Expanding Your Restaurant’s Footprint

​Many restaurant operators have asked us how they can expand their business without investing large amounts of capital to open new restaurants or concepts. There are numerous avenues in generating new revenue streams, but I caution restauranteurs and executives that they need to be deliberate and controlled in their decision making. And they need to be willing to support this organizationally and most importantly willing to invest in leadership to run their new venture. So, I thought I would share some proven success factors for one of these revenue streams, Off-Premises Catering via Take-Out and Delivery.
 
Take-Out and Delivery Catering can come in two different forms – more traditional catering where the food is fully prepared and ready to go such as individual grab-and-go box lunches or buffet items – or bulk items that are heat-and-eat such as Clover Food Lab’s Party in a Box. The benefit of this type of revenue channel is that you can launch it with a minimal capital investment as you can leverage your current kitchen facility and much of your current staff. Your kitchen simply prepares the food and everything else is up to the customer to plan on their own.
 
Through our experience we have found these as some keys in successfully developing and launching a Take-Out and Delivery Catering Program.

• Hire a dedicated leader:
  • As restauranteurs, we couldn’t imagine running our restaurant without a manager, and this should also be the case for your catering program. For you to truly be successful, you need a dedicated leader who will drive and manager the overall program. You don’t want to be in the position of a manager needing to prioritize their time between running your restaurant and running the catering operation. If that is the case, both operations are going to suffer.
• Invest in infrastructure:
  • It is important that early on you also invest in technology, financial reporting tools and accounting to ensure you and your dedicated leader can successfully manage this new revenue stream as a separate entity. The more you can separate expenses out, the more comfortable you will be in continuing to grow and expand this business as well as invest in it.
• Catering won’t sell itself:
  • Simply putting out catering menus and/or having a dedicated web page will not generate enough sales to warrant a dedicated catering team. We have found that the most successful launches were the result of creative and less conventional marketing. For one operation, we created a position of “brand ambassador” and tapped into the best and most outgoing servers. These brand ambassadors would target key businesses - delivering a goody basket and catering menus – and prepared to sell the catering services. We also included lucrative financial incentives to motivate the team to sell and develop a relationship with the business. ​
• Make the menu the star:
  • Develop a menu that travels well AND is easy for guests to serve themselves. We have all been to an event and have watched guests struggling to serve themselves pasta such as Fettuccini Alfredo. Conversely, a Baked Penne Alfredo would be a better catering option as it fits the brand, travels well, stays hot, and is easier for guests.
  • Your menu should create excitement and represent your brand well. Envision yourself as a guest – Are you wowed by what you get? And is it clear where the food came from? The most successful menus focus on items that the restaurant is known for or items that complement the current restaurant menu. And if your signature items aren’t well-suited for catering, consider an adaptation of a that menu item.

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• Create a consistent and memorable experience:
  • The catering experience – from the food to packaging to branding – should mirror your restaurant experience as much as possible. It’s also important to have fun as you develop your program and think about ways you can surprise and delight your clients. There are numerous ways you can carry the theme of the restaurant through to your catering operation. For instance, instead of using those plastic silverware packets, roll your own plastic/bamboo wear and tie it with a colored ribbon that matches your brand colors. As a surprise and delight, you could include a basket filled small sachet bags filled with a signature spice, tied with a ribbon, and adorned with a card listing the ingredients and the contact information for your catering team. Think about this as an investment in marketing. 
  • Don’t underestimate the importance of packaging. The right packaging is so important from practical aspects such as how well it maintains the temperature of the food or how well it fits into a vehicle or how well it travels to brand aspects such as how it looks at its final destination or does it wow the client. There are some incredibly cool packaging options these days such as round kraft wrap cups. You should think about ways to deliver your catering items in packaging other than a rectangular foil pan. And don’t underestimate the importance plates, flatware, napkins and serving utensils. These are all reflections of your brand.

• To deliver or not to deliver:
  • The easiest way to “cater” is to have clients pick up their own orders. But we know that consumers are looking for convenience these days and this could limit your sales. Another option, but in my opinion less desirable, is to partner with a third-party delivery company. This will make it easy for clients, but will have a big financial impact to your business. We recommend that you invest in a branded delivery truck. Not only is it a practical option, but a great way to advertise your brand as the truck drives around.
• There are ways to ease into the catering business as well: 
  • You could dip your toe into the world of catering by offering catering during key holidays such as Thanksgiving and Christmas. Additionally, you could focus on a menu with sides, desserts, bread, and appetizers, versus focusing on center-of-the-plate items. Often in these situations the guest would reheat the product and you would include reheating instructions with each order. At one concept we offered full Thanksgiving dinners. Guests would have a 3-hour window of time to pick up their meals on Thanksgiving Day. And after the last order was picked up, we treated everyone who worked that day to Thanksgiving dinner at the restaurant. 

Adding a catering business can help grow your brand in so many ways, but it’s important that this doesn’t come at the cost of losing focus of your core business. It’s a road that can be navigated successfully and the team at Matrix Restaurant Consulting would be honored to partner with in successfully creating and launching an Off-Premises Catering business. So let's Let's Talk!