Brewing a Reopening Plan

HOW TO: TECHNOLOGYHOW TOOutdoor seating at Stone Brewing’s Escondido location.

Stone Brewing finds success with a new technology platform.

BY ASHLEY BRAY

Stone Brewing Company, the largest brewery in Southern California, was originally founded by Greg Koch and Steve Wagner in 1996 and quickly grew to become one of the most influential craft breweries in the United States with its beers available in all 50 states and more than 40 countries.

“We’re best known for our West Coast IPA and for releasing the first year-round bottled double IPA,” says Gregg Frazer, vice president of Hospitality, Stone Brewing. “Now, we’re currently the ninth-largest craft brewery in the United States and run two major brewing facilities in Escondido, California and Richmond, Virginia. We also operate a number of restaurants and tap rooms as well as the largest craft-centric beer distribution in the U.S.”

Still, Stone Brewing wasn’t spared from the effects of COVID-19, and its restaurants and tap rooms were especially affected. In formulating a reopening plan, the brewery turned to technology to set itself up for success.

Stone Brewing had actually invested in contactless ordering technology ahead of the pandemic as a way to activate its underused places of operation and serve a lot more customers in its large spaces— including one 70,000-square-footlocation. “We turned to GoTab through a recommendation and were about to go live in the garden areas exclusively prepandemic,” says Frazer. “Once the pandemic hit, we reformatted a reopening plan. Thank goodness GoTab was already integrated within our system because it helped us serve people outside in a safe way, and customers didn’t have to download an app. We started using the platform across our locations, and the transition was seamless. It helped us reopen with a lower amount of labor and slowly add staff back as business began picking up.”

In fact, the new technology enabled Stone Brewing to cut 8% of labor costs. “There are only so many costs you can cut during the pandemic. If your sales reduced a lot, you were looking at adjusting food, labor, or alcohol costs,” says Frazer. “Technology helped us pivot to a new labor model and reduce around 8% in labor, freeing up the space to make up for lost revenue.”

Stone Brewing has used the GoTab platform in a number of ways. First, to expand its takeout program, which only included takeout of growler fillers and beers and DoorDash for alcohol delivery prior to the pandemic. “We definitely

had to press on the takeout gas pedal during COVID-19,” says Frazer. “We used GoTab as the order platform on our native website alongside its use in our taprooms, and we included food alongside our alcohol options. Because the GoTab program is fairly adaptable and can be updated quickly with item availability, we didn’t run into major challenges.”

Frazer says despite this expansion, takeout still wasn’t a major revenue driver for the brewery. However, the to-go offerings were important in keeping the restaurants top-of-mind with customers. “Our Napa location did a great job of selling the food at-cost; they wanted to provide for and be an integral part of the smaller community,” he says. “Then, upon reopening, they hoped people would remember the lower prices and consistency during the pandemic and return to the in-person location.”

Stone Brewing also launched its first virtual menu using the GoTab platform, which allowed the restaurants to quickly make changes and inventory updates. The virtual menu also made sanitizing and guest safety easier. “The virtual menu is individualized and just through your own phone, so there isn’t communal sharing,” says Frazer. “There are fewer items to sanitize without our drink and food menus on tables, so it allows us more opportunity to thoroughly clean the tables and chairs between parties.”

The virtual menus also help in selling since Stone Brewing is able to customize with videos and imagery. “We were able to add dish and drink imagery, videos, and detailed descriptions of the food,” explains Frazer. “With fewer servers on-hand during COVID-19, we had to integrate our brand voice into the virtual experience through descriptions and fun videos, and we found this process was easier than we expected.”

Although older guests took a bit longer to catch on to using the new menu, Frazer says adoption happened fairly quickly, “From the May 2020 reopening to around August 2020, we saw some amazing learning. Customers got used to it and saw it deployed other places as well, and then we saw those regulars teaching their friends and family how to use our system. They came to appreciate how easy it was and how much faster they were able to get the drinks they ordered.”

The new technology even helped Stone Brewing with its reputation management. “GoTab technology helps alleviate the fear of a bad Yelp review,” says Frazer. “The platform allows you to leave feedback in the app, so we’re able to learn about bad guest experiences and make up for it directly with the customer.”

One of the frequent criticisms of technology is that it removes the human element, but Frazer has found that it has actually enabled Stone Brewing to improve guest relations. “We have changed our service model to embrace the human element during different parts of the Stone experience. So, we found that the human element isn’t eliminated,” says Frazer. “For example, we train staff to make a great introduction when customers enter our restaurants and breweries, and we also encourage them to make sure everyone is up-to-speed on the ordering process. This often creates great rapport.

“Now, we’ve integrated a manager table-touch to every table, which our managers didn’t have the bandwidth to do previously. We also added a cicerone table-touch to every table! Stone Brewing was always about the beer experience first and foremost. Customers can now truly engage with our product, and we can spend more time discussing and educating rather than just taking orders.”