“Creating a restaurant is a holistic journey where every element harmoniously comes together to shape a cohesive concept.”
Carl Jacobs, CEO of Apicbase sat down with Reoewein Niesten, Founder and CEO of Conceptional B.V., a renowned food service advisory firm that helped numerous concepts expand to new markets.
They talked about developing successful restaurant concepts.
And what a great talk it was.
If you’re into concept development, I highly recommend watching this episode of The Food Service Growth Show.
Watch Episode 10 with Reoewein now! 🎧
Or dig into some highlights below.
❓Ask the hard questions early on
Initiate open and meaningful discussions early in the development project to gain a comprehensive understanding of the company’s direction.
🤿 Immerse yourself
Immerse yourself and study how your market behaves. Then bring it all together once you fully understand the audience.
🧭 Plan things right from the start
Without the right planning or concept in place, it is difficult to translate it into a viable and concrete project.
🕵️ Look for what’s feasible
Direct your creativity towards ideas and concepts that are realistically possible. When you balance creativity with practicality, you’ll increase the chances of success and avoid pursuing ideas that may not be achievable or sustainable.
📲 Embrace tech
Cutting-edge technology, like robotics and self-ordering, can help certain restaurant verticals address the existing staff shortage, especially operations that manage with huge volumes like QSRs.
🍲 Quality is the differentiator
For concepts that don’t ride trends, quality service is always the main differentiating factor to attract new and old customers.
📈 You need a backbone to grow
If the basics aren’t in place, growth becomes challenging. Prioritize fundamentals such as menu, presentation, signage, and logistics, and build upon them to foster growth.
💲Profitability isn’t an afterthought
Profitability is crucial, as it allows a business to reinvest its profits in the concept, its people, new recipes, and operational efficiency, enabling the company to foster growth.
🌱 Shift to sustainability and a meaningful economy
Consumers want to know what difference your company can make. You can’t just say you are sustainable, you have to demonstrate it to remain credible. So it’s crucial to quantify your sustainability efforts with measurable KPIs.
(Btw, it is not about being 100% sustainable, but about starting somewhere and showing progress.)
Recommended Podcast: Episode 10 – How To Develop A Successful Restaurant Concept
