Effective restaurant reporting is crucial for maintaining a thriving business in the dynamic restaurant industry. Restaurant reports provide detailed insights into your business performance, from managing staff and food service to strategic evaluation and informed decision-making.

Running a restaurant requires constant vigilance and adaptation. Through insightful reporting, you can pinpoint areas for improvement and ensure you’re on track to achieve your goals. Fortunately, modern restaurant management tools streamline this process, eliminating the manual effort of data compilation and spreadsheet management. Tools like Deliverect integrate seamlessly with your POS system, automating orders and minimising errors. They enable you to better understand your business through critical analytics and reporting, while reducing human error.

But what if you want something personalised to your unique business? Most tools offer in-depth and customisable data to create reports that fit your restaurant’s specific needs. That means you can pick which data are most important to your restaurant’s success and even decide how frequently you want to measure them—weekly, monthly, or quarterly.

With that in mind, to which reports should you pay the closest attention?

1. Inventory Reports
Inventory costs constitute a significant portion of a restaurant’s budget, next to labour costs. Regularly monitoring inventory helps prevent wastage and optimise spending.

With the insight provided by an inventory report, you can get an up-to-date analysis on which items you use most and how often you need to restock them. This knowledge allows you to make informed, cost-effective decisions like buying in bulk, switching to a cheaper substitute, or even striking up a partnership or deal with a certain vendor you often deal with.

2. Menu Reports
Crafting a menu that appeals to every kind of diner or perfectly captures the spirit of a particular cuisine   won’t guarantee your restaurant’s success. When restaurant owners and managers draft a menu, they often don’t consider the financial burdens of a signature dish. Unfortunately, a high price tag doesn’t always equate to a high ROI, so sometimes, opting for that Chilean sea bass can do more harm than good.

This Menu reporting can help you create menus that satisfy your customers’ and your restaurant’s financial health. It also details the popularity and profitability of each item you serve. Its analysis also shows you the current selling price and cost of ingredients, outlining which items cost you money versus which help you make a profit. With these reports, you can stop dumping money into menu items your customers won’t order and focus on perfecting your most profitable dishes.

3. Sales Analysis Reports
Understanding your sales patterns is fundamental to managing a successful restaurant. Sales reports are essential because they let you know how healthy your business is. If something in your current operations needs to be tweaked or reimagined, the answer may lie in your sales report.

It may seem like a sales report and a menu report are the same, but how they differ depends on what they cover. A menu report approaches things from a food and customer experience perspective, i.e., which dishes are most popular and how they impact your business financially. Whereas a sales report looks behind the scenes, evaluating your operations and the efficiency of your business model.

These reports can help you to track revenue trends over time, highlight peak hours, and evaluate the impact of promotions or discounts. When you use the power of these reports, you’ll find that identifying and resolving sales-related pain points becomes suddenly much clearer. If well done, a sales report can also give insight into the most popular days your customers visit and at what time of day.

4. Payroll and Employee Management Reports
Your staff members are your business’s most valuable asset. They’re the heart and soul of the operation, making or breaking the customers’ experience. However, they’re also your most expensive asset.

Payroll reports help monitor and track crucial employee metrics, such as attendance, labour costs, paystubs, scheduled hours, and more.

Monitoring and comparing these metrics can help you comprehensively review your finances and determine whether you have scheduling issues you need to address. After all, the ultimate goal of any business is to boost revenue, which won’t happen if your profit vanishes into inefficient scheduling and processes.

5. Online ordering and Delivery  Reports
In today’s digital age, online ordering and delivery have become indispensable for restaurants. Online order reports have recently grown increasingly instrumental to a restaurant’s success.

Online order reports provide insights into customer behaviour, such as order abandonment rates and preferred ordering times. This will give you valuable insight into which platforms your customers frequent, influence your social media marketing strategies, and help you learn who your customers are.

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In today’s competitive market, staying ahead of the curve is crucial to using essential cutting-edge technology for restaurants to thrive. Modern technology is transforming every facet of the restaurant business. From automating tasks with robotics to utilizing software for inventory management and customer service, these solutions empower restaurants to operate more efficiently and profitably, reshaping the entire industry.

