strategy

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by David Klemt David Klemt No Comments

Three Lies Hospitality Operators Need to Stop Telling Themselves

Revenue vanity, generational myths, and the expensive distractions hurting operators.

The hospitality industry spends an extraordinary amount of time talking about the wrong things.

Operators debate generational stereotypes. They brag about revenue numbers, and chase the newest technology platform.

Meanwhile, the operators who actually build durable businesses are focused on something far less exciting: structure, discipline, and profit.

Spend enough time walking trade show floors, reading hospitality headlines, or sitting through conference panels and the pattern becomes impossible to miss.

Hospitality doesn’t suffer from a lack of passion; it suffers from distraction.

And some of the loudest conversations in the industry right now are built on myths that waste operators’ time, money, and attention.

by David Klemt

A closeup image of a hand attached to the leads of a lie detector, with the small polygraph machine sitting on the bar top.

Illustration generated using AI

Here are three of the worst lies distracting operators.

Lie #1: Sales Equals Success

Revenue is hospitality’s favorite number. Or, phrased a bit differently, sales are hospitality’s favorite vanity metric.

Operators proudly announce they’ve done $3 million or $5 million in annual sales. Trade show rooms applaud when they hear big sales numbers. Social media celebrates. Award nominations start rolling in. Hospitality publications write features.

But revenue alone tells you almost nothing about whether the business is healthy.

A venue doing $3 million in sales and netting $100,000 isn’t a success story. It’s really a stressful job disguised as a business. A significant number of hospitality entrepreneurs end up giving themselves jobs instead of building businesses and empires.

Sales tells you how busy you were. Profit tells you whether your model actually works.

Too many operators chase volume (full dining rooms, long lines, packed weekends) because volume looks impressive. However, the reality is busy doesn’t equal profitable.

Busy rooms and long lines look impressive to some. But profitability, not popularity, is what determines whether a business survives.

The operators who survive long-term aren’t chasing top-line numbers, they’re protecting margins.

Lie #2: Generations Explain Everything

Another long-standing distraction is the industry’s obsession with explaining everything through generational stereotypes.

We’ve read and heard them all: Boomers are entitled, Millennials have killed restaurants, and Gen Z doesn’t drink.

Did you notice I skipped Gen X? That happens a lot when discussing generations.

These narratives make for easy articles and viral social media posts. However, they rarely reflect what operators actually see inside their venues.

Guests aren’t demographic caricatures, they’re people.

Yes, preferences evolve. But successful operators pay attention to how guests behave in their rooms, not how someone online claims an entire generation behaves.

When operators get distracted by generational mythology, they miss the fundamentals that have always mattered: hospitality, atmosphere, consistency, and value. They also miss another key factor when serving people: speaking to guests’ personal values.

Hospitality doesn’t need better stereotypes; nobody and no industry does. Hospitality needs better observation.

Lie #3: Critical Thinking is Optional

This is where the industry’s most expensive mistakes happen.

Operators will hesitate to invest $30,000 in strategic planning that could protect hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars in capital. But they’ll sign a $50,000 equipment order without blinking.

Operators will overspend on technology platforms they barely use. They’ll chase design trends that photograph well but do nothing for the business. They’ll throw open their doors and add complexity before they’ve built stability.

It happens constantly.

People under-invest in critical thinking and over-invest in shiny equipment, overpowered tech, and unnecessary design.

The irony is that thinking—strategic clarity, concept development, operational structure, financial discipline—is the part that determines whether a venue survives.

Equipment doesn’t fix a weak concept, technology doesn’t repair broken operations, and beautiful interiors don’t create profitability.

You know what does tick all those boxes? Systems and structure.

The Reality

Bars, restaurants, nightclubs, eatertainment, hotels, and every hospitality business in between rarely fail because operators lack passion.

They fail because operators chase signals that look impressive and buy into stereotypes disguised as actionable data points. Failure comes because they’re distracted by revenue headlines, generational myths, shiny equipment, trendy technology, and, possibly the most damaging of all, refusing to change because “we’ve always done it this way.”

If these distractions dominate so much operator thinking, what’s the answer to this key question: What really creates truly durable hospitality brands?

Signals that actually matter.

The operators who build durable businesses focus on something much less glamorous: building businesses with real pull.

They develop and build out clear concepts. They adhere to disciplined operations, and implement profitable systems.

Everything else is noise, and noise is expensive.

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Project Management in Hospitality

Project Management in Hospitality

by Doug Radkey

A person reviewing project progress tracked via organized Post-It notes attached to a black brick wall inside an office

There’s a crucial element of hospitality that almost no one talks about publicly. It’s not glamorous, and it isn’t Instagram-worthy.

It isn’t the incredible plating or glassware moment, or even the lobby reveal.

It’s the part that happens long before the first cocktail is poured, before the first plate leaves the pass, before the first guest forms an opinion of your brand.

It’s the real work: the often messy, complicated, high-stakes world of project management for new hospitality concepts and brands.

And whether you’re opening a bar, restaurant, boutique hotel, or entertainment venue, what happens behind the scenes will determine your outcome far more than any design detail or menu item ever will.

This is where leadership begins. Where clarity is built, and chaos either begins or ends.

At KRG Hospitality, we’ve developed a 500-point pre-opening checklist for bars and restaurants, and a 750-point version for hotels. Both are testaments to the true magnitude of what it takes to open a hospitality business successfully.

These tasks aren’t theory, they’re scars. They’re lessons from the past 15-plus years. They’re real-world evidence of what separates the operators who crush it from those who crumble under the pressure.

Read on to learn why project management is leadership in motion, why the pre-opening phase is the heartbeat of your future, and why the way you lead this stage will shape your systems, your culture, and your guest experience directly for years to come.

The Illusion Killing new Concepts

There is a dangerous misconception in this industry that opening a hospitality business is about the vibe.

That it’s about the look, the food, the coffee. The room, or the furniture and fixtures.

People fall in love with the surface level.

But what they don’t see are the hundreds of steps below the surface: zoning, permitting, design, engineering, millwork, logistics, lead times, vendor negotiations, and inspections.

They don’t see the playbook development, constant budget balancing, financial modeling, team recruitment, and brand development.

The guest (and even many first-time operators) only ever see the top 20 percent of the iceberg.

The seasoned operators and consultants deal with the remaining 80 percent, the part that determines whether you open with strength or with struggle.

And this is why so many first-time operators get blindsided. They underestimate the workload and the decisions required. They underestimate the cost of rework.

But most importantly, they underestimate the need for leadership.

Because here’s the reality: In hospitality development, something always goes wrong, no matter how many times you’ve done this. Something always changes. Something always costs more or takes longer than expected.

