Hospitalitech Magazine - September Issue

September Issue Maximise the potential of your unique hotel space - Virtually

Say no to no-shows

Create the perfect playlist for your business

Pages 14-15

Pages 22-23

Pages 24-25

www.hospitalitech.co.uk

Contents 4

Industry News

8

Hotel 360 Show Preview

14

The Restaurant Show

20

Restaurant Technology

26

Printer & Labelling Solutions

To feature in an upcoming issue or to discuss advertising opportunities please contact a member of the Hospitalitech team; Publication Manager Dean Little - 01227 314 324 dean@warmwelcomemagazine.com Sales & Marketing Manager Michael Amor - 01227 314 324 michael@warmwelcomemagazine.com Editorial Assistant Carol Jean - 01227 314 324 carol@warmwelcomemagazine.com

Investment in advanced technology for pandemic protection and preparedness can save leisure and tourism Of the many sectors in the global economy, leisure, sport and tourism are three ‘patients’ that have struggled longest to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tourism’s suffering earns almost daily bedside bulletins, the latest being France moving to the UK’s amber list – enabling fully vaccinated people to avoid quarantine - only for this breakthrough to be marred

by President Macron’s new ‘COVID Passport’ scheme, causing a new chaos in the French tourist industry.

It highlights an all too familiar pattern during the COVID crisis: just as businesses glimpse a chance to bounce back, they then face new obstacles - tourism is still stricken by many curfews and travel restrictions to stop the spread of the virus across the globe.

The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) tourism barometer points to an 88% decline in the number of international tourist arrivals so far in 2021.

Paul Stannard, Chairman of Vector Innovation Fund (VIF), an alternative investment vehicle helping to accelerate the use of enabling technology for pandemic protection and preparedness, said: “Though COVID-19 is causing fewer fatalities, the spread of infection is not stopping, especially with new variants in the younger population who may be more vaccine-hesitant than older people.

“Therefore, governments must maintain legislations and restrictions to help reduce the spread, the biggest barrier for the tourism industry. Continued investment in technology is required to support industry in managing economies as well as healthcare.

“When we finish double vaccination of the UK population, we will then be straight into booster injections in the lead up to winter - it is an ongoing challenge that we must deal with against infectious diseases.”

The financial repercussions from not doing so have been highlighted by a United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) report showing how declining international tourism due to the pandemic could cause a $1.7-$2.4 trillion industry loss in 2021, and a potential loss of more than $4 trillion to the global GDP for 2020 and 2021 combined.

Recovery from this disruption will rely massively on global availability and uptake of COVID-19 vaccines, but the damage already caused could have long term effects and UNCTAD Acting Secretary-General Isabelle Durant has urged: “The world needs a global vaccination effort that will protect workers, mitigate adverse social effects and make strategic decisions regarding tourism, taking potential structural changes into account.”

UNWTO Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili said: “Tourism is a lifeline for millions and advancing vaccination to protect communities and support tourism’s safe restart is critical to the recovery of jobs and generation of much-needed resources, especially in developing countries, many of which are highly dependent on international tourism.”

VIF Chairman Paul Stannard added: “The world needs accelerated antiviral drug solutions to manage infectious diseases so that industries and our way of life can continue without the level of disruption we have seen over the last few years.

Much of this technology is within our grasp – particularly in the highly innovative nanotechnology sector that has done so much to assist the fight against COVID – but it needs investment now.

“Looking ahead, it is essential to understand how we can invest in technology that supports pandemic protection and preparedness, not just for healthcare provision.”

4

Industry News

SIHOT expands Portuguese development team Hotel management platform addresses talent challenges with investment in global offices

and will help fulfil our global ambitions,” said Carsten Wernet, Executive Board Member, GUBSE AG.

SIHOT, a leading modular hotel management software system, has expanded its product development and data centre team, increasing headcount in its Portuguese delivery service centre by 30%.

The company also recently opened its 135m2 wholly-owned office in Australia, one of SIHOT’s core markets - space enough to more than double the size of the current team. The new office is situated in the central CBD of Surfers Paradise, the popular Australian holiday destination.

Parent company GUBSE AG has invested in its international offices including Lisbon, Valencia, and Gold Coast to access the right talent and skills required to develop new tools and solutions for the SIHOT portfolio.

As part of the investment, the SIHOT platform benefits from an additional six employees working on the SaaS offering and managing GUBSE AGs data centres, with plans to further extend the team by the end of the year. The appointments include two senior technical support specialists with vast hospitality experience having served with Tivoli Hotels. With SaaS and Cloud becoming the focus of delivery, SIHOT invested in its data centre team to deliver the hotel, hospitality and events market a one-stop solution.

“We are perfectly located to tap into Australia’s tourism market - all of us within the SIHOT support team are from hotel backgrounds and as such, we understand the needs of hoteliers. We’re looking forward to adding more desks and welcoming more faces to the office in due course,” said Kylie Keane, Director of Operations heading up the office alongside Brett Eslick, Director of IT.

SIHOT will be recruiting further positions across its office locations over the coming 12 months as it invests in its wider market strategy for the Portuguese and Spanishspeaking markets, as well as expanding its presence in the Australian, DACH and UK markets.

Over 3,500 properties utilise SIHOT products worldwide which includes a comprehensive Property Management System (PMS), hotel booking engine, Point of Sale (POS) system, and event management platform. SIHOT is a modular suite which can be fully integrated or managed as standalone systems in the Cloud as a SaaS with complementary mobile management apps.