Nowadays, new restaurants, ghost kitchens, and virtual food brands are popping up at every corner, making our industry the most competitive it has ever been; using the right tech is the way to reduce financial waste and elevate financial efficiency in the coming years.

Consolidating tech into a Comprehensive Solution
While tech integration is crucial, it shouldn’t burden restaurants with excessive costs or complexity. Many restaurants make the mistake of overinvesting in new software and even hardware solutions without first analyzing their needs, goals, and focus areas.

For example, one of the major focus areas for any growth-oriented restaurant would be to consolidate its tech and use a solution to seamlessly aggregate online orders, manage menus, track data, and reduce redundancy across your Point-of-Sale (POS) system.

This streamlines workflows and provides a unified overview of all incoming orders, especially for restaurants with multiple sales channels.

Always aim for a lean tech operation where you use only a handful of critical tools that provide as much bang for your buck as possible.

Protection of Revenue: Reducing Failed Orders
One of the critical aspects of financial efficiency in restaurants is reducing failed orders. This not only affects revenue but also customer satisfaction and loyalty. Having a solution that seamlessly integrates all your equipment, from online ordering systems to kitchen appliances, helps in reducing errors and ensuring orders are fulfilled accurately and on time.

By leveraging technology to streamline order processing, track inventory in real-time, and minimize manual errors, restaurants can protect their revenue by avoiding costly mistakes that lead to dissatisfied customers and lost sales opportunities.

Moreover, implementing predictive analytics and machine learning algorithms can further enhance order accuracy and reduce the risk of errors, contributing to improved revenue protection and customer experience.

Financial Tracking: A Cornerstone for Success
Effective financial management is paramount. Beyond tracking revenue and sales, restaurants require meticulous expense management and year-round financial analysis.

Financial monitoring and meticulous analysis are the foundational pillars of data-driven decision-making in this business, giving you a competitive edge. It all starts with the right accounting software that will provide you with a comprehensive overview of your accounts receivable and accounts payable, along with detailed reports.

This software should provide comprehensive overviews of accounts receivable and payable and detailed, granular reports – both at the micro and macro levels – to identify seasonal and annual cash flow trends.

Using Technology to Optimise Labor Costs
Everything is becoming more expensive. From logistics, food, packaging, equipment, and compliance to labour, training, and talent retention, restaurant owners desperately seek ways to cut their expenses.

Task automation is key to optimizing labor costs in restaurants. By automating repetitive tasks such as order processing, inventory management, and reporting, staff can focus on higher-value activities like customer service, menu innovation, and strategic planning.

Automated scheduling tools can also help in optimizing labor allocation based on demand patterns, ensuring adequate staffing levels without unnecessary overtime or understaffing situations. This not only improves operational efficiency but also enhances employee satisfaction and reduces turnover rates.

Investing in staff training on using these automated tools effectively can further maximize their impact on labor cost optimization and overall business performance.

Investing in the Future
The restaurant industry is becoming more competitive than ever, but that doesn’t mean that small businesses or up-and-coming brands can’t build long-term success and stability. However, by embracing technology for operational efficiency, cost optimisation, and strategic growth, restaurants of all sizes can thrive with this competitive edge in 2024 and beyond.

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Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG), or Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG), are products sold quickly and at a relatively low cost. The FMCG industry is characterized by high-volume sales, quick inventory turnover, and various products catering to consumer needs. These goods include essential everyday items such as food and beverages, toiletries, cleaning supplies, and other low-cost household items.

FMCG products can be broadly categorized into three main segments. These are food and beverages which includes packaged foods, snacks, dairy products, carbonated and non-carbonated beverages, and alcoholic drinks; personal care and toiletries such as cosmetics, soaps, shampoos, skincare items, and oral care products; and household and cleaning items. This segment covers cleaning supplies, laundry detergents, insecticides, and other essential household items.

