RASHAYS RAMPS IT UP

CASUAL ENCOUNTERS

With growth predicted for the casual dining sector, five franchises discuss future changes and challenges.

By Sarah Stowe

Despite the setbacks of the last 12 months for the hospitality industry, the next 12 to 24 months are looking up, with exciting innovations and digital-driven changes for many franchises.

Casual dining’s advantage is that it sits between fine dining and takeaway/delivery. That’s also the challenge. As Aussies hunkered down last year to weather the Covid storm, takeaway and delivery kept the hospitality sector alive.

Innovation, adaptability and swift implementation were the bywords for surviving 2020 and continue to be drivers for the sector.

More than a year on from the first lockdown now and we’ve strolled back to cafes and restaurants, although not in the numbers previously seen.

So what is the future for casual dining? According to analyst firm IBISWorld, the restaurant sector is set to grow, picking itself up from the falling revenues suffered by many last year.

A March 2021 survey, which we reported on in the last issue of Inside Franchise Business, confirmed that sit-down restaurants and cafes were among the sectors hardest hit, with cafes forming the majority of the business closures in the first calendar 2021 quarter.

The good news is that cafes and restaurants are among the most optimistic businesses when it comes to future trading, according to the Australian Franchise Pulse Check March 2021 survey conducted by FRANData.

As government restrictions ease and discretionary income recovers from the impacts of Covid, IBISWorld predicts the restaurant industry can expect an annualised 2.1 per cent rise through to 2026, to lift the sector’s value from $18 billion to $20.6 billion.

The revenue rise is good news as operating costs remain a challenge for cafe and restaurant owners.

The casual dining space is an open market, and there is no one chain claiming more than 5 per cent of Australia's dining out business.

CHOP ’N CHILL

This restaurant chain is a relative newbie on the scene, starting out in 2017 to offer the tastes and specialities of Asian cuisine and the hearty flavours of smoked meats from the Americas. Jacqueline Cudmore is the co-founder.

WHAT ARE THE MAIN WAYS YOU DIFFERENTIATE THE BRAND TO CUSTOMERS? A look at the menu demonstrates how Chop ’n Chill combines the best of east and west to give people a dining experience truly unique to the Australian marketplace. We use only the best and freshest ingredients that we can source locally and for all our dishes and complement this with a casual, but attentive, style of customer service.

WHAT INNOVATIONS/TECH DEVELOPMENTS ARE COMING UP IN THE NEXT YEAR? We will be introducing taking online orders right from the table (contactless table ordering, in-venue pick-up, drive-up, contactless delivery).

IN WHAT WAYS ARE YOUR OPERATIONS DIFFERENT NOW TO PRE-2020? Apart from the Covid protocols, for us little has changed in how we operate our restaurant and service our customers.

WHAT ABOUT THE CHALLENGES OF RENTS AND STAFFING? We have faced the challenges of high rent by being proactive in the marketplace by increasing our customer turnover. In regards to staffing we are in the enviable position where Chop ’n Chill is regarded as a desirable place to work and initiate a career in hospitality.

WHY IS THIS A GOOD BRAND FOR FRANCHISEES? We are looking to expand into only 10 regions in Australia that have the right demographics and a strong tourism economy. As such, it is our intention to franchise not just a restaurant site but an entire region. Our purpose in doing so is to allow our franchise to establish a major restaurant footprint in the main population centre, and then in time develop smaller outlets in surrounding satellite towns and communities.

WHAT ARE YOUR 12-MONTH EXPANSION PLANS? Our expansion plans are to establish another smaller outlet similar to our South West Rocks franchise store in our Port Macquarie region and also actively pursue potential franchisees to realise our broader expansion strategies.