For more information, visit www.sihot.com

GUBSE AG saw the opportunity to invest in Portugal due to the available talent pool of welleducated and skilled multilingual staff to develop the integrated hotel management platform. Portugal is also supporting global customer service alongside the Gold Coast office in Australia as part of a “follow the sun” approach to 24/7 technical and customer support.

“We originally set up Portugal to support the local and Portuguesespeaking markets, but we soon found that it offered much more to the business, particularly access to a wider and more skilled talent pool. Many technology companies have struggled to recruit in Germany, even pre-pandemic, and now with the greater need to support a wider customer base worldwide, Portugal offers us the flexibility to deliver these services

Industry News

5

Zapaygo announced as order and pay app of Swansea City Association Football Club The mobile order and payment platform Zapaygo, has teamed up with Swansea City Association Football Club to provide value added service to their guests in hospitality.

The deal sees Zapaygo become the order and pay app for stadium customers across all the club’s hospitality suites. Football fans will now be able to order and pay via their mobile phone, before that order is delivered to them.

Zapaygo has been helping large and small venues reopen safely after lockdown. With the order and pay platform in place, Swansea City AFC can cater for more customers, whilst still managing the current challenges in staffing through quarantines and illness.

A recent survey carried out

by Zapaygo found that 76% of respondents preferred to order and pay from their table, versus going to a bar or counter. The roll out at Swansea has launched in the hospitality suites before it’s rolled out to the fan zones.

6

Industry News

Elliot Hall, Founder and CEO of Zapaygo, said: “I am delighted by this relationship with Swansea City Association Football Club. We have seen how our app can keep people connected and engaged with venues, so as restrictions ease further and stadiums can return to full capacity, I am excited to watch this relationship grow.”

The mobile app made its debut on the 31st July for the Swansea versus Southampton match. On the build-up to the launch and after, Zapaygo have worked closely with the team at Swansea to ensure the service required was delivered.

Andrew Rees, Catering General Manager at Swansea.com Stadium said: “Flexibility is the most significant benefit of having the Zapaygo mobile app. With Zapaygo, the ordering experience is much easier for customers, and helps enhance their experience at the Stadium. We have seen growth from the first two events in Spend Per Head in each area Zapaygo is being used.”

LaLiga & premier sports team up with Stonegate Group to bring the best of Spanish Football to bars & pubs across Great Britain this season With the new football season underway, LaLiga and its UK broadcast partner Premier Sports have partnered with Stonegate Group, the largest pub group in the United Kingdom, to offer wall-towall LaLiga coverage at venues across the country via LaLigaTV, the 24/7 television channel offering every live match from Spain’s top flight LaLiga Santander.

for the UK and Ireland. “Through Stonegate Group and our partnership with Premier Sports, we are pleased to offer increased coverage for our 24/7 LaLigaTV channel, thus further strengthening LaLiga’s commitment to the UK market.”

Through the agreement, Stonegate Group together with its regional and venue managers have identified nearly one hundred “LaLigaTV pubs” that will actively show and promote the channel, spanning every region of Great Britain including the largest cities by population across England, Scotland and Wales. All venues can be searched via Stonegate’s We Love Sport app, available for iOS and Android.

England

“We’re happy to partner with LaLiga and Premier Sports to bring LaLigaTV to fans at key Stonegate venues across the country” said Stephen Cooper, Sport Marketing Manager for Stonegate Group.

“Our research has shown that LaLiga is one of the most popular international sports properties in the UK, and this season fans can enjoy all the action at their local Stonegate venue by downloading the We Love Sport app.”

Newcastle – Old George, Three Bulls Heads, Waiting Rooms, Akenside Traders

“Premier Sports continues to offer the best in live sport to bars and pubs across the United Kingdom,” said Graham Byrne, Director of Commercial Customers at Premier Sports. “In this regard, we’re pleased to see so many Stonegate venues taking a clear interest in showing the best of Spanish football via LaLigaTV.” “Fans have been waiting for the chance to enjoy club football at their local in a safe and welcoming environment,” said Keegan Pierce, LaLiga Global Network Delegate

Participating Stonegate LaLigaTV pubs in major cities across the UK include:

London – All Sports Bar & Grill locations + 12 additional London venues Birmingham – The Bristol Pear, Gosta Green & Walkabout Birmingham Manchester – Director’s Box, Footage & Yates Manchester Leeds – The Library

Swansea – The Griffin Penarth – Railway Hotel LaLigaTV coverage began last weekend, as the 2021/22 season kicked off with Real Madrid, Sevilla FC, Valencia CF, FC Barcelona and holders Atlético Madrid all taking full points from their opening round of matches.

LaLigaTV is the best place to catch all the action, including the following Matchday 2 fixtures (all KO times UK/BST): Real Betis vs. Cádiz CF – Friday 20th August (8pm) RCD Espanyol vs. Villarreal CF – Saturday 21st August (6:30pm) Athletic Club vs. FC Barcelona – Saturday 21st August (9pm) Real Sociedad vs. Rayo Vallecano – Sunday 22nd August (4pm)

Sheffield – The Cavendish

Atlético Madrid vs. Elche CF – Sunday 22nd August (6:30pm)

Nottingham – Faradays, HUDDL & Willow Tree

Levante UD vs. Real Madrid – Sunday 22nd August (9pm)

Bristol – Anchor, Green House, Cider Press, White Harte & Walkabout Bristol

Getafe CF vs. Sevilla FC – Monday 23rd August (7pm)

Leicester – Soar Point, Loaded Dog & Walkabout Leicester

CA Osasuna vs. RC Celta – Monday 23rd August (9pm)

Scotland

Launched in the UK and Ireland in January 2020, LaLigaTV is the only dedicated channel showing all live content from an overseas football league. LaLigaTV is currently available for residential customers in the UK and Ireland via Premier Sports on Sky TV (Ch. 435) and in the UK on Virgin TV (Ch. 554) and streaming via Amazon Prime Video Channels and the Premier Player service. For commercial premises, LaLigaTV is available in the United Kingdom exclusively via Premier Sports.