This is normal. What’s not normal is having no leadership framework in place to respond to it.

Leadership is not Force, It’s Direction

Leadership during pre-opening isn’t about intensity, it’s about direction. It’s the ability to organize complexity so that people can function inside it.

A great leader creates simplicity inside the complexity. A great leader knows the difference between preferences and priorities. Greatness is anticipating friction instead of reacting to it.

A great leader protects momentum.

Without leadership, the project drifts. That costs time and money. When the money disappears, stress increases. When stress increases, decision quality collapses.

The project collapses long before the doors ever open.

This isn’t about charisma, it’s about clarity. Pre-opening leadership is the anchor that holds the entire system steady during the most difficult of times.

You Cannot Build Alone: The Power of a Support Team

A hospitality business is never built by one person.

It’s built by a support team, an often complex network of architects, engineers, designers, contractors, vendors, operators, inspectors, consultants, coaches, advisors, accountants, and legal professionals.

And here’s what every seasoned operator knows: Your support team can either elevate or drain you.

When communication breaks down between just one member of the team, the entire project feels the effect. If just one person delays, everyone is delayed. When one person misunderstands the concept, the project loses alignment and coherence.

This is why building the right team early matters so deeply. You need people with experience, people with judgment, people with accountability.

Most importantly, you need people who have clarity.

Hospitality development isn’t a place for ego, guesswork, or passengers along for the ride. Everyone must respect their lane and the responsibilities within it.

Teamwork is infrastructure. It’s the backbone of communication, and the foundation of execution.

Communication: The Number one Predictor of Success

Communication is the lifeline of any hospitality project. But communication cannot depend on memory or mood; it must be systematized.

This means having scheduled support team calls, shared documents, version control, project trackers, approval pathways, defined ownership, and deadlines.

The number one killer of hospitality development projects is not incompetence, it’s silence. Silence leads to assumptions. Assumptions lead to errors. Errors lead to rework. Rework leads to delays. Delays lead to cost overruns.

A project with poor communication becomes reactive. A project with structured communication becomes proactive.

Great communication isn’t noise, it’s clarity delivered consistently and intentionally.

Decision-Making Under Pressure

In the pre-opening stage, hundreds of decisions must be made before you generate a single dollar of revenue. The challenge isn’t the sheer number of decisions, the challenge is making decisions with intention.

Great decision-making in hospitality development is based on the concept, the budget, your market positioning, operational feasibility.

Above all, it’s centered on the staff and guest experience.

You do not decide based on emotion, comparison, pressure tactics, or impulse. You do not decide based on what your competitors are doing, or what your long-time friend might think would be “cool.”

This is where discipline comes in.

Decisions build the foundation of the business. Make quick decisions, yes, but decisions made from a position of clarity, never panic.

Tools Don’t Replace Leadership, They Amplify It

Hospitality development is too complex to track in your head. This is why communication tools and organized emails, plus project dashboards, timelines, and checklists must exist.

Our 500-point and 750-point checklists exist to prevent blind spots, anticipate missteps, and avoid costly oversights. They were crafted from real pain points experienced by real operators who learned the hard way.

But let’s be clear: technology and AI can only support you, they can’t lead for you.

AI can’t walk a construction site or negotiate with a contractor. AI can’t inspect equipment or interpret tension in a room. It can’t handle nuance, emotions, or judgment.

AI can accelerate thinking, but it can’t take responsibility. That responsibility belongs to the leader.

Responsibility is the heart of project management leadership.

Chaos or Clarity: You Choose Your Opening

The pre-opening phase of a bar, restaurant, or hotel will set the tone for everything that comes after.

If your development is chaotic, your opening will be chaotic.

If your opening is chaotic, your systems will be chaotic.

Your guest experience will be chaotic if you systems are chaotic.

Teams inherit the energy of the build-out. Guests feel the residue of your process in every detail and every decision through timing, cleanliness, flow, and service.

If your development is structured, your opening will be structured. Your team will feel your clarity, and your systems will reflect it. Your guests will experience your clarity.

Remember, opening day is not the beginning, it’s the result.

The Real Transformation of Project Management Leadership

When you lead development with discipline, communication, and intention, you reduce costs, delays, rework, and stress.

When you lead development with discipline, communication, and intention, you increase alignment, quality, team trust, operational efficiency, and long-term profitability.

This is the transformation.

This is how you open strong instead of scrambling.

It’s how you create a culture that respects clarity instead of chaos.

The businesses that succeed in hospitality aren’t always those with the most capital. Those businesses operate with the most clarity. They are guided by people who lead the development process as if their entire future depends on it, because it does.

Project management in hospitality is leadership in motion. It’s coordination, communication, and clarity repeated every single day. It determines your systems, your culture, your guest experience, and your future profitability.

Everything begins long before the first guest walks through the door.

Final Word: Lead with Intention or Risk Losing Momentum

If you’re developing a hospitality concept or planning to open one soon, here’s the greatest leadership lesson you can take from this:

Lead with clarity. Build with intention. Communicate relentlessly. Surround yourself with a team that respects the responsibility of development.

Do this, and you won’t just open, you’ll open strong. You’ll create a business built on discipline instead of chaos, a business that grows instead of reacts. You’ll create a business that lasts.

Hospitality isn’t built in the spotlight. It’s built behind the scenes through systems, leadership, and the courage to do things right long before the world ever sees it.

This is how you create hospitality brands that win. It’s is how you move from chaos to clarity.

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Critical Thinking: Unlocking Success

Critical Thinking: Unlocking Success in Hospitality

by Doug Radkey

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In hospitality, where creativity meets both precision and guest expectations, the ability to think critically is not just an asset, it’s truly a non-negotiable.

Whether you’re starting a new bar, stabilizing a restaurant, or scaling a hotel operation, critical thinking forms the framework of every successful decision.

When working with clients, I always look to emphasize this mindset in everything we do together. Why? Because we’ve seen its transformative impact firsthand.

Critical Thinking: A Mindset, Not Just a Skill

Critical thinking isn’t a one-time effort; it’s a continuous state of mind.

It requires being open-minded, curious, and analytical while maintaining the discipline to question assumptions, consider diverse perspectives, get creative, and rely on evidence for decision-making.

It’s about asking some potentially tough questions:

  • Why is this the right choice?
  • What are the potential consequences?
  • How can we improve this process?

But more importantly, it’s about cultivating thinking skills such as interpretation, analysis, evaluation, explanation, and self-regulation to create strategic clarity.

Let’s explore how these skills directly impact the hospitality industry’s three critical phases: starting, stabilizing, and scaling.

Starting: Laying the Right Foundation

Starting a bar, restaurant, or hotel is an exciting venture. It’s also fueled by decisions that can make or break the business.

