Up to now we have been blessed to not have to close even one single day at our operations. Our stores have remained open and strong. That is not to say that the challenges have not been felt and dealt with. We continue to encounter wrinkles in this new “not normal” daily.
As a take out and off-premise concept we managed to weather this storm probably better than most. We did make changes instantly with the way we handled orders and interacted with guests. Our online ordering platform and our social media pages went from being an ancillary source of business and communication, to being the key to our maintained sales level and contact with our guests. At our primarily location we quickly added a pick up window, demarked the lines in our sidewalks to respect social distancing, and went to an all curbside and pick up process only. Contactless transactions became the norm so we had to address that as well. We printed QR codes that we posted as decals on our front windows. The QR codes took people directly to our ordering platform and our loyalty program. Once registered they could save their payment info there and also repeat last orders with a few clicks. Convenience and speed of service were always key, but now they became indispensable .
To promote these improvements and highlight already existing avenues with which to interact with us we printed small flyers that we put in every bag that went out the door. We posted these features on all of our social media and communicated them on our websites landing page. The flyers had a personal message from myself to all of our guests thanking them for their support and business during these trying times. They addressed the sanitizing measures to ensure crew, product, and guest safety. The flyers also served to point out the fact that we were there to serve them and maintain a sense of normalcy in their lives.
To deal with the new pick up window we added another POS system near our window and front door. We put it on a swivel so it could serve both stations. We realized quickly that the quicker we acted the better options we would continue to give ourselves. Rearranging the dining area was key to streamlining our process of getting the food from the grill to our customers car window on curbside orders. Dine-in tables became staging areas for curbside and pick up orders. Clipboards for our now “carhops” were key to keeping all of the orders organized and our process flowing.
Our catering sales disappeared at first and then settled at around 5 percent of what they used to be. Our sales never dropped though so that meant that our order count went through the roof. It was not rare for us to begin our day with orders for 200 to 300 total people for lunch meetings. Now these sales were replaced by 40 to 60 extra orders for families of 5 around our stores. This change in ticket average effected some key aspects of our operation. The container costs went up dramatically and the flow of the work shifted to night times. The container costs we could deal with but the lack of availability of containers became an issue. Every restaurant now wanted to be take out and they were using a lot more containers. The supply chain broke down with the combination of increased demand and forced shutdowns at their factories. This remains an issue today but we just adapted to whatever containers were available and created an approved substitution list for all of our key packaging items. The change in sales volume and sales tickets at night created a stress on the night crew and we adjusted by increasing staff at key times and shifting our prep charts to fit our current reality. Aces in places is our motto so some schedules were rearranged to make sure we had the best people at the key times. Our staff did a great job of adjusting and working through this with us.
I say all this to highlight the opportunity we have as small business owners at this time. We can be mobile and adapt. We can pivot and create new ways. We can band together with our crew and create stronger bonds with our guests. Thankfully our footprints are small and our fixed costs are low because of it. We are making it through this and have plans on how to deal with different scenarios should they pop up. I would advice restaurants to simplify their offering. Create items that travel well and are packaged well. This will streamline processes and prep, which will in turn allow for smaller crews and faster service. Stop thinking of your guests as ex dine-in guests. All guests are delivery guests now. They sometimes pick up but make systems for delivery only. Adapt quickly and overcome. Good luck and I wish all of my fellow restaurant owners the best.