In retail and F&B, growth is rarely linear. It’s dynamic, unpredictable—and often messy. But for brands like ZUS Coffee and Everbest, scaling successfully hasn’t just been about opening more outlets or hiring more people. It’s been about creating alignment: where store managers, frontline staff, HQ, and even contractors work from the same source of truth, move at the same pace, and adapt in real time.
We joined both brands—ZUS Coffee, a fast-growing F&B chain with over 800 stores, and Everbest, a regional retail leader with 100+ outlets across Southeast Asia and beyond—for an open conversation in Beijing. What emerged was a shared blueprint for sustainable, tech-enabled growth—driven not by tools, but by people, clarity, and culture.
1. Scaling with Precision, Not Pressure
For ZUS Coffee, early-stage expansion came with coordination challenges. Each new store launch required input from over 30 stakeholders—internal teams, contractors, vendors—and without a central system, updates were scattered across WhatsApp, Telegram, and other apps.
"It worked when we had 50 stores—not when we hit 200," said Eddie Goh, General Manager of ZUS Coffee.
Fast-forward to today: with over 800 outlets and counting, ZUS Coffee is opening one store per day. What made that possible wasn’t just better planning—it was the shift to a single connected platform. Everyone, from operations to on-site contractors, works in sync. Tasks, approvals, and photos are tracked in real time, reducing friction and eliminating micromanagement.
For Everbest, the challenge was similar but surfaced on a different scale. With retail operations across six provinces and multiple store formats, they needed consistency—especially during store openings. By digitizing their checklists and embedding photo-based approvals into their workflows, they gave HQ the visibility it needed while empowering store teams to move independently.
"Whether it’s display shelves or switching on certain cameras, it can be done through a simple form. Teams in Singapore or Jakarta can see all the different store openings and approve them if they’ve done it well. It gives us a single source of truth," said Ivan Lam, Assistant Director at Everbest.
2. Training That Doesn’t Break Down at Store Level
As both brands scaled, they realized that training systems couldn’t rely on manual handovers or static documents. What was needed wasn’t more content—but more accessibility and reinforcement.
Everbest built a mobile-first internal knowledge base—essentially an internal wiki—housing SOPs, product information, and store policies that managers and frontline staff can access anytime. Rather than replace training, this approach enabled continuous, on-the-job learning at scale.
While initial adoption was met with hesitation, support from in-market teams and a clear focus on simplifying daily operations helped shift mindsets.
"At first, people were scared. They were uncomfortable with learning something new," said Ivan. "But after a while, and with help from the Lark customer success team, they got comfortable. Store managers are the ones training the frontline, so getting their buy-in was key."
ZUS Coffee took a more customized approach. After evaluating multiple learning management systems (LMS), they built their own using Lark Base. It allowed them to centralize training, track performance, and close the loop with measurable feedback—all within the same environment their teams already used.
"We actually sourced and scoped a lot of LMS providers, but none of them could consolidate our organizational knowledge effectively," said Eddie. "So we decided to build our own LMS using Base—and it performs better."
3. Driving Culture and Communication at Scale
With over 6,000 employees, ZUS Coffee had to maintain speed without losing cultural cohesion. That meant building a real-time communication model that kept frontline teams in the loop—not days later, but instantly.
They rolled out Lark Moments (similar to a social feed) for company-wide updates, store highlights, and employee recognition. Messages from HQ reach the frontline directly, without being filtered through layers of management.
"We used to communicate on Telegram, which wasn’t ideal,” said Eddie. “Now, we use Moments to share company updates—good or bad—so HQ can react effectively. It was a game changer."
Everbest took a systems-thinking approach, drawing from Ivan’s tech background. Investments in collaboration tools, supply chain visibility, and product lifecycle systems gave teams across functions a clearer picture—and the autonomy to act faster.
"I came from a tech company, so we brought that mindset into the business," Ivan said. "We’ve invested in tools across different functions—and we’ve definitely seen results in profit margins and revenue."
4. Turning Feedback Into Everyday Action
For retail and F&B businesses, customer experience begins—and often ends—at the frontline. But while collecting feedback is common, translating it into action is where most brands fall short.
Everbest and ZUS Coffee are closing that loop. Both brands use QR-based feedback forms that customers can access in-store. The input—ranging from quick ratings to open-ended comments—feeds directly into dashboards that are visible to HQ and store managers.
At ZUS Coffee, this data isn’t just archived. It’s actively used to spot trends, flag operational issues, and surface standout performances. Store teams don’t have to manually process anything—it’s all integrated into their daily environment.
Many businesses are now going one step further with Lark, tapping into AI to analyze sentiment, detect recurring themes, and even suggest response actions. It’s a simple but powerful way to turn unstructured feedback into clear insights—fast.
Final Word: Sustainable Growth Without the Chaos
In retail and F&B, growth often adds complexity. But the stories of ZUS Coffee and Everbest show that scale doesn’t have to come at the cost of control.
By aligning teams on a shared system, investing in hands-on training, and turning feedback into action, both brands have built momentum that’s fast, focused, and built to last.
"It’s not the big that beats the small—it’s the fast that beats the slow." But speed alone isn’t enough. Without clarity and coordination, even the fastest teams lose direction.
True leadership today comes from operational clarity—where every part of the business, from frontline to HQ, moves with confidence and purpose.
