4 Effective Strategies for Managing Multiple Restaurants

Managing multiple restaurants at a time could be challenging. but at the same time, it is profitable too. By following some key strategies and focusing on some specific areas of your business helps you to manage the business simply.

Here are some key strategies to help you manage effectively

1. Create Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)

What are the Food Industry Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs): SOPs refer to documented guidelines and methods outlining how an establishment will secure the production of food. It is an essential part of the broader food safety program. They detail the execution of policies, specifying who is responsible for performing each task.

Here are some SOPs commonly used in the food business

Implementing this guideline will help ensure quality across various business areas. Print and place it on the notice board or in the department’s working section. This will also simplify the management of employees. When a new employee joins the team, the training process will also be easier.

2. Consistent Menu

Following a standardized menu helps manage different locations. Here is why

Menu, recipes, and processes are already established, so it reduces the time and effort needed for planning and development.
Employees can be quickly trained on menu items and preparation methods. If you transfer existing employees to your new location, you don’t need to give any special training.
Centralized purchasing and logistics help you reduce the purchase cost by more than 20%. When you follow a consistent menu in your different locations, you can purchase inventories in bulk quantity.
By focusing on specific items, the advertising also makes it simpler. It creates a cohesive brand image. Also, you can save time and resources. because promotional materials, advertising campaigns, and loyalty programs, only need to be created once and can be used everywhere
You may already know how customers will react to your menu because you are selling it at another location. This experience is invaluable, especially when starting a new location.

Maintain a consistent menu at all locations to simplify operations and ensure brand consistency. There is a 30% higher success rate in new markets compared to those without standardized practices.

3. POS Systems

For restaurant business POS systems are a must-have solution. It doesn’t matter if you have one outlet. The POS system works on different levels of your business. It simplifies your business operations such as sales, customers, employees, inventories, menu, loyalty program, and more.

Let’s break down the advantages of POS systems used to manage your multi-chain restaurants.

Work as a centralized platform

It allows you to see the performances of each location through a single dashboard. So you can control tasks like menu updates, pricing changes, inventory management, and customer and employee management. From that single dashboard, you can make decisions and update every store.

It doesn’t matter where you are, you can access the dashboard with the help of an internet connection and a device(like a mobile, or computer). Overall, walk every step hand in hand with your business.

Reporting

POS helps you generate reports on sales, inventory, and employee performance for each location or collectively for all locations. Not only your physical stores but also you can analyze online ordering business as well.

It also allows you to make important decisions at the right time. For example, if an item suddenly goes out of stock in your inventory, you can instantly generate a purchase order.

Overall, your sales performance, inventory levels, transaction data, employee performance, customer insights, profit margins, trends, and patterns can be simplified and accessed from anywhere.

Inventory Management

Here automation works for you. POS systems track inventory levels in real time across multiple locations. This enables efficient stock replenishment and reduces the risk of stockouts. It also minimizes food wastage.

By making your inventory operations efficient you can make a big impact on your profit. POS allows you to make the right business decisions based on reports. The inventory reports include:

1. Inventory Levels

Stock on Hand: Current quantity of each item in stock.

Stock Value: Monetary value of the current inventory.

Stock Status: Classification of items as in stock, low stock, or out of stock.

2. Sales Data

Sales by Item: Number of units sold for each product.

Sales by Category: Sales data aggregated by product categories.

Revenue: Total sales revenue for each item or category.

3. Inventory Movements

Receiving Reports: Details of inventory received from suppliers.

Transfer Reports: Movements of inventory between different locations or stores.

Adjustment Reports: Inventory adjustments due to errors, damages, or theft.

4. Cost of Goods Sold (COGS)

COGS Analysis: Breakdown of the cost associated with the items sold.

Gross Margin: Difference between sales revenue and COGS.

5. Supplier Information

Supplier Performance: Data on the reliability and performance of suppliers.

Purchase Orders: Records of orders placed with suppliers.

6. Turnover and Reorder Reports

Inventory Turnover Rate: How often inventory is sold and replaced over a period.

