BUSINESS: 5 Smart Tips to Grow Your Restaurant with Limited Resources
This is an industry where new businesses are popping up at every corner, but where restaurants are also going under due to the sheer pressure of their competitors. The main issue owners face is the lack of available funds to expand safely. Running a restaurant requires constant financial investments, which is why today we will be going over some smart and affordable tips that will allow you to grow your business with limited resources.
DID YOU KNOWS…
US is the Wine Import King
The United States is by far the largest market for European wine outside the EU. Having imported more than 6 million hectoliters of Europe’s finest grape juice in 2018, the U.S. accounted for 28% of the European Union’s extra-EU wine exports that year. While China has developed a taste for fine wine in recent years, the People’s Republic still trails the U.S. by a significant margin, accounting for 12% of the EU's wine exports.
Measle Cases Skyrocket
With nearly 1,300 cases in 2019, measles are at a 27-year high in the U.S., according to new CDC numbers. In the year 2000, the disease was declared eradicated in the United States but the country could now go on to lose that status. 73% of the 2019 cases were linked to outbreaks in New York where different communities are often unvaccinated. Other U.S. communities where vaccination rates are falling also experienced outbreaks in 2019.
Australia is Warming Faster than Global Average
All-consuming wildfires have brought devastation upon Australian communities and shocked the world. Simultaneously, Australia experienced the hottest year on record in 2019, which had a mean temperature of 1.5° Celsius above the mean calculated for 1961 to 1990. According to data from the Australian Bureau of Meteorology, the rise of mean surface temperatures has been steeper in Australia than in the world on average.
RULES, RULES, RULES
Why it matters to you: An inescapable part of your job is following what’s happening with the laws surrounding our industry.
Keeping up with the legal landscape surrounding our industry can be a daunting task, which is why we love this periodic update provided by Modern Restaurant Management. We encourage you to read the whole post, but we will review the highlights here.
Let’s start with McDonald’s winning another Joint Employer suit; this time in California. The court dismissed a case that claimed plaintiffs were denied overtime, meal/rest breaks, and other benefits by their franchisee employer. However, the court didn’t believe McDonald’s Corporate was not liable because they failed to meet the “control” definition of an employer, and under California common law, could not be classified as an employer of its franchisees’ workers.
Over at the FDA, there have been some clarifications about how CBD products can be sold. This past November, the FDA issued warning letters to 15 companies for illegally selling CBD products in violation of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. The agency stated that “any product intended to treat a disease or otherwise have a therapeutic or medical use, and any product (other than food) that is intended to affect the structure or function of the body of humans or animals, is a drug.” Boiled down, this means you can’t make therapeutic claims when you serve CBD on your menu. Also pending is a Department of Labor ruling on the new tip regulations. It is likely we will see those new regulations early in the first quarter of this year.
[Source: Modern Restaurant Management]
HERE’S TO A HEALTHY 2020
Why it matters to you: Make this year a healthy one on your menu and enjoy the experience.
Speaking of CBD, did you know the wellness industry is worth upwards of $4 trillion annually? If you are looking for a marketing idea, it’s hard to ignore wellness as a strategy. Healthy menus have been a broad topic of discussion in our industry over the past 20 years, but over past few there has been a seismic change in what is considered healthy. For example, in the early part of this century, everyone was about low-carb menu items. You couldn’t go into a chain operators that wasn’t touting their low-carb offerings to capture the trend. To make this work, you have to identify the wellness trends that you can leverage and create your marketing to support the sale of the items you choose. This article does a nice job of describing several of the newer trends in wellness that restaurants and bars can access.
For example, with Dry January as a trending approach, why not add zero-proof/low-ABV items to your menu. This will ensure drinkers and sober folks can still enjoy an evening at your place without having to know who is and who isn’t. It doesn’t end with alcohol free beverages, because you can easily highlight healthier options on your menu to attract those folks that are seeking that experience. At Dante, Naren Young has created a healthier version of a Bloody Mary that's packed with nutrients: it's made with six different cold-pressed vegetables and reduced sodium so guests can feel invigorated after one (or several). There are no shortage of healthier options in today’s world and one thing is clear. It’s what your guests want, so give it a try.
[Source: Nightclub & Bar]
