It should come as no surprise that the restaurant industry has been hit hard by the fallout of COVID-19. Restaurants already operate on razor-thin margins, but with dine-in service at a standstill across most of the country, those margins are quickly evaporating and leading restaurant operators to pivot for more cash flow.
As an accountant, it’s highly likely that you have already walked your restaurant accounting clients through the CARES Act and the support it may provide them, such as the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), Economic Injury Disaster Loans and Emergency Grants, and Small Business Debt Relief.
In addition to guiding your clients through this legislation, restaurant accountants in particular have a special opportunity to be seen as trusted advisors throughout the coronavirus crisis. With front of house operations for restaurants at a standstill — or at least significantly slower than usual — you’re able to laser focus on the back of house and show your clients opportunities for savings that they may be overlooking.
Over the next few weeks, we’ll be taking a deep dive into three different areas of the back of house that can help you add value to your restaurant accounting clients at a time where every dollar matters.
Maximizing Inventory
Inventory takes money out of restaurant operators’ coffers and into freezers and onto shelves. And with a significant amount of inventory potentially going to waste due to spoilage, there’s a lot of room for you to save your clients from creating unnecessary waste and literally throwing money away.
We’ll show you how you can support your clients through inventory recommendations, like taking more frequent counts and getting more accurate data about what they have on hand — all with less work for you and your colleagues.
Vendor Negotiations
Restaurants aren’t the only segment of the food and beverage industry suffering right now. The vendors who supply them have also been put in a precarious position, having bulk inventory on hand with fewer customers to purchase it.
You’ll learn how to offer detailed, line-item data to your restaurant clients who are offering takeout and delivery that will empower them to get better prices out of their existing partnerships and boost margins.
Plate Costs and Menu Modifications
With detailed inventory data available and vendor pricing optimized, restaurant operators are in a much stronger position to correctly calculate plate costs and modify their menus to make the most of the food they’ve already purchased.
Discover how you can automate plate costing for your restaurant clients and provide data-driven recommendations for menu modifications that will maximize profits for the short- and long-term health of their businesses.
Scalable support for restaurants
Restaurant technology gives accountants and accounting firms a competitive edge. By utilizing xtraCHEF, you and your team can have more bandwidth for new clients and provide more robust insights to your restaurant clients than ever before, earning their trust during a trying time.
Keep checking back for more information about how to use inventory, vendor negotiations, and plate costing to add value for restaurant operators during COVID-19.
Author Bio: Libby Peck is a writer, editor, and strategist out of Philadelphia. As the Content Marketing Manager at xtraCHEF, Libby creates educational content that empowers the restaurant industry.