Experience is the new currency: Queenie Lo on the future of restaurant design
FutureBrand's Queenie Lo, President of Spatial Design, joined a flagship panel at the European Food Service Summit, making the case that spatial branding is not a design luxury, it is a commercial lever.
The session examined a fundamental shift sweeping the hospitality and food service sector: away from operations-first thinking, and toward strategies anchored in experience, brand identity, and intentional design investment.
The panel showed that well-designed physical environments drive real commercial outcomes; higher footfall, increased average basket size, and guests who feel something when they walk through the door. But there is no universal formula. What works in London rarely translates to Dubai or Seoul, and brands that copy-paste their way across markets do so at their own risk.
Drawing on examples from brands including L'Occitane, McDonald's, and Starbucks, the discussion explored how spatial decisions - from format size to seating configuration - are increasingly reverse-engineered from P&L requirements. Design that begins with clear KPIs consistently outperforms design that begins with aesthetics alone.
Some key takeouts captured via European Food Service Summit
Get in touch: spatialdesign@futurebrand.com
