incident that made Chikachino
a must visit was the visit of the legend Imran Khan to the place. It created a hype about the
café and after that it noted an increase in its sales.
Chikachino’s Launch Event
(Source: Adapted from https://islamabadscene.com/chikachino-introduces-ultimate-tea-

experience-in-islamabad/)
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✓ Different Occasions
Both the cafés celebrate every possible event that they can to increase their sales, like they
recently celebrated Quaid’s Birthday and Women’s Day. Different discounts are offered at
each event to attract the customers.

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✓ Social Media
Both cafes actively use social media (Facebook) as a platform to market their new offerings
and events. They also use their Facebook pages to collect the feedback from their
customers. Facebook Reviews are considered a very important source of information by Dr.
Amir.
Challenges:
Even though the café Chikachino has become famous in short time span due to the heavy
marketing efforts, there are some important issues that are faced by Dr. Amir.
Café Chikachino is opened 24 hours a day, is operational in a very small area and has limited
staff members to entertain its customers. The café has been successful in attracting a lot of
customers because of the marketing efforts but the Facebook reviews of the café tell some

other story. These are some of the screenshots taken from the Facebook page of the café.
A review given on December 28, 2017 on Facebook
A review given on 14th April 2018 on Facebook

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Reading these reviews, we come to know that the Café needs to take immediate action for
maintaining its service quality, as the dishes served late, waiting staff not is not responding
to the special offers made, menu items not available, food served less in quantity, all these
problems are quality related. These bad reviews can seriously harm the brand image of the
café.
In an interview with the restaurants manager – Mr. Wasif Hussain, we came to know that
the problem of limited staff is the reason behind the unfavorable incidents.
Conclusion
Dr. Amir is a passionate and successful serial entrepreneur. He has opened many businesses
and all of them are making money for him. He knows how to turn an idea into reality. He
was successful in introducing an Italian café where the market is saturated with so many

Italian food outlets. Same is the case with Chikachino, he introduced this new idea when
already there are other tea cafes in Islamabad. He is an excellent marketer and he know
how to attract his customers. Both the food outlets are entirely different from each other
but he is good in handling both of his businesses at the same time. Both of his food outlets
have a name in market and are generating good amount of sales for him.
References:
▪ Information about the culture and décor of the Tuscany courtyard was retrieved from:
https://weeklycuttingedge.com/tuscany-courtyard-lahore-a-foodies-review/
And https://ottutu.com/tuscany-courtyard/
▪ Information about the launch event of the cafés was retrieved from:
https://islamabadscene.com/islamabads-top-italian-restaurant-tuscany-courtyard-
relocated-to-kohsar-market/
And https://islamabadscene.com/chikachino-introduces-ultimate-tea-experience-in-
islamabad/
▪ The bad reviews screenshots and the pictures are taken from:
https://www.facebook.com/ChikachinoIslamabad/
And https://www.facebook.com/TuscanyCourtyardIsb/

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FROM TUSCANY COURTYARD TO CHIKACHINO: A

Personal author copy for Qazi Mohammed Ahmed. Downloaded on 17-Aug-2018.

© 2018, Bahria University Islamabad Campus.

Distributed by The Case Centre North America Rest of the world