Crisis often brings opportunities, and with re-opening underway, many restaurant chains are having have a rethink about how they plan to grow.
Not all restaurants are scalable, of course – the extremely niche should avoid it, according to Paul Campbell, who has been involved in growing some of Britain’s most successful chains, including Pizza Express.
“And is the restaurant durable?” he told The Telegraph. “Will it still be as popular in one year, five years and ten years’ time?”
If you’re confident that your restaurant concept provides positive answers to both points, this is a great time to grow. Real estate in good locations is available – consumers are looking forward to getting out again, and takeaway is providing solid revenue streams.
NFS client BrewDog is the epitome of the successful restaurant chain. Started in 2007, by 2009 it had become the UK’s fastest-growing alternative brand, and its bar chain was already growing.
In 2015 the company launched the biggest equity crowdfunding scheme in human history and broke world records, opening 17 new bars in a single year. From then on, it was up and up, with breweries, bars and eating houses around the world.
Even a pandemic can’t slow the chain down. BrewDog Vegas, the latest in the line, will have a rooftop location with urban forest and garden at the heart of the strip, a brewery and a beer museum.
Chris Cartmell, head of sales for Aloha restaurant chain software at NFS, has worked with BrewDog for says BrewDog has a winning combination that can provide inspiration to many would-be restaurant chains.
“The team at BrewDog have a genius for craft brewing and great food, a deep understanding of what their customers really want – wherever they are in the world – and access to great data,” he says.
Underpinning the chain’s phenomenal operations is technology. They use Aloha chain restaurant epos software to streamline operations and create efficiency across the chain.
Chris says anyone aiming to emulate BrewDog’s success and grow their restaurant chain should follow these 4 top tips for business growth
1. Make sure your systems architecture is truly enterprise-ready
2. Choose best of breed tech that integrates with your other systems
3. Go omnichannel for your entire operation
4. Select a supplier that can support you in flexible ways
1. Make sure your systems architecture is truly enterprise-ready
Chris says: “When some restaurant chains grow, they do it without taking a holistic approach to technology.
“This means they often unnecessarily duplicate head office functions and roles, creating silos of operation that do not connect and waste time and money.
“With chain restaurant epos software like Aloha, comprehensive reports on areas including sales, labour and stock are available in real-time online, so managers can get an end-to-end and up to date view at any time, in any location.”
It’s crucial to make the most of multi-site database management and business intelligence.
The bigger your restaurant chain gets, the more complex your business grows, and that can mean it becomes a nightmare to keep a proper check on how things are going.
“People often ask us something like: ‘What is the best total restaurant management software for a small restaurant chain (5 locations)?” says Chris. “The answer is – one that lets you have a complete view of all locations at the same time, online.
“Chain restaurant epos software allows your managers to collate and analyse data easily, creating good business intelligence that can support and inform sound decisions and planning.
2. Choose best of breed tech that integrates with your other systems
Chris says: “You’ll probably have good legacy back-office systems such as accounting, or useful software like kitchen automation, already in place.
“It’s important to choose chain restaurant epos software that can integrate seamlessly with these systems. It avoids unnecessary expense and set-up time.”
Make the most of multi-site database management and business intelligence.
The bigger your restaurant chain gets, the more complex your business grows, and that can mean it becomes a nightmare to keep a proper check on how things are going.
“People often ask us something like: ‘What is the best total restaurant management software for a small restaurant chain (5 locations)?” says Chris. “The answer is – one that lets you have a complete view of all locations at the same time, online.
“Chain restaurant epos software allows your managers to collate and analyse data easily, creating good business intelligence that can support and inform sound decisions and planning.
3. Go omnichannel for your entire operation
Satisfying today’s consumer is all about giving them choice and flexibility to access your services in the way that best suits them. That’s become even more so during the pandemic where online and delivery grabbed bigger business than ever before.
So make sure to offer an omnichannel approach to providing multiple ways for your customers to order, pay and get their meals.
You need a robust strategy in place whether they choose to come to you by phone, online, using a food ordering app or QR code (or even at a kiosk), providing a consistent and satisfying experience. It’s a great way to retain customers and recruit new ones.
Your chain restaurant epos system makes an omnichannel simple in many ways – for instance, you can change menu items across any number of restaurants in an instant.
4. Select a supplier that can support you in flexible ways
No restaurant is the same – and that’s multiplied when it comes to restaurant chains. In supplying the technology that works, one size most certainly does not fit all.
Chris says: “It’s crucial to select a supplier who can flex and change the way they supply and deploy their chain restaurant epos software to suit your needs – maybe even from restaurant to restaurant.
“When BrewDog opened in Australia, for example, we shipped out the Aloha technology from the UK to meet a strict deadline for successful installation. In other BrewDog branches, though, we’ve been on site for the whole deployment.
“We feel it’s an important part of the service to be able to alter the way we do things to suit the individual circumstances.”
One area where NFS has shown its flexible approach recently is in the growth of takeaway services during the various lockdowns.
“We developed our Aloha Now chain restaurant epos system to provide restaurants with an easy-to-implement and simple to use solution to setting up a sustainable takeout/delivery business,” said Chris.
“It’s been a huge hit with restaurant chains new to takeaway, to those setting up speciality delivery kitchens and also to help those who just wanted to streamline and extend their own online ordering and delivery options for customers.”
Conclusion
Necessity is the mother of invention, as they say, and many restaurateurs aspiring to grow their chain are seeing plenty of opportunities in the months ahead.
Chris says: “In your planning, you’ll be considering location, rents, staffing – all the usual aspects of your business. But it’s worth putting as much, if not more, emphasis on selecting the right chain restaurant epos system to support your business.
“When it comes to the question: what simple software tools can make restaurant management better, the answer is simply epos – it’s going to be the backbone to your future success.”
Discover the benefits of Aloha chain restaurant epos software:
