A great consumer flow plan is focused on how a customer shops the environment. It will seek to find the perfect balance of aesthetic and function. If it does a good job, customers will use the space with more frequency, spend more money, and talk about the space independently to their friends. If it does a poor job, you will notice that customers talk about how they visit the location in certain circumstances where the experience is easiest for them. They will say things like, “I go there in the mid afternoon when it’s slow and I can get in and out easily,” or “I try to shop that vendor’s other location, because I feel like it’s easier.” Invariably comments will focus on polite alternatives to visiting the desired destination.

Food Halls have a reputation for big price tags. Big price tags are also often correlated with a high long-term cost of maintenance. So, how do you get a genuinely good ROI out of such a project? It requires a thorough understanding of the customer environment and a willingness to think through some details. But, it is very possible. Here are 5 ways to deliver an award-winning food hall that doesn’t break the bank and, hopefully, creates a great return on your equity investment.