This is where critical thinking over the use of tools such as AI or templates becomes indispensable.

Interpretation Skills: Understanding the Market

Every business should begin with a feasibility study. This critical document is about analyzing market trends, target demographics, detailed sociographics, competitive landscapes, conceptual trends, and financial understanding.

For example, understanding your TAM, SAM, and SOM can clarify the concept’s alignment with market potential. Without proper interpretation of these data points, a great idea can fail to connect with its intended audience or market.

Analytical Skills: Evaluating Business Models

Many aspiring operators rely too heavily on emotion when choosing a concept or location. I talked about this recently on an episode of the Hospitality Reinvented podcast.

Critical thinking helps us step back, assess the market objectively, and analyze whether the chosen model can succeed.

It’s never about what “feels” right, or “I’ve lived here my whole life, I know what people want.” In reality, it’s about what I tell everyone who says either of those things: “It’s about what works based on data and evidence.”

Asking the Right Questions

  • Does this location align with my budget and target audience?
  • What assumptions am I making about guest behavior?
  • What if this concept needs to pivot?

Stabilizing: Building Consistency and Efficiency

Once a hospitality business is operational, stabilizing it requires balancing guest satisfaction with operational excellence.

Critical thinking becomes the tool to identify inefficiencies, and adapt to challenges.

Evaluation Skills: Assessing Operations

Stabilizing a restaurant or hotel often involves analyzing the flow of operations.

Are staff members supported by efficient systems? Is inventory managed effectively?

Evaluating these aspects (and others) ensures that the business runs smoothly, even during peak times.

Self-Regulation Skills: Overcoming Bias

Operators in this industry often struggle to let go of ideas that don’t work. Have you ever sat inside a bar or restaurant that used to be busy all of the time, but now you’re one of only a few guests?

They didn’t let go of the past.

Self-regulation allows leaders to examine their biases, question their own decisions, and pivot when necessary.

For example, if a signature dish that uses a family recipe isn’t selling, it’s time to evaluate why, and consider alternatives rather than holding onto it for sentimental reasons.

Key Questions

  • What operational processes are causing delays or errors?
  • Am I listening to both staff and guest feedback objectively?
  • How can we improve efficiency without compromising quality?

Scaling: Preparing for Sustainable Growth

Scaling a hospitality business requires both vision and precision. It’s about replicating success without diluting the brand, and critical thinking provides the roadmap.

Inference Skills: Predicting Outcomes

Scaling involves making assumptions about new markets, guest preferences, and operational challenges.

By questioning the evidence and forming well-founded hypotheses, operators can make informed decisions about where and how to grow.

Explanation Skills: Communicating Vision

Whether it’s presenting a pitch to investors or aligning staff with a new strategy, scaling requires clear communication.

Critical thinking ensures that every argument is backed by data and articulated with precision, thereby building trust and alignment among all stakeholders.

Key Questions

  • What do industry and market trends tell us about future opportunities?
  • How do we maintain brand consistency across multiple locations?
  • What risks should we prepare for between now and full expansion?

Critical Thinking at KRG Hospitality

At KRG Hospitality, we integrate critical thinking into every aspect of our work.

Here’s how:

  • Open-Minded Collaboration: We listen actively to our clients, and challenge conventional thinking to uncover innovative solutions or blue ocean opportunities.
  • Data Driven Decisions: By interpreting each client’s unique needs, we craft strategies that align with their vision while ensuring practicality and scalability. From feasibility studies to business plans, we rely on evidence to guide strategy, not assumptions.

We also encourage our clients to adopt a critical-thinking mindset as they navigate all of the phases of business development.

Below, a few habits we help clients develop.

Vet Information

  • Question the credibility of data sources.
  • Ask what evidence supports a specific claim, and whose perspective is missing.

Ask Questions

  • Channel curiosity by exploring deeper inquiries, such as why, how, and what happens if we encounter various situations.
  • Use follow-up questions to uncover insights and challenge assumptions.

Listen Actively

  • Understand before responding. Critical thinking requires deep listening to build well-rounded solutions. (Want to learn more about the act of listening? Check out this podcast episode on listening by Jennifer Radkey on her Turn This Way podcast.)
  • Engage with diverse perspectives to avoid groupthink that might set you back.

Seek Diversity

  • Surround yourself with diverse voices and viewpoints to gain fresh insights, and avoid echo chambers.

Action Items to Strengthen Your Critical Thinking

How can you practice critical thinking this week?

Consider taking on the two challenges below.

  1. Map the Guest Journey: Outline each touchpoint on your guest’s experience, from discovering your brand, booking or ordering, their arrival to your venue, their exit, and your follow-up with them. Identify potential gaps, and brainstorm ways to elevate guest satisfaction for each touchpoint.
  2. Challenge Your Own Assumptions: Pick one operational or strategic belief you hold about your business. If you’re just developing your concept, maybe you believe your idea is perfect for the market. If you’re operational already, perhaps you assume that your team loves working for you, or that you the systems in place to expand. Analyze the validity of your assumptions, seek alternative perspectives, and test whether they truly hold up under scrutiny.

The Hospitality Mindset: Why It Matters

Critical thinking isn’t just a business tool, it’s a way of life that empowers you to:

  • make informed decisions that align with your goals;
  • navigate challenges with confidence and clarity;
  • lead teams effectively by fostering open communication and collaboration; and
  • position your bar, restaurant, or hotel for long-term success.

In an industry where every detail matters, adopting a critical-thinking mindset ensures you can respond to challenges proactively, adapt to change, and create experiences that guests remember for a lifetime, thereby creating a true legacy.

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You Will Fail Without Strategic Clarity

Why Your Business Will Fail Without Strategic Clarity

by Doug Radkey

Red to purple color-shift background with splashing water droplet

Success in the hospitality industry—whether operating a bar, restaurant, or hotel—requires more than just passion, ambition, and a quality concept.

In addition to all of the above, success demands strategic clarity. Put simply, this is the ability to see the big picture while understanding the smallest details possible of how your business will operate, scale, and, most importantly, drive profits.

Without this clarity, even the most creative and exciting ideas face a high risk of failure.

In summary, without clarity, you’re just reacting; with it, you’re leading.

Let’s explore the definition of strategic clarity, why it’s a non-negotiable, and why your hospitality business cannot succeed without each of these strategic playbooks: feasibility study, conceptual playbook, prototype playbook, brand strategy playbook, tech-stack playbook, marketing playbook, financial playbook, and business plan playbook.

What is Strategic Clarity?

Strategic clarity goes far beyond writing a mission statement or setting sales goals.

