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Accurate inventory management is crucial to running a successful business because it directly impacts a company’s bottom line and is key to maximizing profits. Having an accurate handle on inventory enables a business to become more resilient and know what they can sell and when they can sell it, helping mitigate out-of-stock scenarios.
Inefficient restaurant inventory management practices, improper storage, gaps in inventory logs, theft, and waste can cause even the most successful kitchens to struggle or fail. Below are the top seven inventory management mistakes restaurants are making, and how to correct them.
For example, implementing procedures to monitor inventory closely can prevent overstocking or food spoilage, while clear cleaning and maintenance schedules ensure the proper use and consumption of supplies. Adopt technology : Use tech solutions to simplify operations, such as automated scheduling or inventory tracking systems.
Review inventory management strategies Inventory isn't just a stockpile of ingredients. With restaurant management software, operators can take advantage of: Inventory Contro l: Monitor ingredient levels, track usage patterns, and identify potential waste areas. One way to stay agile?
This requires us to take a look at our menus, inventory, staff, and even our seating strategy. The restaurant industry has changed so dramatically in the pandemic era that it's time to redesign your business strategy. Whether your state allows outdoor dining, takeout only, or a little bit of both, we're here to help.
What restaurants can do, however, is re-think how their direct food supply is managed – from transport to inventory control. About 17 percent of food is wasted at the consumer level, and yet many restaurants don’t even know how much of their inventory is going to landfill each month. It’s the cost of waste.
Predict Inventory Needs Your POS system can use past data to estimate how much stock is needed to meet upcoming demand in your restaurant. Catching any changes in customer behavior early on will allow you to make immediate adjustments, stocking up on low inventory or making changes to staffing.
For example, Taco Bell is using AI-driven labor and inventory management tools to fine-tune staffing and reduce food waste. Dynamic pricing allows restaurants to adjust menu prices based on factors like inventory levels, time of day, or seasonality. Optimize pricing strategies based on real-time demand, reducing food waste.
Optimize Supply Chains : Use AI inventory tools to reduce food waste and ensure your supply chain is as efficient as possible. In the back of house, tools like inventory management systems support speed, accuracy, and cost control; in the front, customer-facing solutions such as online ordering and loyalty programs help sustain engagement."
Speaker: Ian Foster, Sculpture Hospitality Regional Director West Coast
In this seminar, Ian Foster will discuss the basics of inventory management, including tips on how to get inventory right and how to evaluate your food and pour costs. You will learn: Why take inventory at all? Inventory basics. Advanced inventory management. Ordering best practices.
For example, AI can help QSRs make smarter inventory decisions by analyzing purchasing trends and aligning ingredient orders with demand. Start with areas where AI can make a measurable impact, such as inventory management or targeted promotions. This reduces waste and ensures menu availability, even during busy periods.
When consumers order more food online, it’s clearly good for business – but it can also make it harder for businesses to manage inventory. In 2025, restaurants need to have a plan in place that ensures they are effectively managing inventory and redirecting unused, still edible food to donations.
You’re handling inventory, coordinating staff, and managing delivery routes, but everything seems to take twice as long as it should. For example, let’s say you run out of a key ingredient because inventory wasn’t tracked accurately. It can also help you manage inventory and communicate with your kitchen staff.
Managing Inventory The first area of focus for any waste elimination strategy is your restaurant’s approach to ingredients. Automated inventory controls are becoming more accessible to even small restaurants, so implementing these throughout your organization is worth implementing. The rewards are certainly well worth the effort.
Inadequate contact inventory within universe. Download ZoomInfo’s latest eBook to learn about the three most common mistakes organizations make while executing an ABM program, including: Poor account selection process. Wasteful technology and service spending.
Improved traceability means better inventory management, as restaurants have clearer insights into what’s coming in and going out of the kitchen. Imagine being able to identify the source of a contaminated ingredient in hours instead of days, protecting customers and avoiding business disruptions.
One of the most impactful areas is inventory management. These technologies not only improve efficiency but also allow staff to focus on other aspects of customer service that require a human touch. Optimizing Back-of-House OperationsBehind the scenes, AI is making significant strides in improving restaurant efficiency.
Are these 3 issues undermining your restaurant's inventory accuracy? From deliveries and data entry to transfers and reporting, inventory management in restaurants is full of moving parts. Its no surprise that even small missteps can quietly create big problems.
You have to know your numbers, watch your labor, manage inventory and build relationships in your community. But if the brand feels like something you’d be proud to put your name on, you’ll put in the effort it takes to build it right. People can tell when you’re truly invested.
Introduction In the fast-paced world of restaurants, keeping a close eye on your inventory is as vital as the secret sauce in your signature dish. Proper inventory tracking helps reduce waste, control costs, and boost profits. What Is Restaurant Inventory Management? Key Components of Restaurant Inventory Management 1.
Invest in technology that offers meaningful insights across the board—inventory, sales, customer behavior, and more. In a world where 70 percent of digital transformation efforts fail, according to McKinsey, restaurants can’t afford to get it wrong. The solution? Get back to basics.
Real-Time Inventory Tracking offers a powerful solution by giving operators instant visibility into whats in stock, whats being used, and what needs to be reordered. With real-time data guiding inventory decisions, restaurants can take tighter control of their food costs and boost long-term profitability.
