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Month: April 2016

Restaurant Inventory Management – Simplified

Posted on by inresto

Post the outbreak of Covid-19, restaurateurs all around the world are going through challenges they have never faced before. As per the surveys, around 40% of the restaurants may shut down permanently due to the disruption caused by the pandemic. In this scenario, restaurant inventory management assumes greater importance as it makes a significant impact on your business.

In simple terms, restaurant inventory management is the process using which you track the inventory coming in and out of your restaurant. Though inventory loss may seem negligible in the short term, it can make a huge dent in your profits in the long run. 

7 effective methods to manage your restaurant inventory

  • Monitor your stock religiously
  • Keep a check on the raw materials
  • Effective recipe management
  • Establish a central kitchen
  • Better shelf life management
  • Assign roles and responsibilities
  • Make use of reports and analytics

Let’s delve deep into the various techniques practiced by restaurateurs in managing restaurant inventory effectively.

Monitor your stock religiously

Before placing a fresh order you need to check the present stock of raw materials judiciously. As manually calculating the daily count of inventory is a cumbersome task, the best way to deal with this problem is by investing in inventory management software. Thanks to India’s leading cloud based inventory management platforms such as inresto SCM, now it’s quite easy to monitor your stock status live from any location. Based on your orders, the inventory status is updated automatically and you will receive timely notifications. One more benefit is that at any point of time you will receive alerts on minimum threshold quantities so that the stock quantities can be replenished easily.

Keep a check on the raw materials

As the cost of raw materials is on an upward spiral, the wastage of raw materials should be cut down as much as possible. In the case of perishable food items, you can implement the minimal stocking approach as the wastage of such items can burn a hole in your pocket. With the help of inventory management software, you can cut down wastage by 25%.

Effective recipe management

Have a standardised recipe in place that prescribes the exact amount of ingredients required for each dish and the method of preparation. Wastage of an expensive chocolate sauce or dry fruits can prove costly for you. With the help of inresto, you can make optimum use of the kitchen resources and reduce overall grocery cost and grocery requirement.  

Establish a central kitchen

If you are running a chain of restaurants, it’s always better to go for a central kitchen or base kitchen. Based on the requirements from various outlets, the food items are semi-processed and distributed to the various locations. The main benefits of a central kitchen is that it helps to maintain consistency, have better control over inventory and cuts down chances of inventory loss, theft and pilferage. Restaurant POS software helps in optimising your kitchen’s turnaround time by streamlining all the operations from the central kitchen.  

Better shelf life management

With the outbreak of Covid-19, diners have become too concerned about the hygiene and quality of food served.  Depending on the raw materials or the ingredients used in the kitchen, their shelf life may also vary. You cannot afford to use an ingredient that has crossed the expiry date. As it’s impossible to track the expiry date of each and every item manually, the best solution is to enter this information into the POS software. It alerts you on the expiry date of all the items well in advance so you can plan and manage the activities accordingly.

Assign roles and responsibilities

To curb the issue of internal theft in the restaurant inventory, you can implement a robust inventory management software. Pick some reliable staff members and make them responsible for monitoring the inventory. Various roles can be assigned in the software and grant them permission to access the important data.

Make use of reports and analytics

With the help of valuable insights provided by the inventory management software, you can easily forecast the future requirement for raw materials and plan your operations. Based on stock variance and pilferage, reports are generated that helps you identify the discrepancies and irregularities quickly.  

Parting words 

As restaurants are struggling to stay afloat, effective inventory management can lead to enormous cost savings. As discussed above, choosing the right inventory management software that fits your needs can help you significantly in streamlining inventory.

How to control food wastage using SCM software?

Posted on by inresto

Restaurants all over the world are operating on wafer thin margins because of the new challenges posed by Covid-19. The survey conducted by Yelp indicates that of the businesses that were closed, 17% of them were restaurants and 53% of those restaurant closures were indicated as permanent. Hence, the prime focus of restaurants would be to cut down unnecessary expenses and turnaround the business. One of the major issues that causes a dent in your restaurant profits is that of food wastage. 

How to manage food wastage effectively using Digital SCM platforms?

Supply Chain Management (SCM) plays an integral role in the successful operations of restaurants. Gone are those days when restaurants used to depend on manually operated systems that led to several losses such as wastage in the kitchen and inefficient supply of resources. The modern day, cloud based Supply Chain Management (SCM) software platform offers the ideal solution for dealing with the problem of food wastage. The system is automated, and it benefits you in the following areas.  

  • Real time inventory tracking
  • Drastic reduction in wastage
  • No more employ threat
  • Streamline vendor management

Real time inventory tracking:

When the restaurant operations are managed manually, it’s quite difficult to keep a track of the stock. The nagging problem of inventory wastage is a thing of the past, thanks to digital platforms such as inresto SCM. It helps you track the inventory levels real-time from any location, anywhere. Before placing the order for the fresh stock, you can check the current inventory levels and decide on the quantity of orders. Based on your orders, the inventory status is updated automatically and the system keeps you updated with timely notifications. If you are running a chain of restaurants, you will receive separate alerts on minimum threshold quantities specific to various outlets at different locations. This acts as a trigger to place fresh orders and replenish the existing stock. 

Drastic reduction in wastage:

The careless behaviour of employees can lead to wastage of ingredients used in the kitchen.  An example is the excessive use of expensive ingredients such as chocolate sauces by your chef that can burn a hole in your pocket. The beauty of SCM platforms is that it makes optimum use of your kitchen resources and cuts down overall grocery cost and grocery requirement. With effective recipe management, you can define the amount of ingredients required in the preparation of each dish, the method of preparation etc. If any ingredient is used in excessive quantity, you can easily track the details. Hence wastage is reduced to a great extent that cuts down expenses drastically. The reports generated also provide valuable insights on the low-performing items in your menu. Based on this information, you can stop focusing on those items and concentrate on dishes that are fast moving and more revenue generating.

No more employee theft:

As per the report by National Restaurant Association, internal employee theft is responsible for 75% of inventory shortages and about 4% of restaurant sales. One more shocking revelation is that about 75% of the employees steal from their workplace at least once, if not repeatedly. With the SCM system, all your raw materials are secure and there is no need to worry about employee theft. Reports can be easily generated that provide valuable insights into stock variance and pilferage. 

Streamline vendor management:

For those restaurateurs managing multiple outlets, it leads to unnecessary expenses when the procurement of raw materials for each outlet is managed separately. Hence they prepare the food at the central kitchen and supply it to the various outlets. Using the SCM platforms, all the requirements are fulfilled from the central kitchen. The purchase orders are sent to the relevant vendors from the central kitchen that leads to effective cost savings. Hence managing procurement is effortless and you can achieve better cost margins. The other major benefits of SCM platforms are the ease in streamlining vendor management and optimising prices and quantity.

Parting Words 

Technology has led to a drastic change in the functioning of restaurants all over the world. Supply chain management is no different, and it’s high time that you choose the right SCM digital platform that helps you address the problem of waste management effectively and achieve significant cost savings.