Preventing lost revenue in restaurants and bars

The impact of staff shortages is a common theme across New Zealand media outlets. As reported in the latest News Hub article, huge shortages are being felt in almost every corner of hospitality. Zooming in on the issue, there are some everyday impacts that are shared in this article and how businesses are taking measures to prevent lost revenue. 

Host spoke with business owner, Calvin, from Frankie and Fries who says the biggest issue is watching customers walk away during busy periods. “It's lost revenue we can’t afford.” Calvin is looking to bring online a self service kiosk that lets customers order and pay themselves allowing his staff to increase speed of delivery for service and get food to customers without handling the POS. When he saw customers turning away once they saw the queue, he knew he needed to look for a kiosk solution to help manage his over the counter services. With a kiosk, his aim is to reduce waiting times and process queues faster with multiple lanes. 

A partner with Host, Hoppers garden bar in Ponsonby, Auckland are well known for their in-person table service, typically having a team of floor staff to keep patrons consistently served. With staff shortages, the bar owners introduced a QR code table order and payment service and have seen strong sales since rollout. For Hoppers, they still offer in person service however when the bar is busy and staff can’t get to tables, customers can order demand meaning no lost revenue and maximum time customers can spend with friends and not waiting in line. How Hoppers have embraced the table order service is it’s not about diluting the hospitality experience, it’s about giving the customers options for them to drive their own experience. 

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If you’re a business owner and want to hear more anecdotes from different hospitality formats, we’d love to grab a brew with you.

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