Strategic clarity is the alignment of vision, goals, and actionable steps required to move a business from idea to concept to sustainable success. It’s about building a solid foundation that guides every single decision; from idea, to concept, to hiring staff, to launching and everything in-between.

Strategic clarity is the DNA of your business.

In the hospitality industry, strategic clarity ensures that every decision is cohesive and aligned with your target audience, operational capabilities, and long-term goals. Strategic clarity eliminates guesswork, reduces risk, and increases your odds of building a highly profitable business.

Why is Strategic Clarity a Must?

Without strategic clarity, businesses are left vulnerable to disjointed efforts, misaligned goals, and reactive decision making.

These issues not only waste time and resources but can also alienate your guests, frustrate your employees, and diminish your levels of profitability.

Now, let’s dive into why strategic clarity—and each of the eight key playbooks—are non-negotiable for a winning hospitality business.

1. Feasibility Study: The Foundation of Success

Why You Need It

A feasibility study lays the groundwork for strategic clarity by determining whether your bar, restaurant, or hotel concept can succeed in your target market.

This crucial study evaluates market potential, competitive landscape, and operational logistics, ensuring you make informed decisions before making major financial commitments, or signing a lease.

Without It, Your Business Will Fail Due To:

  1. Lack of Market Insight: Skipping this step leaves you guessing about TAM (Total Addressable Market), SAM (Serviceable Addressable Market), and SOM (Serviceable Obtainable Market), risking a misaligned business model and wasted resources.
  2. Poor Location Choices: A feasibility study helps you identify the optimal neighborhood, property size, site requirements, and development budgets for a variety of scenarios, saving you from costly real estate mistakes.
  3. Data-Driven Decisions: This study offers industry trends, technical specs, and competitor analysis, ensuring your planning is backed by actionable data.
    • Example: Consider a boutique hotel targeting luxury travelers. A feasibility study explores guest demographics and psychographics, seasonal fluctuations, spending behaviors, and the region’s existing upscale offerings. This data shapes future pricing strategies, internal programming selection, operational requirements, and marketing efforts, turning assumptions into calculated strategies.

2. Conceptual Playbook: Your Vision on Paper

Why You Need It

The conceptual playbook translates your vision into a strategic framework, defining how your brand comes to life through design, experience, and operations.

This playbook aligns creative and functional elements into a unified, market-ready concept.

Without It, Your Business Will Fail Due To:

  1. Lack of Clear Direction: Without precise definitions for design, fixtures, furniture, equipment, uniforms, menus, and guest experiences, your business risks becoming a fragmented idea, leaving both guests and staff unclear about the brand’s identity.
  2. Team Misalignment: You and your shareholders, support team, development team, and employees need a clear understanding of your concept to execute the vision, and deliver consistent experiences.
  3. Failure to Stand Out: A distinct concept differentiates you in a saturated market, helping carve out a memorable niche. Let’s take a look at two sample scenarios:
    • Restaurant Examples
      • A Restaurant Without a Conceptual Playbook: Generic tables and chairs, mismatched menus, and a lack of on-brand marketing leave little impression.
      • A Restaurant with a Conceptual Playbook: A coastal-inspired bistro with subtle and authentic sea-themed décor, locally sourced seafood menus, and immersive guest experiences creates a more lasting impact, and nurtures guest loyalty and repeat visits.
    • Hotel Examples
      • A Hotel Without a Conceptual Playbook: Standard rooms, impersonal service, and forgettable interiors offer no unique appeal.
      • A Hotel with a Conceptual Playbook: A  retro yet modern boutique hotel showcasing local craftsmanship, personalized service, and a curated lobby café makes every stay an unforgettable one.

By defining your vision clearly and cohesively, a conceptual playbook transforms your business idea into an operational reality with market differentiation and lasting success.

3. Prototype Playbook: Testing and Refining

Why You Need It

The prototype playbook enables precise testing, refining, and scaling of your concept before making full-scale investments.

This playbook minimizes costly guesswork, instead providing a clear path from design to operational implementation.

Without It, Your Business Will Fail Due To:

  1. Uncontrolled Budgets: Without defined prototypes, development costs can spiral due to unexpected adjustments in design, layout, or FFE (Fixtures, Furniture, Equipment) integration.
    • Examples
      • A Bar Without a Prototype Playbook: Custom bar counters are ordered without consideration for staff flow, causing expensive retrofits.
      • A Bar with a Prototype Playbook: Space-optimized bar counters with exact dimensions ensure smooth service operations, and controlled costs.
  1. Resource Waste: Testing workflows, layouts, and service models in a prototype phase reduces inefficiencies and operational bottlenecks.
    • Examples
      • A Restaurant Without a Prototype Playbook: Kitchen layout errors slow service, causing delays and increasing labor costs.
      • A Restaurant with a Prototype Playbook: Pre-tested kitchen zones ensure efficient service, reducing wait times and boosting profitability.
  1. Limited Scalability: A well-developed prototype ensures your concept can adapt to various property sizes, layouts, and markets, making expansion more feasible.

Testing, refining, and scaling concepts through a prototype playbook ensures businesses can develop precise start-up budgets while reducing risk, optimizing resources, and positioning themselves for sustainable, scalable growth.

4. Brand Strategy Playbook: Building Your Identity

Why You Need It

The brand strategy playbook establishes your business’ core identity, aligning every guest interaction with your values, messaging, and market positioning.

It ensures that your brand resonates with the right audience while creating lasting, emotional connections.

Without It, Your Business Will Fail Due to:

  1. Lack of Clear Identity: A poorly defined brand confuses potential guests, diminishing credibility and loyalty.
    • Examples
      • A Bar Without a Brand Identity: Random décor, inconsistent service styles, and a generic menu fail to create memorable experiences, leaving guests disengaged.
      • A Bar with a Brand Identity: A retro-inspired cocktail lounge with mid-century modern décor, tailored music playlists, and vintage-inspired cocktails creates an immersive guest experience.
  1. Failure to Attract Guests: A distinct brand aligns with target market values, sparking curiosity, and driving foot traffic.
    • Examples
      • A Bar Without a Brand Strategy: A new bar opens with no thematic focus, minimal marketing, and a generic online presence. Potential guests pass by without interest.
      • A Bar with a Brand Strategy: A speakeasy-themed bar launches with curated social media content, influencer collaborations, and press coverage, creating buzz and becoming the city’s hottest new spot.
  1. Ineffective Marketing Campaigns: Marketing without a brand strategy leads to disjointed campaigns that fail to engage or convert potential guests.
    • Examples
      • A Marketing Campaign Without a Brand Strategy: A basic ad promoting generic happy hour specials attracts price-sensitive guests but creates no brand loyalty.
      • A Campaign with a Brand Strategy: A cinematic video showcasing mixologists crafting signature drinks boosts brand engagement, and drives repeat visits.