Glasgow – Ark, Hall, Home & Walkabout Glasgow Edinburgh – Chanter, Finnegan’s Wake & Hanover Tap Aberdeen – Bobbin, Foundry, Murdos Bar & The Triplekirks Wales Cardiff – Owain Glyndwr, The Woodville, Gassy’s & Yates Cardiff

Industry News

7

Hotel360 Expo Welcoming 4 - 5,000 hotel professionals this year, Hotel360 is ready to reconnect with the industry in-person. Taking place on the 28th & 29th of September at the ExCeL, London, this free to attend event will provide a 360 degree viewpoint of the hospitality industry encompassing 5 topical areas; business growth (finance & marketing), technology, operations, sustainability & design.

With a transformed hotel sector, there was a shift in guests’ expectations.

The new norm of the essential, ‘standard offering’ changed. Besides new sanitary measures, the reduction of human touch points accelerated a new age of hotel technological innovation, automation and digitisation of services. Furthermore, the heightened demand for hospitality staff, to the increasing need to reduce hotel emissions by 90% by 2050 according to the Paris Climate Agreement (Natacha Reymond, 2021), has created an array of new challenges for hoteliers.

Although, if responded to correctly, these challenges could be the push to refresh one’s hotel offering

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and act as an opportunity to differentiate oneself from the competition. Keeping this in mind, Hotel360 has carefully curated this year’s content by providing the information, solutions & tools necessary to stay ahead of the new playing field of 2022. With Panel debates such as: - Mastering the Art of Health & Safety - Protecting your Staff and Customers - Workforce Management: How to Empower and Engage Your Employees - Everyday Sustainability - Using Our Resources Responsibly - The Technologies Shaping the Hotel of Tomorrow - Delivering the 5 Star Experience - Marketing from A-Z - Everything you need to know

those pressing questions posing their hotel business. There will also be 150 inspirational seminars & industry influencing keynote speakers. Hotel360 has already announced three exciting keynote lineups, namely: - Andrew Robb - Chief Financial Officer of RBH - Discussing ‘Planning for expansion: when and how to invest’ - Max Fenlon - Director of Commercial Finance from PPHE Hotel Group - Discussing ‘Financial Partnerships for Business Growth’ - Gonzalo Carpintero Navarro - VP Operations EMEA and Head of Meetings and Events Transformation from Radisson Hotel Group - Discussing ‘Making your customer experience consistent’

- Keeping Sustainability at the Heart of your Hotel

Chains and independents will receive a chance to get free training, a place to meet and teambuild!

These interactive panel debates act as an open stage for hoteliers to voice their opinion and to ask

Visit hotel360expo.co.uk to secure your free ticket to both shows today!

Hotel360 Show Preview

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AND MUCH MORE! 9

Responsible Power The road to sustainability and net-zero is becoming ever more pressing. Burning rainforests, extraordinary weather events, the melting Arctic ice cap, plastic pollution to name some of the events that are gradually causing people to think about the future.

and why energy is being consumed throughout the business during both day and night. This information provides the building blocks to identify waste and inefficiencies, to measure improvements and to build a better business – and save money.

The hospitality industry in particular is increasingly required to strive towards a neutral carbon footprint and to reflect on corporate responsibility.

Consider energy consumption in a commercial enterprise such as a hotel. Previously, it was the responsibility of the purchasing department to negotiate the best supply deal. Consumption itself was regarded as largely the realm of the property department. And staff behaviour was possibly guided with an occasional directive to switch off the lights when they left.

There is one simple, cost-effective way to start the journey to carbon net-zero which is often overlooked, and that is to make sure that the energy being consumed is actually required and not wasted. (The World Economic Forum reports that the United States wastes 68% of the energy it produces!) To do this, you need to know where, when, how

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Hotel360 Show Preview

Applying the connectivity that modern technology brings to the hotel for example in being able to measure energy consumption with

the correct granularity means that power can be consumed more wisely. Staff can take responsibility for their own departments’ consumption, and the analysis of that data allows decisions and investments to be made that work in the long-term.

To continue with the hotel analogy, the negotiation of the supply contract needs to reflect a potential reduction in consumption. Sometimes this may cost a little more in the short-term but buying ‘green’ energy will contribute both to sustainability targets and to customer sentiment.

It may even affect financial funding and shareholder appeal.

To be truly smart, we need to consider the enterprise as a whole, set sustainability goals, and include these when considering investments on a local level.

In most hotels energy is the second biggest cost after payroll.

How we use energy is crucial to the enterprise as a whole, and all staff, buildings, plant and services should all be contributing towards building a more sustainable business.

Apart from all other considerations, hotel clientele, most particularly for corporate events, are increasingly making decisions based on the sustainability profile of the hotel or arena where they intend to hold events. Responsible Power can demonstrate and prove the efficiency and effectiveness not only of hotels but in all businesses where power is consumed.

Responsible Power allows the client to see where and when energy is consumed at the time it is used.

Find out more at www.responsiblepower.co.uk/ and visit stand number 830 at Hotel360.

Hotel360 Show Preview

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Maximise the potential of your unique hotel space - Virtually Don’t miss out on providing your customers with what is becoming an essential part of their experience - right from their first touch point with your brand - as more and more hotels provide customers with a virtual twin model of their destination.

