Why 90% of restaurants are missing the big picture heading into 2023.

Read time 2.5 minutes.

Everyone knows that the two fastest climbing costs in restaurants are food and labor.

I spoke to an owner today who was dealing with 71% prime cost... Scary!

But nobody is really talking about how to deal with them.

Everyone is talking about labor shortages and inflation.

Everyone is raising their prices, and looking at their service model in order to combat the swift changes that are happening across our industry.

Wild benefits, added surcharges, automation and even robots are all becoming more and more common... no matter what market you are in.

But 90% of restaurants are actually missing some very low hanging fruit.

Now, I tend to always try to look at things a little bit differently though, and if you follow any of what I talk about daily, you probably already know that.

Ps. if you don't regularly follow, you can do that easily at Jim Taylor

Anyway, I find myself hearing the same things from a large majority of operators heading into 2023 about how they plan to battle those rising costs.

And it is the same two things from all of them.

• Raise prices
• Cut harder

Now if you ask me, we are at a threshold with both of those.

Prices can't keep climbing at the same rate, and let's be honest... there isn't much left to cut.

So here are 3 things to look in detail at that will make an immediate impact in your restaurant.

I encourage you to look at them all in terms of the last quarter of 2022, and the entire year of 2022.

What is happening with your guest count trend?

What is happening with your average guest spend?

What is happening with your average hourly wage?

If you want to see a case study on how we use these metrics to add crazy amounts of profit to restaurants, email me at jim@benchmarksixty.com and I will send you a case study.

These are 3 things that can be worked on from multiple angles in order to battle rising cost without raising prices or cutting hours.

They also take pressure off of operations so that they can focus on the guest experience... which is what they are best at.

You might be wondering how to impact average guest spend, or average hourly wage... Find out here.

So in summary...

90% of restaurants will miss opportunity this year, and potentially harm their employee and guest experience.

All by failing to study what is happening with those three metrics.

Then, if you combine the strategies created by studying cover trends, wage trends, and spending habits, with a productivity measurement

And your restaurant will be unstoppable.

So go find out what is really happening in your restaurant.

And I am here if you need me.

Until next Monday

Jim

Ps. You can find out more about how to add a productivity metric so that you can negate rising cost without raising prices or cutting hours here.

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Also, whenever you are ready there are a few other ways I can help you.

1. If you are looing for ways to negate rising labor costs, because wages are climbing and turnover is expensive, then I would recommend starting with something affordable -> This is definitely for you
2. If you are a restaurant operator or owner who realizes that increased productivity, and lower turnover are the only responsible ways to succeed in our industry these days... I've got you covered. Let's connect for a discussion Jim Taylor
3. If you are a service provider to the restaurant industry and you are looking to partner, or build your business in 2023, there is a spot for you right here.

Until next Monday.

Jim