Your brand strategy playbook is more than just a logo. It ensures every detail, from service tone to visual identity, works in harmony to position your business as unforgettable and irreplaceable.

5. Tech-Stack Playbook: Leveraging Technology

Why You Need It

The tech-stack playbook ensures your business leverages cutting-edge tools and systems to streamline operations, elevate guest experiences, and unlock valuable data-driven insights.

In today’s digital-first landscape, technology is no longer optional—it’s another non-negotiable.

Without It, Your Business Will Fail Due To:

  1. Operational Inefficiencies Causing Chaos: Without integrated technology, processes break down, leading to delays, wasted resources, and unhappy guests. The right tech stack synchronizes workflows. Think reservation systems that align with table turnover rates, or POS systems that monitor real-time inventory levels, preventing over-ordering.
    • Examples
      • Inefficient Operations: A restaurant using outdated manual inventory processes faces unexpected stockouts, leading to missed sales and guest frustration.
      • Efficient Operations with Tech: A cloud-based POS with inventory management ensures automatic reordering alerts and prevents shortages during peak hours.
  1. Failure to Meet the Guest Demand for Seamless Tech-Enhanced Experiences: Today’s guests expect convenience. From contactless payments to personalized services, technology bridges the gap between expectations and delivery.
    • Examples
      • For Restaurants: Tableside ordering tablets reduce wait times, while QR code menus provide instant access to specials and allergen information.
      • For Hotels: Mobile check-ins, room key apps, and smart room controls create frictionless stays, differentiating your property immediately.
  1. Missed Opportunities: Without the right technology, you forfeit valuable analytics that could shape your business. Actionable data reveals trends, such as best-selling dishes, total guest revenue management, or high-margin offerings, enabling smarter decisions.

By aligning the right systems with your business model, you can deliver efficiency, meet evolving guest expectations, and mine insights to fuel your growth.

The question isn’t whether you need technology, it’s whether you’re leveraging it effectively to gain a competitive edge.

6. Marketing Playbook: Reaching Your Audience

Why You Need It

Your marketing playbook is the roadmap to attracting, engaging, and converting guests through well-orchestrated campaigns across digital, social, and traditional channels.

This playbook defines your unique voice, message, and tactics that resonate with your target market.

Without It, Your Business Will Fail Because:

  1. You’re Invisible to Guests: The “build it, and they will come” approach is a myth. A strong marketing playbook ensures visibility through SEO, social media, PR campaigns, and community partnerships, positioning your business in front of the right people at the right time.
    • Examples
      • A new bar without a marketing plan might rely solely on word of mouth, leading to slow growth, and unpredictable traffic.
      • A bar with a marketing playbook uses social media promotions, influencer partnerships, and a launch event to create buzz, providing immediate brand awareness, and generating foot traffic.
  1. You Waste Money on Ineffective Campaigns: A marketing playbook defines objectives, key performance indicators (KPIs), and actionable steps, ensuring every marketing dollar spent delivers a measurable return. Let’s look at a sample result:
    • Sample of Measurable Results: A bar runs a social media campaign promoting a new seasonal cocktail menu.
      • Goal: Increase weekend reservations.
      • Campaign Action: Targeted social ads with a direct booking link.
      • Result: A 35-percent increase in table bookings within 30 days, tracked through specified promo codes, POS integration, and follow-up metrics through brands such as Ovation.
  1. You Can’t Build Loyalty: Consistent messaging and guest engagement cultivates trust, fostering repeat visits and long-term brand loyalty.
    • Example
      • A restaurant with a clear marketing strategy shares behind-the-scenes content regularly, offers loyalty rewards, and sends personalized email offers, keeping the brand top of mind among their most valuable guests.

A well-defined marketing playbook is not just a promotional tool, it’s the engine that drives visibility, guest engagement, and long-term loyalty. It ensures your brand stays relevant, compelling, and profitable in a competitive landscape.

7. Financial Playbook: Managing Money Wisely

Why You Need It

The financial playbook is your blueprint for sustainable profitability, guiding budgeting, forecasting, and cash flow management. It transforms your concept from an idea into a financially sound reality.

Without It, Your Business Will Fail Because:

  1. You Won’t Secure Funding: Lenders and investors need detailed projections. A financial playbook builds trust by showing profitability scenarios, ROI timelines, and realistic financial goals.
    • Sample Insight: A hospitality group secures $2M USD for a new cocktail bar by presenting a robust financial playbook that presents realistic five-year forecasts, start-up budgets, and more.
  1. You’ll Run Out of Cash: Poor financial planning is a top cause of failure. Without a playbook, unexpected expenses or under-funding can derail your project long before you look to open your doors.
    • Example: A boutique hotel underestimates renovation costs due to lack of a prototype and detailed budgets. They deplete funds before opening, delaying launch, reducing lender trust, and increasing their debt load before the first booking.
  1. You’ll Have No Financial Control: Comprehensive playbooks monitor expenses, optimize pricing, and maximize profitability with tailored start-up projections, investment scenarios, mock labor schedules, day-part/occupancy strategies, P&L statements, cash-flow forecasts, cost-channel analysis, modern revenue management strategies, and contingency plans.
    • Real-World Impact: A midscale hotel uses financial modeling to adjust day-part strategies, increasing off-peak revenue by 40 percent, and reducing operational costs by 15 percent.

A financial playbook isn’t just numbers. This playbook is a strategic tool ensuring your business remains solvent, scalable, and investor ready from day one. It prevents costly surprises, and drives long-term profitability through proactive financial control.

8. Business Plan Playbook: Day-to-Day Operations

The business plan playbook serves as the operational backbone of your hospitality business, guiding daily activities from front-of-house procedures to back-end management.

Contrary to common belief, it should be the last playbook developed. The business plan playbook should be completed only after assessing the feasibility of your idea, and defining your concept, prototype, brand, tech stack, financials, and marketing strategy. Taking this approach ensures every operational detail is driven by data, and aligned strategically.

Without It, Your Business Will Fail Because:

  1. Your Team Lacks Structure: Employees need clear roles, expectations, and procedures. Implementing Six Sigma and Kaizen methodologies within your playbook fosters a culture of continuous improvement and operational efficiency.
    • Example: A bar without defined staff roles experiences high turnover due to confusion over responsibilities. After adopting a playbook with structured roles and SOPs, turnover drops by over 55 percent.
  1. You Can’t Deliver Consistency: Inconsistent operations harm the guest experience, and lead to negative reviews. A comprehensive playbook ensures processes are repeatable, scalable, and centered around guest satisfaction.
    • Example: A boutique hotel improves its guest satisfaction score by over 70 percent after implementing SOP-driven check-in/out procedures, housekeeping standards, and personalized guest touchpoints.
  1. You Struggle to Adapt: An operations playbook allows businesses to pivot quickly when challenges arise. Whether adapting to changing guest expectations or responding to market shifts, your team will have a clear, proactive roadmap.
    • Example: A restaurant navigates supply chain disruptions by referencing its contingency plan within its business playbook, securing local supplier contracts that reduce delays.