We are here to help you, with the market leading virtual tours (not all virtual tours are created equal).

6 Income maximization opportunities for your virtual hotel Do you know 6 top ways to maximise income generation opportunities from a virtual model of your business premises - possibly spaces that you never realised could be utilised for this?

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We already create the highest quality next generation 3D virtual models. At Pitch My Space we are now helping all types of business to create new revenue streams. For hotels, as well as the obvious in tour “click here to book prompts” that we can provide in each room, there are new innovations available as detailed below.

1). Live salesperson in your virtual hotel and VIP customer virtual experience Let your salespeople have the chance to do what they are best at - with no geographic or time limitations, by providing them with a cool virtual copy of your hotel from which they can operate and converse with global guests/ wedding bookings etc.

Hotel360 Show Preview

2). Pay per visit virtual premises tours Show your customers from all around the world where your magic happens, safely, with a pay per visit self led or guided behind the scenes business/kitchen/factory style tour of a virtual 3D model your public/non public areas. Educate groups or individuals group about your brand/processes with virtual game features.

3). Virtual showroom/store Give your customers the chance to complete merchandise and partner product purchases in a virtual shop/showroom. Give them the chance to get comfortable with your products, to get close up, even get inside your products while they

meander around your virtual shop/ showroom from the comfort of their own home. A true virtual shopping experience where products in your virtual display cabinets can be clicked on, specifications viewed, added to basket and checked out all while remaining in your 3D space.

4). Virtual 3D staging enhancement on top of your existing physical space You can opt to dress up the virtual version of your hotel with things that aren’t actually there in your real physical space to demonstrate use cases. Things such as TV screens playing your promotional videos on the wall, new furniture, and even giant virtual animals walking around your hotel can be included and combined with “pop up” offers to encourage in tour lead collection/ sign up to drive future sales.

5). In 3D model tour analytics and prompts Understand where the footfall is occurring within your virtual hotel to provide clarity on your main draws.

We can the add in tour audio or visual prompts to encourage visitors to walk virtually to the less visited areas and to provide them with new booking/purchasing opportunities.

6). On site augmented reality Propel the experience of your actual physical visitor’s experience by letting them access your 3D virtual hotel on their phone whilst they are with you. As they carry their phone around your premises, location recognition technology allows them to see the corresponding part of your 3D model which can show prompts, purchase opportunities, information and even way finding.

For more informationon Pitch My Space please visit: www.pitchmyspace.com 13

INSIGHT TRENDS NEW PRODUCTS NETWORKING

27-29 SEPTEMBER 2021 OLYMPIA LONDON

A FEAST OF IDEAS 14

The Restaurant Show Professionals across the hospitality industry will be coming together once again this September (27th – 29th) as The Restaurant Show, featuring Catering Equipment Expo, returns to Olympia London with a remit of helping the industry come back stronger than ever.

Hundreds of products are expected to light up the show floor as exhibitors from the worlds of food, drink, tableware, technology and equipment make their longawaited return to live events.

for beautiful and exciting spaces is expected to rise again.

Big name exhibitors preparing for the show include Compass Group, Churchill China, OpenTable, Il Gelato di Ariela and UberEats alongside:

SumUp are the software gurus behind Goodtill (Stand GD21), providers of iPad POS solutions.

Offering an interactive interface, stock management and external integrations (including Xero and Deliveroo), by improving service, Goodtill is revolutionising the customer experience.

Innovators of wine and champagne preservation, Bermar (Stand GH29) will be showcasing their specialised technology which allows hoteliers and restauranteurs to ‘reseal’ bottles of still and sparkling wine, extending their lifespan from hours to three weeks.

The Freedown Food Company (Stand GE11) imports exceptional meats from around the world, including Japanese Wagyu. With provenance and sustainability now growing concerns for customers, offering quality cuts from trustworthy sources has never been more important.

Masters in intelligent design, Dawnvale (Stand GD20) has spent years fitting out award-winning bars and restaurants. With the popularity of experiential sites hitting an alltime high pre-Covid, the demand

The buzz of the show floor will be complemented by a stellar lineup of free-to-attend live talks and events on the BigHospitality Live stage. From technology to future trends, industry experts will be

debating and discussing the most pressing issues of the day backed by the latest insight from Lumina Intelligence.

Brexit, climate change, the skills shortage and future-proofing against unexpected crises such as the Coronavirus pandemic will be recurring themes throughout the live programme as industry heads tackle business-critical issues.

The Restaurant Show, featuring Catering Equipment Expo is supported by BigHospitality, Morning Advertiser and Lumina Intelligence, allowing the award-winning team at William Reed to harness the best industry knowledge and expertise to continue The Restaurant Show’s legacy as the destination for insight, innovation and inspiration.

Visitors to The Restaurant Show can find out more and register for their free badge via the website www.therestaurantshow.co.uk

The Restaurant Show Preview

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Streamlining processes every step of the way...

Order Apps Online Ordering Click & Collect Easy 3rd Party Integration Self Serve & Kiosks Order & Pay at Table Plus much more...

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Four reasons why mobile Order & Pay can ease the pressure of team shortages With restrictions easing, customers are excitedly returning to their favourite restaurants. Yet, nine in ten operators predict issues with recruitment* at a time which is essential for our industry’s recovery.

So just how do you meet this return of demand while operating with a smaller team? Mobile Order & Pay solutions are a cost-effective way to support the current skilled staff you have to deal with peak periods whilst also helping you to maximise sales.

Here are four reasons why restaurant business’ should consider mobile Order & Pay to support any current staffing shortages: 1. Reduce admin tasks for current staff Mobile Order & Pay takes care of a lot of the admin side of a shift.