The FMCG industry is a vital component of the global economy, contributing significantly to a country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and job creation. As a major driver of consumer spending, FMCG plays an essential role in various aspects of the economy, such as the retail and distribution sectors, generating demand for a range of products and services. Here are some of the ways that the FMCG industry contributes to the economy:

1. The FMCG sector is a primary source of employment, providing job opportunities for millions across the supply chain, including manufacturing, distribution, retail, and marketing. As a labor-intensive sector, FMCG contributes to economic growth by creating direct and indirect employment opportunities, helping to reduce unemployment rates and boost overall productivity.
2. This industry plays a crucial role in the growth of the retail and distribution sectors, generating a steady demand for various products. The high volume and quick turnover of FMCG products encourage retailers and distributors to invest in infrastructure, technology, and workforce development, further supporting economic growth.
3. This sector has strong linkages with various ancillary sectors such as packaging, advertising, logistics, and transportation. The growth and success of these industries are often dependent on the performance of the FMCG sector, creating a multiplier effect on the economy.
4. The competitive nature of the FMCG industry pushes companies to innovate continuously and adopt new technologies to maintain their market share. This drive for innovation and efficiency leads to the development and adoption of advanced technologies and processes, which can have a positive spillover effect on other sectors of the economy.
5. The growth of the FMCG industry is closely tied to population growth, urbanization, and rising disposable incomes. The sector is a crucial indicator of a country’s overall economic health. A thriving FMCG sector is often a sign of strong consumer confidence and increased spending essential for sustained economic growth.

Efficient distribution channels are critical to the success of FMCG companies. The most common distribution channels are supermarkets and hypermarkets, convenience stores, online retailers, discount stores, specialty stores and marketing and advertising strategies.

Some of the key trends shaping the FMCG sector include growing demand for health and wellness products, a shift towards eco-friendly packaging and sustainable practices, increasing online sales, personalization and customization of products, and emphasis on data-driven decision-making.

The FMCG industry is a dynamic and critical component of the global economy generating significant revenues and creating employment opportunities. With the ever-evolving consumer preferences and market trends, FMCG companies must continuously innovate and adapt to maintain a competitive edge. By understanding the key components, trends, and players in the FMCG industry, businesses can better position themselves for success in this fast-paced and competitive sector.

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How did you arrive upon this unique concept and please introduce Deliverect to our readers?
I grew up around the restaurant industry as my father built and still runs a POS for Asian restaurants in Belgium. He inspired me to take over the business but I had other plans. In 2011, I built my own cloud-based POS with co-founder Jan Hollez. In 2014, we were acquired by Lightspeed and I became the Global Director of Hospitality. I gained a lot of experience speaking with restaurant owners and managers on a daily basis to better help them solve challenges related to operations and management.

Delivery was already rising during this time, well before COVID-19. I witnessed first-hand the many pains restaurants were facing when offering delivery. Virtual kitchens were just at the very beginning of their development but I knew this was going to be big and something that would stay. Together with Jan, we thought of a solution to solve the pain point that comes with managing online delivery platforms and that’s how Deliverect was ‘born’ in 2018 – as a way to bridge the gap between delivery platforms and POS systems.

Deliverect integrates online food ordering platforms into the restaurant’s point-of-sale system, making rekeying orders and the costly errors that come with it a thing of the past. With all online orders centrally managed, businesses can increase operational efficiency, which will ramp up customer satisfaction, as well.

We want to save the restaurants’ time and money by automating repetitive tasks so they can focus on doing the things they love and are passionate about.

How did you manage to raise funds to launch the Deliverect?
We Initially worked with investors that we’ve known for years who funded my first startup with Jan Hollez, POSiOS. They believed in our vision and in the potential that the business held. In March 2019, Deliverect received its series A funding from Newion Investments and Fintech, worth €3 million.

In series B funding, we raised €16.25m with OMERS Ventures, our existing investors Newion, Smartfin, and the company’s founders. In conjunction with the funding, OMERS Ventures Managing Partner Jambu Palaniappan will join the Deliverect board.

The company will use the funds for R&D and product development, as well as expansion into new markets.