Unlike static business plans, a business plan playbook evolves with your business. It’s a dynamic, action-oriented guide that adapts to market changes, ensuring your business remains agile, efficient, and competitive. With a playbook, you don’t just plan—you execute with precision and purpose.

The Ripple Effect of Strategic Clarity

Strategic clarity doesn’t just enhance isolated parts of your hospitality business—it creates a synchronized, efficient, and scalable operation.

Master the eight essential playbooks to not merely start, stabilize, or scale a business but to build a legacy primed for adaptability, growth, and industry leadership.

Imagine this Impact

Picture presenting a fully developed suite of playbooks to investors, landlords, or partners. You’ll exude confidence, backed by precise strategies in which they can place their trust.

This comprehensive approach distinguishes you from businesses relying on generic, templated, or AI-generated plans. (Yes, banks and investors can tell when a business plan has been generated by artificial intelligence.)

Don’t Leave Success to Chance

Success in hospitality is both challenging and rewarding. Without strategic clarity, even the best ideas risk failure.

This framework positions your business within the top 20 percent that surpass the five-year survival mark.

Why This Matters

Without strategic clarity, you risk being in the 80 percent of operators that fail. Why do that to yourself?

The industry’s high failure rate stems entirely from a lack of well-defined strategy. At KRG Hospitality, we specialize in crafting bespoke playbooks that drive clarity, confidence, empowerment, and freedom.

Want to learn more? Join our next 60-Minute Start-Up Masterclass, or contact us today for personalized consulting.

Take action now—success doesn’t happen by accident.

Image: Canva

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by David Klemt David Klemt No Comments

Why You Should Invest in Strategy

Why You Should Invest in Strategy and Foresight

by Doug Radkey

A surprising trend is emerging: Many aspiring entrepreneurs, restaurateurs, hoteliers, and seasoned business owners are hesitant to invest in two key elements.

Those elements? Strategy and foresight.

Despite understanding the importance of strategic direction, they often prioritize more immediate needs such as hiring talent, refining processes, and other operational aspects. However, these efforts, while crucial, can lack cohesion and effectiveness without a well-defined strategy guiding them.

Financing can be tight but that’s not often the issue. I’ve witnessed business owners eagerly spend $25,000 on new tables and chairs—when they weren’t necessary—while hesitating to invest the same amount in strategic planning that could yield a much higher return on investment.

It’s even more surprising to see new entrepreneurs pour over $1 million into launching a new bar or restaurant, only to balk at a $25,000, comprehensive strategy package.

This package, which includes a feasibility study, concept development playbook, brand strategy, marketing playbook, tech-stack playbook, financial playbook, and business strategy playbook, is often dismissed as “not in the budget.”

Yet, this investment in strategy is crucial for setting a strong foundation, and ensuring both short-term and long-term success. It’s like navigating without a map, or building a house without a blueprint; there may be some progress, but without a clear vision and destination, there’s a much greater risk of veering off course.

In terms of restaurants, bars, or hotels, a lack of strategy and foresight leads an owner to crumble their business to the ground.

This article explores the reasons why investing in strategy and foresight is not just a wise choice but an essential one for ensuring success and stability in an increasingly unpredictable industry.

What are Strategy and Foresight?

To overcome the laundry list of potential obstacles in this industry, you must prioritize strategic thinking, invest in the necessary resources and expertise, and cultivate a culture that values long-term planning.

No matter whether you’re starting, stabilizing, or scaling your brand, you need both strategy and foresight on your side.

Foresight

Foresight is the process of anticipating and envisioning potential future scenarios, trends, and developments. It involves analyzing emerging patterns, uncertainties, and possible disruptions to understand what the future might hold for you and your bar, restaurant, or hotel.

Foresight is not about predicting the future with certainty but about exploring a range of possibilities, and preparing for each of those scenarios.

Key Characteristics:

  • Explorative: Foresight explores multiple potential futures rather than focusing on a single expected outcome.
  • Long Term: Typically, a focus on the long-term implications of current trends and decisions.
  • Proactive: Foresight encourages proactive thinking and planning to anticipate changes, and prepare for various possibilities.
  • Qualitative and Quantitative Analysis: A combination of qualitative insights and quantitative data to create comprehensive future scenarios.

Strategy

Strategy, on the other hand, is the formulation and implementation of a plan to achieve specific goals and objectives. It involves making deliberate choices and decisions to allocate resources, navigate challenges, and capitalize on opportunities.

Strategy is focused on setting a clear direction, and determining the actions needed to reach desired outcomes.

Key Characteristics:

  • Directive: Strategy provides a clear roadmap and actionable steps to achieve goals.
  • Focused on Execution: The practical aspects of how to achieve desired outcomes, including resource allocation, prioritization, and performance measurement.
  • Short to Medium-Term: Strategy often addresses short to medium-term objectives, aligning current actions with long-term vision.
  • Decision Making: Strategic decisions based on the current understanding of the environment, resources, and capabilities.

Why You Should Integrate Strategy and Foresight

When you combine strategy with foresight you and your business can make more informed decisions. An informed decision is the consideration of both the present context and potential future developments.

Foresight provides valuable insights into emerging trends and uncertainties, helping your brand anticipate challenges and opportunities. This integration ensures that strategic decisions are based on a comprehensive understanding of possible future scenarios. Strategic decision reduce the risk of being caught off guard by unexpected changes.

Integrating foresight into the strategic planning process enhances your businesses adaptability and resilience. Foresight allows you to explore a range of possible futures, and develop contingency plans for different scenarios.

This proactive approach enables you and your team to respond quickly and effectively to changes in the external environment. Whether technological advancements, market shifts, or sociographic adjustments, you’ll be prepared to adapt quickly.

Innovation and Risk Management

Foresight provides a long-term vision, while strategy focuses on short-term actions. By integrating the two, your hospitality business can align its immediate goals and actions with its long-term vision. Doing so ensures consistency and coherence in decision-making, and helps you stay on track toward achieving your long-term objectives. It also helps bridge the gap between future aspirations and current realities, creating a more cohesive and actionable playbook.

