Open space

RETAIL BANKING

ABN Amro throws open its Bancafe space to the imagination of its customers.

Cafes and finance share a relationship going back quite a while (modern insurance was invented in a coffee house), but ABN Amro has reinvented the connection as a considerably more relaxed marketing device: Bancafe.

Bancafe, as the name suggests, is a Barista-serving cafe you might see adjoining an ABN Amro bank outlet, a presence that has already marked two years. But it has been little more than a take-a-peek curiosity to the typically hurried customer.

Now, hopes this Dutch bank, it will be a de facto relationship consolidation tool. For it has thrown open doors for the customer to use the cafe to the best of their imagination.

You may host a party for your toddler, exhibit art creations by your loved ones, or even hold a book reading or film appreciation session. It's open space, free, between 7:30 pm and 11 pm.

This is after banking hours, so if the Bancafe area is not big enough, your event can spill over into the lobby as well. Barista coffee is on the house, of course.

"Bancafe serves as a platform for customers to engage with the communities in the immediate vicinity in a relaxed environment," says Nitin Chopra, senior vice-president and head, consumer banking (India), ABN Amro, "Secondly, it serves as a medium for a two-way interaction between customers and the bank staff."

The test runs done, the concept has been activated in Bangalore, Hyderabad, Mumbai and New Delhi, while such tier-II towns as Moradabad and Surat are on the radar.

On weekends, daytime space could also be offered in central business localities such as Nariman Point and Rajiv Chowk. With the union budget round the corner, the bank plans to hold interactions with service tax experts, lawyers and others during these hours.

It's in the evenings, though, that people are better able to escape the contraints of their clockwork routines. Many Indian families, observes Chopra, are warming to the idea of a leisurely evening visit to the bank to explore personal finance options with professional advisors. That's the synapse that ABN Amro as a brand is keen on securing for itself.

Apart from granting customers space, ABN Amro also wants Bancafe accepted as a dependable information source.

It also offers access to the bank's internet gateway that leads to a panoply of financial websites, which could help predispose people to innovative banking ideas.