Thomas Roberson | March 16, 2012
Article from Jakarta Globe
Look Closer founder Adi Kwok says he has audited close to 500 stores from Jakarta to Bali, bringing to the task his expertise as a graduate of hospitality management in Switzerland. (Photos courtesy of Adi Kwok)
When the term “mystery shopping” comes up in conversations, heads turn and brows furrow. Is that James Bond gathering secrets about an Apple retailer in Gandaria City Mall and then sending them to MI5? Or perhaps a SEAL Team gathering reconnaissance on J. COs around Jakarta for the CIA? Well, sort of.
Adi Kwok, who owns and operates a mystery shopping service called Look Closer, is in many ways the James Bond of Jakarta. A master of espionage, Adi’s line of work has him posing as a customer at his clients’ places of business to assess their level of service. And business is good.
“We have engaged with a large bakery with more than 200 branches. We also have a holding company with several fashion brands under it, adding around 450 to 500 stores and restaurants to our portfolio,” says Adi, who has audited close to 500 stores from Jakarta to Bali, and is opening a new office on the popular island destination this summer. “Not bad for a company started only a year ago. But we are always looking to grow.”
Once undercover, Adi takes detailed notes about how customers are treated in any given situation, from someone complaining about a refund to how quickly a glass is refilled at a restaurant.
He might be in the store you work at now, going floor-to-ceiling, counting the books on the shelves or checking the tidiness of the pleated khakis on the 50-percent-off rack. Department stores in Jakarta better make sure the “On Sale” sign is clearly visible, or Adi is bound to take a mental note or discretely snap a photo to inform the supervisor that the sign has fallen behind the boxer briefs.
An unlikely visionary, Adi had wanted to be in the military since he was young, but his father wouldn’t allow it. Nevertheless, while visiting hotels abroad growing up, he sampled countless types of cuisine and culture, and was drawn to a new passion: hospitality.
After studying hospitality management in Switzerland, Adi went on to run several top-notch businesses, from Planet Hollywood Singapore to five-star hotels along Singapore’s famous Orchard Road and even a high-end fashion retailer in Jakarta.
As for weird requests, he’s seen and heard them all, from a Dutch boy who demanded only yellow M&Ms to a member of the Saudi royal family who requested a buffet at 1 a.m. only to make a tuna sandwich and head off to bed. Adi enjoyed every minute of it.
“I’m naturally a very curious person, I’m the type of person who never gives up,” he says. “So I always try to innovate and compete at a high level.”
Today, Adi finds himself serving Indonesians in a different, more subtle way. He has his eyes set on upending Indonesia’s nascent but burgeoning service industry.
As a mystery shopper, Adi sometimes brings along his 7-year-old son to go even deeper undercover. He might just step into a dim sum joint. It’s probably a nice restaurant, well-lit with tasteful flowers, but perhaps the hostess didn’t greet Adi with a smile. Maybe his order wasn’t served properly, or just as importantly, punctually. Nobody wants to eat cold dim sum.
Supervisors best beware too, if not more so. Adi will certainly check that they’re helping customers when employees are not. And in any case, the poor work ethic of an employee is a reflection of the supervisor’s own work ethic. The same goes for managers, for no one is safe from the ever-watchful eyes of the Look Closer investigators.
You see, Adi and his team answer straight to the top, because that’s what mystery shopping is all about: letting the owner of an establishment know how well his or her place of business is being run.
But there’s no need to be frightened, because it’s not all negative. If someone goes out of his or her way to help, or if the service exceeds expectations, the Look Closer team will certainly send that information to the boss as well. Good news is just as important — and always more welcome — than bad news. It’s all about honesty and transparency, giving the owners a full report card of how well or how poorly their employees operate.
That’s right, a report card. After Look Closer finishes an assignment, the experienced industry “detectives” compile all the data gathered from the inspection into a detailed description. The team uses a point system to grade different aspects of a client’s business, such as cleanliness and professionalism or employee-customer interactions, like up-selling. Once this is done, the team turns in a final overall transcript to the client.
Look Closer will even perform special requests. It’s not uncommon for a retail client to ask them to return clothes to see how a cashier handles a refund or to double check if the employees are informing customers of unique promotions and sales. No task is too small.
Some might say this business model doesn’t make sense. As an owner, why pay another business to grade how the staff perform when it’s easy enough to just ask a friend or family member to do it for free?
“Most importantly, that friend or family member might not be working in that industry,” Adi says over coffee in Kemang, South Jakarta.
“They don’t know what to look for, what’s good or what’s bad. Whereas the mystery shoppers we have assigned, each of them has at least two years of experience as an operational manager in that specific case field. And of course, you cannot expect a friend or relative to write a report.”
Friends or family are great for sharing a cappuccino with, but they probably don’t know the finer points of being a barista, such as the time it takes to make that cappuccino. So what sets Look Closer apart from the competition? It is not the only mystery shopper service in Indonesia.
“Because these mystery shoppers are professionals,” Adi says with a confident grin, “they give us a very accurate report from a manager’s perspective.”
So, unlike other companies who hire any Tommy, Dede or Harry to grade an establishment, Look Closer employs professionals who have made careers in their respective industries.
From retailers to restaurants, amusement parks and beyond, the service industry is becoming a big part of the growing and diverse Indonesian economy. And ambitious young Jakartans are quickly becoming aware of the opportunities. Though, like the many other expanding markets in Indonesia, it’s struggling to keep up. Look Closer is stepping in to fill the void.
But the good news is that if you take pride in what you do, you won’t need to be on the lookout for Adi and the Look Closer team. “I’ve always tried to motivate my team by saying that if you’re simply here for a job, go somewhere else.” Adi says. “You should be looking for a real career.”
Article from Jakarta Globe
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