From taking orders at tables, processing payments or taking telephone orders for takeaway. In fact, balancing takeaways with table service is a great way to increase sales and diversify, but it can put pressure on staff members’ time. One staff member could be lost from the front of house for up to an hour taking phone calls for 20 takeaway orders. With technology

those orders could be processed in seconds.

Less admin makes for freer staff to focus on delivering a quick and friendly service. After a long shift, there’s often a gut sinking feeling that, along with setting up for the next day, there are all the receipts to process and stock takes to file.

A mobile Order & Pay solution with high quality back-office software and POS integration will manage this all digitally, making for a smoother end of service.

2. Reduce wait times for happier customers When a restaurant is short of staff, the whole chain breaks down, leading to poorer service, longer wait times and unhappy customers.

This can have an impact on a restaurant’s reputation in the long run and reduces loyalty. Mobile Order & Pay allows the customer to control when they want to order, removing the time spent waiting for a staff member to become available. In addition, due to staff not having to be involved in the ordering and payment process, their focus is shifted to quick delivery of orders to maximise sales,

Onvi operators have seen around a 30% uplift in sales compared with manual ordering.

3. Allow staff to focus on the experience A recent study shows that almost half (45%) of hospitality businesses believe consumers want an enhanced experience when eating and drinking out post-pandemic.** With a reduced team rushed off their feet, the time spent creating a guest experience through engagement can get lost.

By entrusting the facilitation of payments and the manually taking of orders to software, the time shaved off each of these steps can see the average member of front of house staff increase productivity to the equivalent of adding an additional 3 hours to their shift! This means those businesses with a reduced headcount can continue to offer excellent service, freeing up staff to focus on the experience. They can spend time explaining the dish of the day, for example, or perhaps recommending a favourite drink or explaining the backstory to the business. All will make for a personal touch which will create a memorable experience for guests.

4. Invest time in current staff satisfaction and retain valued team members There is a hefty bit of admin involved when hiring more staff, but with mobile Order & Pay, you can make the most of supporting the staff you have and remove excessive time spent sourcing and training new team members.

Mobile Order & Pay can easily slot into your team, and depending on the current set-up, the technology can be in place within just one day.

Ensuring current staff are properly supported and pressure is alleviated is hugely important during the staff shortage. In the long run, this leads to improved satisfaction, helping to retain great staff for longer. Having more experienced staff makes for a much more efficient business, so this retention is key.

To find out more visit stand GE68 at The Restaurant Show

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The Restaurant Show Preview

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5 Ways Restaurants Can Reduce Payroll Costs in 2021 After a challenging year, many restaurants are looking for ways to reduce costs. The typical answer to this challenge is cutting hours or cutting employees, both of which create yet another issue as your restaurant becomes short-staffed and you struggle to provide that exceptional customer experience.

There is a better way — a way to save money without sacrificing your restaurant’s high standard of service. To get started, here are five actionable ideas to reduce payroll costs in 2021.

1. Calculate Your Current Labor Costs The first step in reducing your payroll costs is looking at your current spending. Math is essential to get the most accurate picture of your finances and determine how to cut costs reasonably.

Calculating your labor costs enables you to make betterinformed decisions regarding your restaurant staffing. So let’s break down a few crucial metrics.

- Labor cost: Salaried wages + hourly wages + bonuses + overtime + payroll taxes + healthcare + sick and vacation days + any other labor-related costs - Labor cost per hour: Total labor costs in a time period / total hours worked by FOH, BOH, line cooks, and other staff during the same time period

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- Restaurant payroll percentage: (Labor costs related to sales) = total payroll costs / total revenue - Prime cost: (Food + labor related to sales) = prime cost / total sales 2. Close the Revolving Door According to the National Restaurant Association, the turnover rate in the restaurant industry was at 74.9% in 2018 and continues to tick upward. The lockdown increased this even more, as many restaurant workers had to find jobs in industries that offered more stability during the pandemic.

Constantly hiring and training new staff members eats up payroll and contributes to staff inefficiency. So when trying to grow your business, your primary focus should be maintaining a loyal staff that sticks around. Incentivizing your current employees and keeping them happy means better stability and can reduce your payroll costs.

But how do you keep staff happy?

You can start by bearing in mind that people love to feel like their hard work and dedication are seen and appreciated. Rewarding your employees not only motivates them to keep working hard but also reduces the chance that your staff will jump ship and saves you the headache of uploading that job posting for the umpteenth time.

4. Cross-Train Your Team Finding the right people can be challenging, but once you’ve struck gold, the next step is to provide them with cross-training. Ensuring that your team is well-rounded equips them to handle multiple tasks and roles, helps cover staff shortages, and leads to growth in their professional capabilities.

It can also reduce payroll costs.

Glassdoor reports that providing excellent onboarding and crosstraining opportunities can improve employee retention by 82%. And with cross-training, your team members can easily rotate into whatever role you need them to if someone leaves you high and dry. There’s also the potential to develop empathy between different teams, help your staff become more efficient, and improve peer training for new hires.

5. Schedule Smarter Finding the right staffing balance can be a pain point in the restaurant industry. If you are consistently overstaffing during slow periods, it can dramatically add to your labor costs.

On the other hand, you don’t want to slash employees’ hours across the board and risk overwhelming your team during a busy service.

Another way you can reduce payroll costs in 2021 is to automate some of your daily operational tasks. Contrary to popular belief, technology isn’t the enemy.

The easiest way to get things on track is to build your schedule thoughtfully.

Your restaurant has its unique rhythms. Try to discern when your restaurant has its busiest services, and take note of those patterns. Then coordinate your employees’ shifts to coincide with your regular rushes.

