What do all restaurant customers want? The answer is the highest quality food at affordable prices. It sounds easy to achieve in theory – and many restaurants across the world manage to do so – but behind the scenes, restaurateurs are constantly struggling to source the freshest, highest quality ingredients available, at a price where they can afford to make a profit without pricing out their customers. It’s a tough balance to strike, and that is why supply chain management is essential in the restaurant industry.

Do Your Research First

Before the practicalities of deliveries can be worked out, there is also the initial research to consider. Market research is essential for restaurant owners looking for suppliers, as you want to make sure you are working with the most professional suppliers you can find, ones with a solid record and reputation, and who will give you the best possible price for the goods they’ll be delivering.

Managing Your Supply Chains

A big decision for restaurateurs is whether they want to be supplied goods from various supply chains, or have one supplier who acts as a middle-man for all the different goods and brings them to you as one single delivery. Many restaurants will have more than one supplier of their goods – including meat, fruit and vegetables, dairy and bread – and there are also likely to be separate suppliers for goods such as condiments and paper, too. This means a lot of juggling for management to get all of their deliveries in within a reason time.  There needs to be enough time for the goods to be checked, monitored, stocked and prepared for service.

Communication is Key

Whether you decide to have one middle-man supplier or various, you need to have a system in place to manage your supply chains so that the whole restaurant doesn’t fall into chaos due to mixed up or failed deliveries and a lack of communication. You don’t want three different Lorries lining up outside on a busy road, or clogging up a residential area. It won’t do your businesses reputation any good, and will just put extra pressure on whoever is in charge of taking the deliveries and signing them off.

You should create a delivery timetable that is agreeable with your supply chains. From here, you can rotate the staff who will be receiving the deliveries without it being a huge concern. There are supply chains that use electronic integration so ordering, invoice processing and order guide imports can be completed via an online system, saving you a great deal of time.

Another great way that technology has made supply chain management easier is that modern POS (Point of Sale) technology has given restaurateurs access to detailed reporting that can pinpoint customer demand based on what menu items are selling, and break that down into inventory items. By doing this, it has made the ordering process a great deal easier, and if the suppliers are given access to the POS data, they can put orders together based on those reports, making for smoother communication and reducing the risk of over-ordering goods.

Whether you choose to do your business on a modern POS or over the phone, the key to successful supply chain management – one that will dramatically improve your chances of long-term survival in the restaurant industry – if the process of creating a system that works for you, your suppliers, and all of your employees. The profitability of your business all comes down to three things: Great communication, accountability and solid management of your inventory. If you can achieve this in your supply chain management, you will have built the foundations of a successful business that will continue to grow for years to come.

♦ By RMagazine