By Indiana Lee, Contributor
As we begin to move out of the fall season and into the winter, restaurant and bar owners are making preparations for what tends to be a challenging season.
Adapting offerings based on the season is an expected, if somewhat inconvenient, requirement of working in the service industry. If you’re an established restaurant owner, you likely know that the most severe of these changes tend to be required around summer and winter, when extreme weather can alter customer behaviors and expectations.
However, first-time restaurant and bar owners might not be fully aware of what to expect when the snow starts falling. Extreme winters can radically change several aspects of how your business operates overnight, and no two winters are the same. Even with forecasting, the unpredictability of the weather requires business owners to carefully prepare for the worst, and position themselves to profit handsomely regardless.
This article will outline the essential steps you can take to prepare for the winter, setting expectations for how the season will alter your day-to-day, and offering tips to mitigate damage. Whether you’re new to the service industry and looking for guidance, or an established restaurateur looking for new strategies to drive profit, we hope this brief guide will give you the tools you need to succeed.
Weatherproofing Your Restaurant
When preparing for the winter, your first consideration should be how extreme weather will affect your property. If there are extreme storms, winter weather can cause damage not only to your restaurant but to your ability to serve customers comfortably and safely. Taking steps to prepare for the worst has the joint effect of saving you from having to make unexpected repairs and sheltering you from liability. This goes for standard winter weather as well, including ice and snow, which can be real hazards.
Let’s break down some of the most common problem areas and give you simple strategies to protect both your property and guests.
Snow, ice, and safe traversal: Make sure areas that customers would frequently use or walk on are completely clear of snow and ice to prevent slipping. Salting sidewalks, parking lots, and outdoor patio areas nightly helps, as does enlisting a snow removal service (if severe storms occur).
Don’t let the weather dampen the outdoor dining experience: For some, the outdoor dining experience is part of their brand — and if that describes you, you’ll want to ensure that your dining area remains comfortable for customers. Outdoor heating units, sheltered patios, and table umbrellas are absolute musts, and the season also offers opportunities to get creative with lighting and atmosphere.
Obtain adequate insurance coverage: Forecasting can typically warn business owners when a major event is on the way; however, even the staunchest storm preppers can’t protect from every possible type of damage. Getting an insurance plan that suits your needs can help you recover faster in the event of a disaster, minimizing your time to reopen.
However, there’s a degree of “expect the unexpected” in preparations for any kind of winter weather. If, after going through the above steps, you think you’re still not ready for the season, it might be helpful to orient yourself in the customer’s perspective. Think, “if I were coming here for the first time during this season, what would I expect?”
Implementing Energy-efficient Solutions
Sustainability is important both for your customers and your bottom line — and during winter, the positive impact sustainable practices can have on your business is much more pronounced. As it gets colder, the systems that cause heat and water to circulate through your establishment have to work harder to maintain the same level of functionality, inadvertently resulting in wasted resources and higher utility costs.
Fortunately, there are sustainable practices you can employ to lower utility costs, including:
Conducting an energy efficiency audit: Knowing is half the battle, and energy efficiency audits can provide a baseline to measure the impact of your sustainability efforts.
Replace insulation: Insulation replacement is typically only $1.00 to $4.50 per square foot — which, when weighed against years of inflated heating costs, doesn’t seem terrible by comparison. Replacing insulation will help keep heat indoors longer, allowing your climate control systems to operate efficiently with minimal additional effort.
Use a smart thermostat: Smart thermostats automatically adjust the energy diverted to heating and cooling units, sensing the climate and using machine learning to provide the proper output. Using a smart thermostat helps keep your climate control systems from burning energy unnecessarily by administering the proper amount of heat when and where it’s needed.
It should be noted that the above steps are intended as a baseline for energy conservation practices. You can and should be proactive with your sustainability efforts, especially public-facing ones. Customers prefer to see sustainability in action from the businesses they patronize and are “voting with their wallets” to encourage adoption of these practices.
Promoting sustainability practices such as composting for landscaping, recycled takeout bags and utensils, and sourcing ingredients locally will imbue a powerful ethical quality in your brand, keeping the consumers who care coming back for more.
Conclusion: Manage Fluctuating Customer Demand
Finally, there’s one more obstacle to overcome: low customer morale. When winter weather is in full swing, customers need a compelling reason to suit up, brave the cold, and dine at your establishment.
The steps we’ve offered above should be more than enough to help you create an environment that customers can feel comfortable in. Feel free to consider them as a baseline; don’t be afraid to go the extra mile when weatherproofing, or to get creative with your sustainability efforts.
As for boosting morale, we recommend tailoring your menu to offerings that complement winter such as hearty roasts, mulled wine, and holiday-themed desserts. While overall attendance may be lower during peak winter weather, menu changes provide customers with a unique dining experience that they cannot get at your establishment at other times of the year. It shows that you’ve embraced the season, and reflects that despite the inherent challenges posed by winter, you’ve crafted something truly special for your customers.
And after all, isn’t that what they’re looking for?