And don’t forget to keep upcoming holidays or events in mind — often, these can lead to an uptick in guests.

Introducing tech into your process — such as an omnichannel management platform like Deliverect — can reduce costs and help managers and staff alike. Deliverect saves you time and labor hours by fully integrating your online ordering channels, existing POS system, menu, and stock management, all with an intuitive reporting dashboard. And together, these features produce one extra-attractive benefit: more revenue.

Deliverect: Helping You Cut Costs Recouping your lost revenue can be challenging in the recovering postCOVID restaurant industry. Deliverect is here to help as you bring your restaurant to new heights of success.

Our omnichannel management tool can reduce human error, streamline your FOH and BOH processes, and assist you in providing an excellent customer experience.

3. Automate Where You Can

Restaurant Technology

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“I don’t know how we were managing without Deliverect to be honest. We were manually inputting orders into the tills which led to obvious problems.”

Emma Reynolds, Co-founder of Tonkotsu

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Say no to no-shows Guests not showing up to their booking is becoming a more common occurrence...

No-shows hurt There is a problem that appears to be hurting pretty much every hospitality business.

The issue is no-shows.

People who book but don’t turn up.

It seems some customers are booking multiple venues for their night out so they can decide last-minute where to go. Either they don’t realise or don’t care about the impact this can have, causing the venue to lose sales and staff to miss out on tips.

This behaviour was never OK, but for businesses and their employees who have had such a tough 18 months, it’s a real kick in the teeth.

No doubt some of the people causing this problem will change 22

their behaviour when the impact is explained – they just haven’t thought through how it hurts businesses and people. But it seems likely that the sector will need a stronger deterrent to eradicate this issue.

Secure bookings with a deposit or pre-authorisation Pre-payment, a deposit or preauthorisation of a payment card are compulsory in many other situations where capacity is limited. You don’t get to book your holiday, gig or theatre visit without an up-front commitment.

Some operators are understandably concerned that changing the ‘contract’ with guests is risky. Our view is that many things have changed over the last 18 months: habits have been broken and guests will understand the need to secure their booking with pre-payment, a deposit, or a cardswipe. A genuine reason to cancel can be handled sensitively without

Restaurant Technology

a cost to the guest, but those who no-show without a good reason should cover some of the losses incurred. Of course, the real value of this is not the money recovered, but the deterrent effect.

Adactus offers secured booking There are many reasons why hospitality businesses and their guests want the convenience and certainty of a booking. To avoid the damage no-shows can cause, bookings must be secured with a deposit or pre-payment.

Adactus can help your hospitality business with the right secured booking service for your guests. And the good news is, unlike other providers we don’t charge a per-transaction fee: your costs are the same every month.

Contact us! hello@adactus.co.uk 01844 269090 Adactus.co.uk

Restaurant Technology

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Create the perfect playlist for your business Auracle Sound supplies UK businesses with commercially licensed background music. Getting the music right is a crucial part of creating the congruent environment that attracts customers.

Architecture, interior design, lighting, heating, scent and music; all these elements come together in a continuous flow that create your brand’s atmosphere. The latest psychological and anthropological studies show that these influences can affect sales dramatically.

Music, the most immediate of these elements, is also the quickest and easiest to change with far reaching and long lasting effects.

Where inappropriate music causes an, ‘avoid’ reaction in visitors, music aligned with the rest of your environment influences an, ‘approach’ reaction; increasing traffic, dwell time and as a result, turnover.

Background music is an essential ingredient in creating an atmosphere for retail and leisure venues. Music can make the difference between ‘Stop for one’ or ‘Stay for the night’. The atmosphere you present when a customer enters your establishment can make the difference between a quick visit

or a long stay. Attract more traffic with customers focused music channels or bespoke onbrand playlists designed for your business. Subscribers can even schedule their favourite music channels throughout the day to reflect quiet or busy periods.

Restaurants look to keep their guests comfortable during dinner by sticking to a genre and tempo then picking up the pace to encourage diners to stay on for one more drink.

From cutting edge cocktail bars, sophisticated hotel bars, to traditional country pubs, just like the drinks, getting the mix right is what counts.

We have carefully designed music channels from Light Classical to Piano Jazz, Jukebox Classics, Mellow Pop, Top 40, Bar House and current lounge to match all sorts of bar requirements. The live channels are curated from hundreds of thousands of classics, new releases, re-releases, edits, and remixes. Dynamic playlists are then shuffled to create a spontaneous selection every day.

Top tips for bars and restaurants: 1 – Play slower songs during downtime to boost sales in drinks and desserts while increasing client satisfaction!

A range of licensed music channels - A broad array of genre specific channels each featuring a vast library of classic, current and future releases together with regular updates.

Instant access via the Auracle APP - Get instant access to our live streaming channels now by signing up for a free one week trial.

Schedule the music to your audience - Day part and schedule your chosen channels across the week to tailor the music to your audience.

Manage your account online - Manage your user profile online with easy access remote monitoring, scheduling and automatic billing.

Studies show that slower tempo music actually encourages clients to stay for longer, spending up to 40% more money on drinks and desserts, especially during downtime!

By setting a relaxing mood with slower quieter music, you will be able to increase client satisfaction.

Another recent study showed that bright and noisy environments may actually be encouraging the customer to overeat.

By slowing down the tempo and turning the volume down, you get people to stay for longer, eat less, and be more satisfied!

2 – Maximize busy times by turning up the volume and playing higher tempo songs By turning up the volume and keeping the tempo high, you will be able to turn tables much more quickly, allowing you to free up tables more easily and serve more customers.

