INVENTORY: The Ultimate Guide to Working with Restaurant Suppliers [Presented by Orderly]
You've thought you could put your vendors on autopilot. But building and maintaining an active relationship with all your suppliers can end up saving you thousands. Our guide shows you how to do it - and how to do it well.
DID YOU KNOWS…
Burger-Bot Rises
In an interview with TechCrunch, the CEO of Creator (formerly Momentum Machines) talked about their shiny new burger-flipping robot, which also is a centerpiece of the company’s first San Francisco restaurant. Burgers at Creator go for just $6 and staff are paid $16/hr. That’s one way of cutting back on labor costs in San Fran. The restaurant’s staff, in fact, are giving “5% time” where they’re able to do something personal & beneficial for 5% of their time while on the clock. Watch burger-bot in action here.
DAZN Gets MMA
Sports streaming service DAZN (pronounced da-zone) reached a five-year agreement with MMA outfit Bellator. The deal will let DAZN broadcast 22 events per year. DAZN also signed an eight-year deal with Matchroom last year to show 32 boxing cards per year. Both combinations is making the OTT service a strong suitor for sports bars who have a strong combat-sport audience.
Colbert’s Take on Red Hen/SHS
We’ve warned about using your location as a soapbox for political views. It has its pros & cons, and we’re all for you exercising your 1st Amendment rights as long as you realize there may be social consequences for doing so. The Red Hen vs. Sarah Huckabee Sanders saga is just the latest example of this and it’s gotten to the point where late night show hosts are serving up their POVs. Here’s Stephen Colbert’s hilarious take.
STARBUCKS FTW
Why it matters to you: Starbucks to pay for all transgender staff’s surgeries!
In an announcement this past Monday, Starbucks said that in addition to covering transgender bottom surgery (which they’ve done since 2012), they will now cover all of the other medical steps in a person’s transition. This covers several other procedures that were previously only considered cosmetic and can often be hard to get an insurer to cover. This is a massive and positive step in the right direction for Starbucks and their employees alike. Hopefully this will serve as a positive example for other mega (and non-mega) corporations as a way of looking after the wellbeing of our employees.
A company truly looking to and trying to improve their staffs’ lives shouldn’t be news, but it unfortunately is. Not only will this move improve the quality of life for their transgender staff, but will also building staff loyalty and solidify their chances of staff retention. Keeping quality staff is difficult and finding new ones is expensive. Employers need all of the help that they can get, so keep in mind that some more positive steps, such as what Starbucks is doing, can go an extremely long way. When your staff is happy and feel like they matter and cared for, they’re more likely to stick around and give you their all.
TIPPED MINIMUM REACHING TIPPING POINT
Why it matters to you: NYC is hosting the last public hearing on the tipped minimum vs general minimum wage debate.
Restaurants in New York (and most places nationally) have been debating about raising tipped minimum and general minimum wages for some time now. The rates for both of these will increase in NYC to $10/hr and $15/hour, respectively, by the end of the year but that isn’t even the tip (hah) of the iceberg.
Essentially, restaurants that pay employees tipped minimum are given tip credit to make up the gap between general minimum and tipped minimum. This means that employees’ tips are expected to at least make up the difference between the two types of minimum wages but, if they do not, the employer must make up that difference. In the debate of keeping or doing away with tip credit, at least 21 restaurateurs who do not use tipped minimum wage signed and delivered a letter to the governor calling for the elimination of the credit.
This is where the debate gets really heated. Most restaurateurs rely on the credit as a bit of a break in the wages so that they can allocate that money elsewhere -- something we very much understand in such an insanely expensive market. Meanwhile, there are other restaurants that wish to do away with this credit in an effort to change the industry into a fairer paying and more professional setting.
We think the real issue here is that there is no one size fits all to everyone’s issues in a large multicultural city such as New York. Tipped minimum will work better for some while doing away with it will work better for others. Restaurants should keep a close eye on what happens in NYC as it may point to future trends across the country.