If they can successfully compromise a delivery platform, then they can use that as a foothold to gain unauthorized access to a restaurant’s system to steal payment information, manipulate order and inventory systems, install ransomware, or carry out other nefarious activities.
The operational trifecta of inventory management, financial oversight, and labor scheduling represents a major drain on resources for most chain restaurants. Enterprise-wide inventory systems provide real-time visibility across locations, preventing costly stockouts and profit-draining spoilage.
When it comes to managing inventory, restaurants face a choice: POS inventory alerts vs. manual tracking. On the other hand, POS inventory alerts offer real-time updates, automate ordering, and minimize human mistakes. Managing restaurant inventory can be a major challenge, but the right system can make all the difference.
Learn how AI is helping restaurants optimize their inventory levels Managing food costs continues to be a top focus for operators nationwide. One of the key strategies to accomplish this is to improve vendor orders, ensuring that each store optimizes stock levels with just the right amount of product to meet demand in each store.
Too many restaurants, even enterprise brands, are still using manual processes for various areas of the business, such as inventory, scheduling, and reporting. These time-consuming tasks not only burn labor hours when you can least afford it but losing track of your inventory will eat away your margins faster than you realize.
Recommended Reading: How to Effectively Manage Restaurant Inventory Productivity for Managers Problem: The self-coaching manager I conducted an interview with a restaurant staff member who put 5 years of hard work into providing excellent food service. Luckily for restaurant managers, several tech solutions exist to cure this headache.
Optimizing Inventory Management Spoiled or unused inventory is another major contributor to food waste. AI-powered inventory tools can optimize inventory levels by 35% as they monitor stock levels in real time, alerting staff to slow-moving or soon-to-expire ingredients.
Inventory management tools, for example, enable the real-time tracking of food stock, alerting staff to use items before they spoil and reducing waste. In quick-serve restaurants, staff can focus on preparing food rather than taking orders.
How to Use Key Metrics for Proper Inventory. Mastering how to forecast your inventory is just the first step, you almost must control it. Inventory control traces the amount of product ordered, everything that comes out of the kitchen and bar and what is left over as sitting inventory afterward.
Running a restaurant means juggling a lot of tasks, and inventory may not feel like the most exciting one. However, implementing the FIFO (First-In, First-Out) inventory method can transform your stockroom into a well-oiled machine.
Now, restaurants across all categories recognize how these features protect their bottom line, especially with ongoing staffing challenges and inventory planning concerns." . "Pre-pandemic, only fine dining establishments typically used tools like prepayments or deposits. Tock's origin story is all about problem solving.
Think about it like this: just as your POS system predicts your inventory needs based on past sales, today's job seekers expect platforms to understand their skills and interests, then match them with the right opportunities. They expect jobs to find them, just like Netflix suggests their next show or DoorDash recommends their next meal.
For instance, smart inventory systems can help reduce waste, while energy-efficient appliances cut operational costs and carbon footprints. The movement toward sustainable operations aligns with broader industry goals to minimize environmental impact and attract a generation of socially responsible diners.
Advanced Inventory Management : Utilizing data-driven forecasting tools allows businesses to anticipate fluctuations and adjust procurement strategies accordingly. Exploring Egg Alternatives : The rise of plant-based and synthetic egg substitutes presents a viable option for bakeries and food manufacturers.
With the right tools, operators can manage staff schedules, streamline kitchen communication, monitor inventory levels, and analyze sales trends all in one place. Or platforms that help reduce food waste by syncing inventory orders to accurate sales predictions.
Finding ways to align inventory management with more environmentally friendly packaging helps reduce such waste. E-commerce order management systems allow for real-time monitoring of current food inventory. More than 63 percent of municipal solid waste in the US was a result of food packaging.
Every day, youre juggling staff, food quality, inventory, customer service, purchasing, and moreall while trying to cultivate a dining experience that wows your customers enough to keep them coming back. How to solve it: Use data-driven ordering to track inventory closely to forecast demand accurately and avoid overstocking.
A strong POS system can streamline operations, inventory and menu management, assist with staffing shortages and scheduling conflicts, as well as assist with sorting through data and sales patterns to help personalize marketing campaigns in a new location. Tracking inventory can prevent unnecessary and costly food waste.
One study found that internal employee theft is responsible for 75 percent of inventory shortages and about 4 percent of restaurant sales. There are all kinds of different types of restaurant theft, ranging from food and inventory, theft at the register and checkout counter, external grease theft, time theft and employee product theft.
Instead of panicking, I ran through our available inventory and identified an ingredient I could substitute if I modified the dish. I still have no idea how that happened! I pulled in the kitchen team and the FOH manager, and we agreed on the plan. The servers were informed of the change so they could guide customers.
This means understanding and optimizing existing systems and inventory to avoid unnecessary complexity. Increasing the number of supply partners or product options adds complexity to logistics, inventory management, and compliance. This process involves a few key components: 1. But diversification brings its own challenges.
Every point along the supply chain must check inventory, determine whether they have any of the identified products, pull and destroy them, and contribute to shared reports. This recall demonstrates the importance of working across the supply chain – from the farm that supplied the implicated onions to the restaurants that served them.
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