Multiple studies in recent years have established that the tempo of music has an impact on our perception of time. Basically, our perception of time is affected proportionally by the tempo of the songs we listen to. If you’re listening to high tempo electronica, it may seem like time is going much faster than it actually is.

On the other hand, if you’re listening to slow tempo music, it may seem like time is passing much more slowly than it actually is.

This characteristic of human nature allows you to adjust the perception of time of your customers, depending on what behaviour you want from them. The best part about this tip is that it allows you to “rush” patrons out of their table without ever making them feel unwelcome. You won’t need to tell them that you need the table if their internal clock is telling them that they have spent too much time dining and drinking!

3 – Turn up the volume for a boost in drink sales After you closed the kitchen and you want to maximize profits while everything is being prepared for the next day, the bar is probably your best bet. To make the most of this, turn up the volume!

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Multiple studies, with some dating back to 2008, have established a relation between alcohol consumption and the volume of music being played. Putting it simply, loud music meant that alcohol orders became more frequent.

The researchers behind the study offered very interesting hypotheses on why this happens. “One, in agreement with previous research on music, food, and drink, high sound levels may have caused higher arousal, which led the subjects to drink faster and to order more drinks,” said Guéguen.

4 – Pair the menu with an appropriate music selection Pair the menu with the music, backed by multiple studies, regardless of how developed you think your palate is!

While high-pitched sounds emphasize the sweetness in foods and drinks, low-pitched sounds emphasize the bitterness in them.

Obviously, the difference is slim and only processed subconsciously. But still, if your business is known for its desserts and sweet cocktails, playing bass heavy music will deter from the customer experience.

Background Music For Hotels Attract guests to your hotel and present a unified audio branding across all your sites with the perfect playlist. Customised a schedule of suitable music in each audio zone to add personality and consistency. Soothing classical or the latest mellow pop in reception, sophisticated light jazz in the dining room, current chart dance in the gym or relaxing spa music in the treatment rooms. Appropriate music in each respective zone sets the scene complementing your interior design, lighting, decor and overall ‘environment’.

Schedule the music throughout the day to pick up in the bar as the day progresses, turn instrumental as the dinner service begins and guests want to talk or throughout the year with changing of the seasons. Now you can even schedule timed Covid-19 compliant health and safety announcements to reassure your guests or remind your staff.

Top tips for Hotels Background music for hotels can make all the difference in how your

guests feel when they stay at your hotel. It is something that you need to consider, if you want to ensure that your hotel is getting as many repeat customers as possible. What kind of background music should you play?

The answer is simple: whatever makes people happy! Background music doesn’t have to be anything specific, it just has to be enjoyable and pleasant for the customer’s ears.

A great benefit of having background music in your hotel is that it gives your guests a feeling of being transported to their own private sanctuary. Background music can help people relax and unwind after they have had an exciting day in the city, or when they are travelling with work.

The best way for you to find out what kind of background music is suited for your hotel is by getting to know your customers, understanding their demographic and surveying them directly! From this, we can create your perfect playlist or schedule for your guests. www.auraclesound.co.uk/ background-music/hotels/ www.auraclesound.co.uk

Background Music For Business Auracle Sound supplies the retail and leisure industries with a commercially licensed music streaming service via our App, Web Player or hardware options.

Bars & Pubs

Hotels & B&B’s

Gyms & Leisure Centers

Cafe & Coffee Shops

Hair & Beauty Salons

Spas & Relaxation

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Labelling solutions to meet new Food Safety Regulations Food safety and allergies are some of the most important considerations a café, restaurant or takeaway has to concern itself with, especially if food products are being prepared on site. In the UK, there are an estimated 2 million people diagnosed with food allergies, so there are many customers who can be affected by poor allergy information.

As new Food Safety Regulations, known as Natasha’s Law, come into effect in October 2021 there will be stricter requirements for prepackaged food labelling. Under this law, ingredients must be listed on individual food packaging which is pre-packed for direct sale (PPDS).

Labels must clearly display the type of food and full ingredients list, along with highlighted allergens.

The new law is wide-reaching and will apply to any food that is prepared, pre-packaged, and sold on the same premises. For customer peace of mind, it’s

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important for businesses to make sure ingredients and allergen labels are easy to read and understand.

Making sure food is correctly and clearly labelled is the best way to gain customer trust and confidence.

Before allergy labelling becomes law, it is important to explore options to make the transition as straightforward as possible.

The law states that as soon as a recipe changes, the label must also change to reflect the new ingredients, as well as making it clear on the label that the ingredients have changed. This will take up considerable time if businesses are handwriting labels or purchasing pre-printed labels, so it may be more practical to adopt a more efficient way to print food labels on demand.

Having provided printing solutions into the hospitality sector for over 40 years, Star is renowned for

reliable receipt and kitchen order printing and is able to offer exceptional support and advice for any food labelling application.

Moreover, by partnering with a wide range of hospitality and labelling software providers Star can support businesses with a complete labelling solution designed to meet individual needs.

Star’s label printers provide a range of solutions. For pre-packaged direct sale food, compact desktop direct thermal label printers such as the TSP700II and wide format TSP800II for standard die cut labels are ideal. In addition, Bluetooth mobile printers such as the SM-L200 and SM-L300 offer a highly compact mobile solution for labelling on the go. These options facilitate printing on a wide variety of label sizes as well as batch printing of labels. With the only consumable being thermal label rolls and no toner or ribbons required, they offer an affordable

Printer & Labelling Solutions

and easy-to-use solution for dayto-day food labelling. Additional features such as splash proof covers, buzzer alerts and spacesaving wall mounts are also available for kitchen environments.