When you act with foresight, you encourage the exploration of new ideas and potential innovations by identifying emerging trends and disruptions. Integrating foresight with strategy enables your business to pursue innovative solutions proactively, and capitalize on emerging opportunities. This combination fosters a culture of innovation, and encourages you and your team to think beyond the present, seeking ways to stay ahead of the competition continually.

Foresight helps identify potential risks and uncertainties that may impact your business in the future. Incorporate these insights into the strategic planning process so you can develop strategies for your business that mitigate or manage risks.

A proactive approach to risk management reduces vulnerability, and enhances organizational stability.

Foresight and Strategy Sample for Starting a Hospitality Brand

Strategy

Feasibility Study: Assess market demand, demographics, competition, and potential profitability. This foundational step provides a realistic view of the business opportunity and potential challenges.

Brand and Concept Development: Define the unique selling proposition (USP), story, target market, and brand identity. Develop a detailed playbook outlining the concept, including menu/room design, service style, and intended ambiance.

Site Selection and Design: Choose a location based on the completed feasibility study. Design the space to reflect the brand’s identity and concept with a reputable designer who follows the vision.

Foresight

Market Trends Analysis: Identify emerging food and beverage trends, changes in consumer preferences, and demographic shifts. Use this information to shape the concept and offerings.

Regulatory Landscape: Anticipate potential changes in regulations related to health, safety, and licensing. Prepare to adapt to these changes to ensure compliance and minimize disruptions.

Technological Integration: Explore advancements in restaurant and hotel technology. Plan for their implementation by developing a tech-stack that enhances the guest experience, and operational efficiency.

Foresight and Strategy Sample for Stabilizing a Hospitality Brand

Strategy

Operational Efficiency: Streamline processes, optimize inventory management, and implement cost-control measures. Review financial performance regularly to identify areas for improvement.

Marketing and Branding: Develop a cohesive marketing strategy to build brand awareness and loyalty. Leverage social media, local events, and partnerships to attract and retain guests.

Guest Experience: Standardize service protocols, and enhance staff training. Focus on delivering consistent and high-quality experiences to build a loyal guest base.

Foresight

Scenario Planning: Develop contingency plans for potential disruptions, such as economic downturns, supply chain issues, or changes in consumer behavior. This preparedness helps the business remain resilient in the face of uncertainty.

Competitive Analysis: Monitor competitors’ strategies and market positioning continuously. Adapt and differentiate the brand’s offerings to maintain a competitive edge.

Guest Feedback and Data Analysis: Collect and analyze guest feedback to identify emerging preferences, and areas for improvement. Use this data to refine offerings and enhance guest satisfaction.

Foresight and Strategy Sample for Scaling a Hospitality Brand

Strategy

Expansion Planning: Evaluate potential markets for expansion, considering factors such as demographics, market demand, and competition with a feasibility study. Develop a scalable business model and expansion strategy.

Brand Consistency: Develop and maintain brand standards, and ensure consistency across all locations. Implement standardized operating procedures and quality control measures.

Partnerships and Collaborations: Explore strategic partnerships with suppliers, local businesses and community partners, or other brands to enhance offerings and expand reach.

Foresight

Future Market Opportunities: Identify emerging markets and growth opportunities, such as new geographic regions, niche markets, or evolving guest segments. Plan to enter these markets with tailored offerings.

Innovation and Adaptation: Foster a culture of innovation by encouraging the exploration of new ideas, products, and services. Stay ahead of industry trends and incorporate innovative solutions to differentiate the brand.

Risk Management: Assess potential risks associated with scaling, such as supply chain complexities, cultural differences, or operational challenges. Develop an outlook to mitigate these risks and ensure smooth expansion.

In Summary

The integration of strategy and foresight into your hospitality business is not a luxury but a non-negotiable.

Investing in these areas will provide your business with the tools and insights needed to navigate uncertainties, anticipate market shifts, and make informed decisions that align with your goals. Far from being mere expense lines, strategy and foresight are foundational elements that drive growth, innovation, and resilience.

Prioritize strategic planning and future-oriented thinking so your business can create a cohesive and actionable roadmap that bridges the gap between current realities and future aspirations. This investment enables you to address potential challenges, capitalize on emerging opportunities, and maintain a competitive edge in a proactive manner.

Whether starting a new venture, stabilizing your operations, or scaling your business to new heights, the integration of strategy and foresight empowers you to outperform the competition in this ever-changing environment.

Ultimately, the value of investing in strategy and foresight goes beyond immediate financial returns. This integration cultivates a culture of continuous improvement, adaptability, and forward thinking, ensuring that your business is not only prepared for the future but also positioned to shape it.

As such, you should view these investments not as costs but as crucial assets that contribute to the success and sustainability of your brand.

Image: Canva

KRG Hospitality. Restaurant. Bar. Hotel. Feasibility Study. Business Plan.

An AI-generated image of a business plan on one side, versus a playbook on the other side
by David Klemt David Klemt No Comments

Difference Between a Plan and Playbook

The Difference Between a Plan and a Playbook

by Doug Radkey

An AI-generated image of a business plan on one side, versus a playbook on the other side

Sometimes AI comes up with impressive images. This is one of them.

You’ve likely heard that 80 percent of hospitality businesses fail within the first five years.

When you ask those in the industry the question of why there is such a high rate of failure, they reply with a fairly predictable list of factors. These tend to be location, concept or brand confusion, lack of service standards, toxic workplace culture, sub-par marketing efforts, and mismanaged funds.

Many operators who fail try to quickly blame external factors, such as the economy.

When you ask the next question—what are the other 20 percent of operators doing differently to surpass five years in business—you get one simple answer. The difference between those who drive a sustainable profit of 12, 15 or 20 percent (or more) and those who don’t boils down to one thing and one thing only: they have strategic clarity.

It’s not that the successful 20 percent did not battle challenges or the same tough economy or labor struggles. What they had was clarity, and a playbook detailing how to overcome a multitude of challenges.

So how do you achieve strategic clarity? Well, it’s much more than just writing—or filling out a template for—a business plan.

What is Strategic Clarity?

Strategic clarity is the comprehensive understanding and alignment within your hospitality business regarding its identity, direction, purpose, and the means to achieve its goals.

It involves clear communication and consensus on key aspects of the business, ensuring that everyone is working towards the same objectives. Below, the key components that define strategic clarity.

1. Understanding Who We Are

  • Core Identity: This includes the mission, vision, and core values of your business. It defines what the business stands for, and its fundamental purpose.
  • Strengths and Weaknesses: Recognizing the business’ strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) aids in identifying the core competencies and areas for improvement.
  • Culture: The shared beliefs and practices that characterize the business’ internal environment, and how it interacts with both staff and guest perceptions.