Reorder Reports: Suggestions or alerts for reordering stock based on sales trends and inventory levels.

7. Sales Trends and Forecasting

Historical Sales Data: Sales trends over specific periods (daily, weekly, monthly).

Forecasting: Predictions for future sales based on historical data.

8. Shrinkage Reports

Shrinkage Analysis: Data on inventory losses due to theft, damage, or miscounting.

Discrepancy Reports: Differences between recorded and actual inventory levels.

9. Customer Data

Sales by Customer: Detailed sales information broken down by customer profiles.

Customer Purchase History: Insights into the purchasing patterns of individual customers.

10. Performance Metrics

Top-Selling Items: Items with the highest sales volume.

Slow-Moving Items: Items with the lowest sales volume.

Profitability Analysis: Most and least profitable products.

If a shop doesn’t have enough inventory stock, you can transfer items from another outlet. By using reports, you can identify your best-selling items and peak sales dates. So you can pre-plan your inventory effectively.

Menu Management

Menu management is really important. If you are following a consistent menu across all your locations, POS makes it easier. As I mentioned before POS is a centralized platform. It allows you to make changes in your digital menu and reflect your overall business.

These real-time changes like updating menus, adding new items, or running promotions consistently across the chain can be simplified.

Employee Management

When you are running a multi-location business it is hard to manage employees, Commonly there are 10 to 30 employees from a single location. It will be difficult to manage their shift, training, efficiency, and more.

POS enables you to simplify employee-related operations. It allows you to manage scheduling, payroll, and performance tracking. You can also measure their performance and take action according to that.

Overall, POS is the best tool to manage your employees. You can also set employee roles and assign permissions to access specific operations and data. So, you can protect your business from theft and other fraudulent activities.

Customer Data Management

A multi-chain restaurant will have a large amount of customer data. Using those for promotional purposes can be simplified with POS. It helps in personalized marketing campaigns, loyalty programs, and targeted promotions.

POS records customer purchase history. Based on that report you can identify your loyal customers and run effective loyalty marketing campaigns.

You don’t want to do separate marketing campaigns for your different locations. Instead, you can manage everything from a centralized POS platform. So you can reduce manpower and marketing costs.

Integration with Third-Party Platforms

POS can be integrated with third-party platforms such as accounting software, online ordering platforms, and delivery management systems. By using an accounting integrated POS system you can simplify your accounting and tax operations. Otherwise, you will need as many employees and money to manage that.

When you are planning to expand your business online, you can use POS aggregator integration. It allows you to sell with online aggregators such as Uber Eats, Zomato, Talabat, and more.

Overall, the integration feature makes your business operations easier and gives you expansion opportunities.

4. Effective staffing

Keeping your staff efficient and productive is important. Monitoring their performance is challenging when it comes to multi-chain restaurants. As we discussed above you can manage them using a POS system. It helps you to identify their performance.

Managing is not only monitoring them. You should always provide them better work environment including salary hikes and career growth. Businesses like restaurants need talented staff, especially cooks and waiters. You can increase customer retention rates by providing better service and quality food—so giving incentives, and an attractive salary package is the solution to employee acquisition.

Technology can help you to facilitate a better work environment. It makes their work simpler and faster. Take POS as an example, you can connect it with various other restaurant business functions when the waiters take an order from a customer. The order will pass to the KDS(Kitchen display screen) and POS.

This makes servers’ jobs easier. They don’t have to take the order note and run to the kitchen. Here everything is automated and order accuracy is also efficient. If you are following the traditional method it is more time-consuming and chances of errors occur.

Overall, you need trusted employees to manage. On Reddit expertise reveals the importance of trusted employees.

Also keep in mind, that only use technology to simplify businesses. Don’t replace employees. There are so many technologies like self-ordering systems. You cannot run a business without employees.

Still in 2024 customers like physical store interaction. However, use technology to simplify business operations not to overwrite employees.

Overall, technology and trustful employees are the main key elements to running a stress-free business. Implement technology like POS systems and hire the right employees to manage them.