For businesses looking to use linerless re-stick labels Star offers the TSP654IISK countertop model as well as the SM-L300 mobile printer.

Ideal for food prep and customer order labelling in cafés and fastfood environments, these use specialist MAXStick® media which allows the user to print specific customer requirements on to repositionable labels that can simply be placed on orders such as coffee cups, food trays and takeaway bags.

The liner-less media is available in a range of paper widths and can print on variable lengths, which is particularly useful for printing orders and ingredient lists that may change from order to order. And, for efficient order management, the TSP654IISK benefits from a paper taken sensor.

Star printers are USB, LAN, Bluetooth, and Cloud enabled for use with a range of devices including current labelling systems as well as iOS, Android and Windows tablets and handheld devices, and they can also simply connect to web and cloud-based software. Star’s unique CloudPRNT™ label printers even allow the user to connect the printer to centrally held allergy labelling software and online databases of product ingredients for printers in multiple locations to directly print label updates as needed. This means no additional devices or tablets are required in the individual locations which could prove a significant cost saving for larger chains.

For any hospitality business looking for a labelling solution to meet the new Food Safety Regulations please call +44 01494 471111 or visit www.Star-EMEA.com for more information.

To discover Star’s full range of POS printing solutions for hospitality, visit Star at Restaurant & Bar Tech Live, 9-10 November 2021, ExCel London.

Printer & Labelling Solutions

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Allergens vs intolerances: Why businesses must understand the difference If you have a food allergy or intolerance, or your child does, chances are you’re forever finding yourself looking for the free-from section in the supermarket, scanning packaging labels to figure out if the contents might spark an allergic reaction, and asking restaurant staff “does this have eggs in it?”.

Many people also find themselves confused when it comes to differentiating between allergens and intolerances. But there is one very important distinction; whereas one is more of an uncomfortable and albeit painful experience, the other can be deadly.

Here, Kirstie Jones, health and safety expert at Navitas Safety, the single destination for digital food safety, explains why it is so important for restaurants and hotels to understand the difference between allergies and intolerances and what businesses should be doing to uphold customer food safety standards.

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Intolerances: all you need to know To put it simply, an intolerance is when people have difficulty digesting certain foods, which causes several uncomfortable and often painful side effects.

The most common food intolerances include; - Dairy - Gluten - Caffeine - Salicylates; often found in fruits, vegetables, spices, and nuts - Amines; found in a wide variety of foods - FODMAPs; a group of short-chain carbohydrates - Sulphites; preservatives often found in a variety of food and drink

As well as foods, stress can also be a contributing factor to intolerances. However, the likes of irritable bowel syndrome and celiac disease are among the most common causes of food intolerances.

Although not usually harmful, food intolerances tend to come with a variety of unpleasant side effects including bloating, cramps, irritability, skin rashes and itching.

Whilst it isn’t a legal requirement for businesses such as hotels and restaurants to label foods for intolerances, we do recommend it.

The introduction of new allergen laws An allergy is entirely different to an intolerance. Whilst some symptoms may be relatively similar, allergies must be taken more seriously as they can be extremely dangerous and often, deadly.

Printer & Labelling Solutions

Food allergies occur when the body’s immune system reacts to certain foods, causing an allergic reaction. Currently, there are an estimated two million people in the UK living with a diagnosed food allergy.

There are 14 key allergens that businesses must inform customers of; - Cereals containing gluten - Shellfish or Crustaceans - Eggs - Fish - Peanuts - Soya and Soybeans - Milk - Nuts - Celery and Celeriac - Mustard - Sesame Seeds

requirements, businesses will now have to include all ingredient information for the product, whether they are allergenic or not and on all pre-packed foods for direct sale (PPDS).

Pre-packed food is fully or partly enclosed by packaging, cannot be altered without opening or changing the packaging in some way and is ready for sale to the consumer.

Even if your item is not classed as PPDS, consider taking an extra security measure and apply allergen labels across all items.

After all, there’s nothing wrong with being too careful.

As well as grab & go style operations, takeaways and fastfood restaurants will also need to comply as part of Natasha’s Law. Ultimately, the safety of consumers is paramount, and businesses must now do everything that they can to prevent allergic reactions and anaphylaxis caused by their foods and products. The first port of call to do so? Digital food safety.

How businesses can keep up Following the introduction of Natasha’s Law, businesses must ensure that all PPDS products are labelled with a detailed description of the item alongside a full ingredients list, highlighting any of the 14 key allergens.

Digital food safety and allergen management can aid businesses by digitally storing all allergen and ingredient information for menu items, as well as supplier information, in a single central destination that can be accessed anywhere and is great for tracking and traceability.

It also removes the chance of human error by automatically creating labels based on the information with the system. A digital allergen management system also keeps a permanent record of all labels and creates an efficient and reliable service for businesses within the food and hospitality industries.

For more information visit: www.navitas.eu.com/ digitalfoodsafety/

- Added sulphur dioxide and sulphites - Lupin - Molluscs Unlike intolerances, food allergies can cause rather severe reactions, including difficulty breathing, swelling and even a drop in blood pressure. Despite how mild an allergy may be, the potential consequences must not be taken lightly, and the food and hospitality industries are ramping things up when it comes to food safety.

As of October 2021, the government will be introducing Natasha’s Law. Currently, businesses are required to provide a summary of the allergenic ingredients contained within a food rather than the entire ingredients list. However, with the impending Natasha’s Law labelling

Printer & Labelling Solutions

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Features in next months issue are on: • Apps • Bar & Pub Technology • Contactless Payment Solutions • LED & Digital Signage

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