BALANS RESTAURANTS

SENIOR LEADERSHIP FOR AN ICON

the project

Lead Consultant Jackie Clode-Dickens was initially brought on board at Balans for a short, 3 month period to support the business through a time of senior management transition. Almost immediately, the business owners offered Jackie a full-time consultancy position to sit alongside the two other members of the senior leaderhip team and oversee the entire group’s marketing function.

Jackie immediately started building a team, both internally, but also bringing in PR, social media, creative, design and photography specialists from her extensive and trusted network. Building on strong brand relationships across F&B, entertainment and experiential, whilst reaching out to local businesses to partner with, Jackie was able to deliver an engaging, varied and exciting programme of content across all sites to exceed customer expectations and unite the onsite teams to maxiimise footfall and customer spend.

Setting the Scene

Balans began as a small sandwich café on Old Compton Street in Soho in 1987 and grew into a group of relaxed, all-day restaurants famously open late into the night — a built-in offer that made the brand a Soho institution for brunch, pre/post-theatre meals and after-hours crowds.

During the pandemic Balans, like many operators, faced an existential crisis: sites were temporarily closed, some locations were at risk, and the business had to fight to reopen under very different trading conditions. Local press and trade coverage documented a precarious period and then a phased reopening of core sites as restrictions eased.

Since reopening, Balans leaned on its late-night, all-day DNA (open-late hours, brunch culture and a loyal Soho following) while also working to modernise interiors, menus and communications to stay relevant to a shifting London night-time economy.

The challenges

Brand position — heritage vs. modernity. Balans’s strength is its longevity and ‘Soho legend’ status, but that same heritage can read as dated if not actively refreshed. The business needed to decide whether to lean into nostalgic authenticity (loyal older customers) or repackage the brand as a contemporary, experience-led destination for younger diners — or find a credible middle ground.
Site differentiation. Different Balans sites (Soho, Kensington, Stratford/Westfield) live in distinct competitive micro-markets. The intrinsic reason to visit — late-night refuge, reliable brunch, pre/post-theatre food — was strong in Soho but needed clearer articulation for the Westfield and High-Street locations where many alternatives exist. That made site-level messaging and offer-tailoring essential.
An ageing core customer base. Long-standing regulars are a huge asset, but demographic drift risks making the brand seem aimed at an older cohort. Marketing needed to maintain that loyal base while updating tone, channels and offers (events, cocktails, social content) to attract younger, socially engaged diners who influence wider audiences.
Standing out in a saturated dining scene. London’s restaurant market is crowded and fast-moving. Mere competence on food and service no longer cuts it; brands must deliver a differentiated experience (signature dishes, distinctive late-night programming, partnerships, irreproducible atmosphere) and communicate that clearly across social and discovery platforms. Industry research shows recovery has been uneven and competition intense post-COVID.
The changing late-night landscape. Night-time leisure and clubbing have evolved since pre-pandemic years (stricter licensing, different consumer habits, rise of hybrid entertainment). Balans’s late-night proposition remained a key advantage in Soho, but it’s a smaller, more regulated, and more experience-driven market than it used to be — so programming and partnerships were key.

results

In response to the operational and marketing challenges faced by Balans in the years since COVID, lead consultant Jackie Clode-Dickens played a pivotal role in supporting the business across the group. Her work began by streamlining and maximising in-house systems and processes, ensuring that the fundamentals of the customer journey were efficient, data-driven and consistent. This included upgrading and integrating the booking platform, optimising the loyalty scheme, refining the CRM system, and aligning social media and the email database to deliver measurable, targeted engagement.

What sets Jackie apart is the breadth of her expertise: she brings not only deep marketing knowledge, but also hands-on experience across hospitality, nightlife, London’s food and drink scene, menu development, and tactical promotions. She has guided Balans through the complex task of balancing heritage with modern relevance — from shaping tactical offers that resonate with both long-standing regulars and new audiences, to crafting brand partnerships and collaborations that amplify Balans’s position in a saturated market.

Her strategic input has extended beyond marketing into stakeholder management, creative direction, digital UX, and customer experience design, ensuring that every customer touchpoint — whether booking online, engaging with content, or dining late at night in Soho — reinforces the unique identity of Balans. By joining the dots between operational systems, creative output, and the on-site experience, Jackie has helped the group adapt to the changing late-night landscape while sustaining its loyal base and attracting a new generation of engaged, experience-driven customers.