Friday, October 6, 2017
Today's Specials:
WINGS: Let Bone-in Wing Alternatives Lower Your Costs & Attract More Guests [Sponsored by Frank’s King of Wings]
If you haven’t noticed, the price of chicken wings has been rising steadily over the past year. With chicken wing prices on the higher than ever, savvy restaurants would be wise to look at wing alternatives, like cauliflower & seitan, to keep costs down.
DID YOU KNOWs…
Wendy’s Vs. Wingstop Rap Battle
Wendy’s is known to clap back in any way she feels appropriate. This week it’s by rap battle. Wendy’s got into a rap war with Wingstop and they both brought the heat. Take a look at the most epic and surprisingly creative social media duel. Who do you think reigns supreme?
UFC Donates to Vegas Victims’ Families
In the wake of the tragedy in Las Vegas, Dana White has announced that the UFC will donate $1 million to the families affected by the mass shooting on the Las Vegas Strip. Based in Las Vegas, the UFC will also host a planned pay-per-view event on Saturday inside the T-Mobile Arena dedicated to the entire city.
Uber Upper-Class
Uber is launching dedicated mall pickup and drop-off points in a new partnership with Westfield across all of its 33 U.S. shopping center locations. Also, Uber is opening special waiting lounges to add a “club membership” to the Uber experience aimed at differentiating from their competitors.
TEACHING FOR THE FUTURE
Why it matters to you: A top culinary school now teaches students how to take perfect food pics for Instagram.
Now that social media officially dominates nearly every aspect of restaurant marketing, culinary professionals are starting to realize just how important it is for restaurant success. The culinary professionals at the Culinary Institute of America will be introducing two new courses in May that revolve around taking food pictures for Instagram. In a New York Times article, social media’s impact on the culinary arts is explored and how restaurant professionals need to be adaptable to the ever-changing digital landscape. The Institute first new class will be focused on food photography while the other in food styling. The classes are meant to help students develop “sophisticated skills not only for the plate but also for the app.”
Both courses will teach students how to work with digital cameras and lighting, how to compose and edit a shot, and how to cook for the still camera. The fact that a top culinary school is teaching students how to take pictures for social media should only reiterate the importance Instagram has in the restaurant industry. Restaurant operators need to understand and post on social media as a means of staying relevant and gaining new guests. With the biting completion in the restaurant industry, operators can’t afford to risk the chance of not using social media as a valuable marketing tool to build a bigger following. Now that potential chefs may come equipped with these skills, it can only help our business.
THE DEEP END OF THE [LABOR] POOL
Why it matters to you: As the market tightens, will labor pool issues ease?
It’s been a rough year for operators in general. Sales declines, tightening labor markets and business uncertainty have all made life harder in our business. As the growth climb that emerged after the 2008 economic collapse subsides, what are some of the outcomes operators can expect? Certainly, if new location growth slows and automation heats up, we will see declines in the tension on the labor market. This might be the only good news for operators as a result of the last year’s slowdown.
In addition to new store openings dropping, there was a significant drop in points of distribution primarily for independents. A net of over 10,000 small chain and independent operators closed their doors in the last 12 months. That clearly means there were a lot of employees returned to the labor pool. If you are still struggling to find the right team members, this may bring some welcome relief. Given that the competition from grocery stores, meal kits and the consumer shift away from full-service dining, it couldn’t come at a better time.