In our Series C funding round, we raised $65 million funds from DST Global Partners and Redpoint Ventures, as well as existing investors OMERS, Newion and Smartfin.

How was this idea perceived during the early days by the F&B sector and list a few challenges faced initially?
The idea was well received because even 5 years ago demand was increasing for delivery. When COVID hit, the biggest challenge was scaling up – hiring the right talent to support our customers and our growth.

Using Deliverect, how can restaurants manage multiple delivery aggregators successfully?
Deliverect connects aggregators like Talabat, Zomato, Deliveroo and more delivery platforms directly to the restaurant POS system, ending operational delivery management issues. With online orders automatically pushed to the POS, there’s no need to manually re-enter order receipts anymore, saving time and eliminating errors.

Additionally, our menu builder enables the operational team to easily build a menu and push it live on multiple delivery platforms and for multiple locations. They can also make any changes or updates to the menu at any time and from one single dashboard that goes live into all delivery channels.

The centralisation of all this data also enables restaurants and other food businesses to get consolidated reporting of all their channels.

What is the minimum size of restaurants that can enjoy the benefits of your platform?
Any restaurant that does online orders can benefit from Deliverect. We have food trucks, local bakeries, etc. among our customers.

Can you talk about your presence in the Middle Eastern market and what is your user base in the region?
We launched in UAE just over a year ago and have exceeded our growth expectations. Restaurant owners in GCC understand the value on Deliverect’s integrated solution and how it improves their restaurant operations.

Recently, the company has successfully raised $65 million. Please explain to us how Deliverect plans to use these funds in the Middle East?
This region in specific has ample potential and hunger for online and offline food orders. Restaurants in the GCC are looking for solutions that will help integrate the different channels of delivery to their POS system while automating most of their operations. This is why we are investing in this region and ensuring local presence by opening local offices and hiring a team of highly skilled individuals who will not just help us further develop our relationship with our customers but also listen to their feedback about what they need. We accordingly act upon the market demands to add value and better serve our clients.

In your view, how has F&B sector handled itself during the COVID-19 pandemic and how has Deliverect helped this sector rebound?
F&B is known to be a low-margin industry in which the optimization of operations and business processes while reducing waste is crucial. Today, the market is equipped with technology that can automate repetitive manual work so restaurants can focus on the human aspect of their services, making sure that they provide excellent and personal services.

Restaurants need solutions that are easy and straightforward to use as they usually don’t have IT teams to manage their tech. With online orders automatically pushed to the POS, there’s no need to manually re-enter order receipts anymore, saving time and eliminating errors.

What advice would you like to offer to the budding entrepreneurs and what should they always remember when they are getting ready to take off with their startup?
I would say take risks, it is about trial and error – speed is more important than perfection. Have a clear and a shared vision with collaborators when it comes to goal setting and action planning, and most importantly maintain constant communication with the team and partners as in a startup things tend to change really quickly.

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Food delivery has been reshaping the restaurant industry since the late 2000s. As more and more people started ordering food online, a significant portion of their orders was facilitated through third-party delivery apps.

With restaurant deliveries soaring, an entirely new delivery and takeout business model emerged. Take a look at dark kitchens, also known as ghost kitchens or cloud kitchens.

What are dark kitchens?
Dark kitchens are highly efficient production units without a storefront that sell meals exclusively through delivery. They have no sitting capacity for in-house diners or walk-ins, preparing food once an order comes in through a delivery app or an online ordering system. Once the meal is ready, delivery drivers then collect it for delivery. Some dark kitchens also offer takeout, letting customers pick up their food themselves.

How did Covid-19 impact dark kitchens?
Dark kitchens are increasing in number, with mounds of VC money pouring into startups that serve the industry and major delivery platforms setting up their own facilities. At the start of 2020, dark kitchens were already being talked about widely as the hot new trend in food delivery.

Then COVID-19 struck and suddenly brick-and-mortar restaurants up and down the country were forced into adopting a dark kitchen-style business model, offering limited menus, grocery boxes, meal kits, and whatever else they could for delivery or curbside pick-up. And turning their empty dining rooms into packaging and storage space.

