Cheers is dedicated to delivering hospitality professionals the information, insights and data necessary to drive their beverage business by covering trends and innovations in operations, merchandising, service and training.
Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/121046
Five Tips to Boost Pro���tability E very bar or restaurant operator wants to increase profits, but it���s always a balancing act in terms of doing what���s right for your concept and your customer. During a CBC panel discussion titled ���Profits, Promotions and Pizzazz,��� industry experts offered up some tips; here are five of them. 1. Concentrate on what���s right for your concept. Focus on making your restaurant a place that people want to go to, said Randy DeWitt, CEO of multi-unit Twin Peaks. But that doesn���t mean embracing every trend. For instance, the chain���s audience is 90% men, he said, so a lot of the trendy, fruity drinks popular now wouldn���t be a fit for Twin Peaks. Also, Twin Peaks sells primarily domestic light beer and serves it ice cold in a frozen mug. ���That���s all horrifying to craft beer drinkers,��� DeWitt admitted. ���But that���s who our customer is, and we���re not going to try to fight that.��� 2. Beware ���SKU-mageddon���: Less is more. With all of the options in spirits, wines and crafts beer today, it���s tempting to load up the bar with plenty of brands. But keeping it simple with fewer SKUs to manage saves time and money. Tavistock Restaurants recently reduced its brand SKUs by 27%, says beverage director Mike Hanley. This saves considerable time in inventory management and ordering, he said. 3. Hold your people accountable. ���You need a bar manager with accountability,��� said George Barton, a consultant who spent 35 years with TGI Friday���s. That means bar mangers must be able to clarify how they order, who their vendors are and what���s in their beverage book at any time. It���s not just bar managers who should account for their work, however. Kip Snider, director of beverage for Yard House Above, from left, session moderator David Farkas with panelists Mike Hanley, Randy DeWitt, Kip Snider and George Barton. Restaurants, said that the chain does performance reviews for all workers. One thing to watch for in the bar: Make sure bartenders are using standard pours, Snider said, not only for profitability but also for drink quality and consistency. 4. Keep your happy hour promotions simple. ���Customers today don���t need a lot of clutter at happy hour,��� Barton said. Make sure that the theme and offering expresses your concept, then have ���a few great items priced properly���a beer or two, a wine or two, and a few spirits.��� 5. Streamline processes and embrace shortcuts. Some Tavistock Restaurants concepts offered a Clementini cocktail made with fresh clementines, Hanley said. But working with the seasonal fruit could be expensive and time-consuming. Switching to a puree brand proved to be more efficient without hurting the drink quality, he said. Members and guests of the Cheers Editorial Advisory Board. First row from left: Sarah Longwell, American Beverage Institute; Larry McGinn, iMi Agency; Melissa Dowling, Cheers; Doug Draper, HMS Host; Glenn Schmitt, MarkeTeam; Cindy Busi, Hard Rock International; David Brown, Houlihan���s; and Naomi Celaire-Hettema, Royal Caribbean International. Back row, from left: Kip Snider, Yard House Restaurants; Ken Lennox, Ruby Tuesday; Wesley Cort, Norwegian Cruise Line; Ron Wichowski, Marriott Hartford Downtown; George Barton, principal, gBartonInnovations; Mike Hanley, Tavistock Restaurants; Dan Hoffman, Marriott International. www.cheersonline.com Kathy Casey of Kathy Casey Food Studios��� Liquid Kitchen. APRIL 2013 | 29