This article sums up the results of the current customer satisfaction survey conducted by the Studentenwerk Leipzig for its Mensas and Cafeterias.
The results of the mensa survey conducted in the end of 2022 are evaluated! They show: The guest's satisfaction has increased in comparison to the last survey made in 2018. The guests were in particular happy with the service.
The survey showed clear trends regarding the guest's eating habits. While the proportion of meat eaters remained constant with 24%, there has been a significant increase when it comes to vegetarian or vegan guests (from 25% to 34%). The group of the flexitarians with 40% still has the largest proportion of the guests.
The Studentenwerk had already reacted to the increased demand for vegetarian and vegan food by adjusting its offer. The constant expansion of the vegetarian and vegan food offer since 2018 is very well recieved by the guests. This is not only shown by the survey results which prove a significantly increased satisfaction with this offer, but also by the sales figures.
The offer of reusable tableware to take away food has been extended during the pandemic as well. Its popularity is increasingly growing and it contributes to more sustainability.
"Our pricing was valued very well, too. With regard to the highly tense financial situation of many students due to inflation we refrained from carrying out a general price increase of all food offers", says Uwe Kubalie, division manager of the Mensas and Cafeterias. "On the one hand we had to move half of the dishes along the price classes, but on the other hand we left the meal categories themselves, including our cheap pasta dish, unchanged regarding their prices. With regard to the ongoing price increases when it comes to the purchase costs, we unfortunately won't get along without another price adjustment this year."
The comparison of the current results to the surveys of the past years enables conclusions on how measures and changes undertaken are received by the guests, as Kubalie outlines:
"After the modernization measures in the Mensa am Medizincampus and the Mensaria am Botanischen Garten we could increase the overall satisfaction in both facilities considerably. We are very thankful for the Free State of Saxony completely renovating and modifying the Mensa am Medizincampus through the Sächsisches Immobilien- und Baumanagement (SIB) and that we despite of the corona pandemic had the chance to modernize the Mensaria am Botanischen Garten with the help of investment grants.
In the Caferia Dittrichring we could increase the satisfaction through changes regarding the offer with a daily vegan/vegetarian lunch offer, overnight products and smoothies. After conducting the survey we could undertake a modernization measure with the help of means of the Free State by the end of 2022 and optimize the expenditure area; this measure's results will hopefully be visible in the next survey.
From the current survey results additional changes are derived for the future as well, as Kubalie explains: "Regarding the food offer the guests wished for more diversity and regionality. We will occupy with this topic intensively. We will, for instance, search for more regional partners who offer products in the needed amounts and for acceptable prices."
Occasionally our combination of components in the dishes were criticized. Indeed we were facing scarcity of goods, delivery bottlenecks and procurement difficulties and therefore hat to improvise many times. But: The possibility of combining several food components individually will be extended gradually."
The worst figures in the survey can be found when it comes to the topics of lack of space and waiting times in the Mensas during the rush hours. "Unfortunately we cannot basically change the strucutral conditions of our facilities", as Kubalie explains. The pause times of the colleges frequently define uniform and partially small time periods, so that lots of students want to eat at the same time. As a consequence, seating concepts and the procedures are double checked and – if it complies with the framework and especially the fire protection – adjusted.
The satisfaction survey was conducted in December 2022. Approximately 7,000 students and members of the universities' staff of all seven colleges the Studentenwerk Leipzig is responsible for took part. The guests could evaluate the Mensas and Cafeterias of the Studentenwerk Leipzig with regard to the offer, service and locality. The survey was designed on the basis of previous surveys from 2012, 2015 and 2018 and thereby can show besides customer potentials changes and trends among the primarily student target group.