With restaurants starting to open back up for dine-in guests amid new restrictions and stringent hygiene and distancing requirements, don’t expect the dark kitchen model to go away. The lockdown has demonstrated to those restaurateurs that weren’t already enjoying the benefits, that moving onto a digital platform and offering a more convenient option for diners is a very lucrative model. It has also brought many more consumers onto delivery platforms and shown them the convenience of online ordering.

Dark kitchens are more relevant than ever, and we should expect to see a lot more growth in this already exploding segment of the food business – the dark kitchen market is forecast to reach $2.63 billion by 2026, four times larger than it was in 2018.

What are the advantages of dark kitchens?
That’s the big picture. Now let’s dive into the advantages and drawbacks of dark kitchens and look at the practical considerations that you need to know before opening your own digital-age delivery-only kitchen.

There’s a reason why they suddenly seem to be popping up everywhere. Not having to provide customer seating and waiting areas significantly lowers the cost of rent and additionally, there’s no need to hire serving staff either. Therefore, it’s a great way for restaurants to reduce overheads while increasing their capacity to cater to the increased food delivery market.

Dark kitchens also enable restaurants to easily experiment with new brands, menus and concepts. There are no physical premises to take into account when consumer food trends change, so delivery kitchens can quickly move on to a whole different menu or concept in no time. If a brand isn’t landing, they can quite simply create a new one and try again.

Multiple virtual brands can be prepared in the same kitchen. That’s why it’s easy to target multiple segments and serve multiple different demographics at the same time.

Where did the dark kitchen come from?
Technology has changed the consumer market incredibly in the past couple of years. Today, you can order a product or service from the other side of the world, personalize it, and pay for it online within seconds.

The food industry eagerly adopted this e-commerce success story. It’s the success of online ordering players like Uber Eats, Talabat, Zomato, Deliveroo, and many more that paved the way for dark kitchens. These third-party delivery channels enable food businesses to easily connect with customers and quickly deliver meals to their doorstep.

Getting food to customers has become easier – even for small, independently owned restaurants – a change which has led to an increased offer to match the ever-growing demand.

What you need to know before opening?
There are a number of ways to approach opening a dark kitchen. First, you must choose which business model to go with. Whether you have your own kitchen with multiple brands, share the space with other virtual restaurants, or add a virtual delivery-only offering to your existing kitchen, you need to be aware of the following fundamentals.

1- Location is key
To take advantage of the benefits of dark kitchens, you need to be busy. You need that data coming in. Without the regular footfall of a brick-and-mortar location, you are relying entirely on your online presence to generate orders. And all of your customers must be within the delivery zone of around three miles. So, you need to do thorough research on the competition, the demographics in the area and find out which cuisines are likely to be popular.

2- Get the right tech
Dark kitchens rely on the amazing technology platforms available to power their operations and offer the advantages we’ve talked about. So, choosing the right solutions is a key decision. Firstly, choose whether to offer your own delivery service or use third-party providers. There are pros and cons on both sides in terms of the convenience and reach of delivery partners versus the damage done to your margins. If you choose to go with your own system, you’ll need to invest more in marketing your brand and creating your own ordering and fulfillment systems.

If you choose to work with multiple delivery partners, as many cloud kitchen operators do, you will improve the efficiency of your processes immensely. Rather than having multiple tablets constantly bleeping at your frazzled staff as they re-punch orders into your POS from several different partners, you can invest in one system to consolidate all the orders and deliver them in a clear and consistent format straight to the kitchen.

This way, you save on staff costs (and reduce anxiety for existing staff) while speeding up delivery times. And with dark kitchens, faster delivery means happier customers and more repeat orders.

Don’t be afraid of dark kitchens
Dark kitchens are here to stay. As long as you take the time to plan effectively, get the right tech in place, and properly market your business, there’s a huge amount of opportunity in the marketplace. In a fast-changing, increasingly digital world, the low risk, adaptable nature of dark kitchens could make them the restaurants of the future. So, don’t be scared to jump in or the missed opportunity might just haunt you.

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