2. Knowing Where We are Going

  • Vision: A clear and compelling picture of what the business aspires to become in the future. It serves as a guide for choosing current and future courses of action.
  • Long-term Goals: Specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART) goals that outline the desired outcomes over an extended period.
  • Milestones: Intermediate targets that mark progress towards the long-term goals.

3. Understanding Why We are Doing This

  • Purpose: The fundamental reason for the business’ existence beyond making a profit. It encompasses the broader impact the business aims to have on its community.
  • Motivation: The driving force behind the business’ actions and strategies. This includes the values and principles that guide decision-making, as well as behavior.
  • Stakeholder Alignment: Ensuring that the goals and activities of the business align with the interests and needs of its stakeholders: guests, employees, investors, and the community.

4. How We are Going to Get There

  • Strategy: The overarching plan that outlines how the business will achieve its vision and long-term goals. It includes the allocation of resources and the selection of strategic initiatives.
  • Tactics: The specific actions and steps that will be taken to implement the strategy. This involves detailed planning, delegation, resources, and execution.
  • Performance Metrics: The criteria and tools used to measure progress and success. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and other metrics help track the effectiveness of strategies and tactics.
  • Continuous Improvement: The process of regularly reviewing and refining strategies and tactics based on performance data and changing circumstances.

Strategic clarity is essential for the cohesive and effective functionality of your bar, restaurant, or hotel business. This leadership approach ensures that all members understand and are aligned with the business’ identity, direction, purpose, and methods.

By achieving strategic clarity, organizations can navigate challenges, seize opportunities, and build upon sustainable long-term success. What we have found over the years that attributes to long-term clarity and success is a series of playbooks.

Understanding Plans and Playbooks

Let’s first dive into the critical distinction between a plan and a playbook, and why this matters for your bar, restaurant, or hotel. Understanding and utilizing both can significantly impact your business’ ability to start strong, stabilize effectively, and ultimately position you to scale successfully.

A traditional business plan, as you may know it, is a document that outlines your goals, and the steps you will take to achieve them. It’s often the number one consideration to secure funding and to set strategic direction.

However, it is, more often than not, missing plenty of crucial information, strategies, and guidance that end up planting a false sense of security.

A playbook, on the other hand, is a more comprehensive guide filled with detailed processes, best practices, and adaptable strategies tailored to your specific operations. Within this dynamic industry, you need more than a standard business plan if you want to be successful.

In fact, you should have eight different playbooks in place to position yourself within the top echelon of this industry.

The Power of Playbooks in Hospitality

While plans are often static or rigid (and often forgotten about shortly after they’re written), playbooks are designed to be flexible and adaptable.

Playbooks provide a step-by-step guide, ensure consistency and efficiency, and offer adaptable strategies and best practices to start, manage, and grow effectively.

Playbooks go into more granular details, and provide actionable steps. In this way, they’re notably different from a singular business plan.

The Eight Playbooks

No matter if you are operating a coffee shop, bar, restaurant or hotel (or any other concept within the hospitality industry), the following eight playbooks should be looked at as non-negotiables.

  1. Feasibility Study/Playbook: The foundational guide for assessing the viability of your hospitality business idea. It involves a comprehensive analysis of the market, competitive landscape, financial projections, and operational requirements. This playbook helps you determine whether your concept is realistic and profitable before committing significant resources.
  2. Concept Playbook: Focuses on refining your hospitality business idea into a clear and compelling concept. This playbook guides you through creating a unique value proposition, defining your target market, and outlining the core elements of your business, including service style, interior design, and internal programming.
  3. Prototype Playbook: A step-by-step guide to developing a tangible representation of your hospitality concept. This playbook helps you create a prototype that can be tested and refined before a full-scale launch. This playbook covers design specifications, operational workflows, fixtures/furniture/equipment, and detailed budgets.
  4. Brand Strategy & Identity Playbook: Defines the strategic approach to building and maintaining a strong brand. This playbook covers the creation of your brand identity, messaging, and positioning to ensure consistent and impactful brand communication. It involves color psychology, core values, mission statements, brand experiences, and more.
  5. Marketing Playbook: Outlines the strategies and tactics to attract, build, and retain your target guests. This playbook provides a roadmap for creating and executing effective marketing campaigns across various channels. It provides a step-by-step guide on content, social media management, database building, email marketing, partnerships, and community activations, along with detailed guest journey maps.
  6. Tech-stack Playbook: Provides guidance on selecting and implementing the correct technology solutions to enhance your hospitality operations. This playbook ensures that your technology infrastructure supports your business goals and improves efficiency. This playbook identifies technology gaps, software solutions, hardware requirements, and integration plans, plus training and support on technology.
  7. Financial Playbook: A comprehensive guide to manage your hospitality business’ finances. This playbook covers budgeting, financial forecasting, accounting practices, and financial performance analysis. It should highlight financial contingency plans, mock labor schedules, daily/weekly/monthly/seasonal traffic reports that align with the business, and financial objectives.
  8. Operational Playbook (a.k.a. Business Plan): Outlines the day-to-day operations in great detail, along with long-term strategies. This playbook ensures that all aspects of your operations are well-coordinated and aligned with your overall business goals, and the other seven playbooks. It should highlight standard operating procedures, labor plans, supply chain management, guest services, and measurable operational metrics.

You’ll notice there are seven other playbooks written before the business plan. Far too often, this is where people start. Without the other seven playbooks, it will be nearly impossible to craft a winning playbook for your day-to-day operations.

When Should You Use Playbooks

  • To Start: These eight playbooks are crucial to craft your success story right from the beginning. Build the foundations before signing a lease or purchasing a property.
  • To Stabilize: If you’re currently underperforming (profit margins under 12 percent for bars and restaurants, and under 15 percent for hotels), use playbooks to generate impactful results.
  • To Scale: These playbooks will help ensure that both your first location—and the next location—are prepared for consistent operations without diminishing your brand equity.

Strategic planning within detailed playbooks is essential for your hospitality business’ success.

Regardless of your current position, evaluate your use of business plans, and consider developing comprehensive playbooks instead. Make the time and commitment to achieving true clarity in your business, and position yourself to be on the correct side of this industry’s statistics.

AI image generator: DALL-E

KRG Hospitality Start-Up Restaurant Bar Hotel Consulting Consultant Solutions Plans Services

KRG Hospitality ImpactMAP, main image
by krghospitality krghospitality No Comments

The Power of an ImpactMAP™

The Power of an ImpactMAP™

by Doug Radkey

KRG Hospitality ImpactMAP, main image

Let’s be honest, the line between success and failure often hinges on the ability to act decisively and act with purpose.

In this article, we’re going to explore two areas of your hospitality business that are under your control: creating a plan, and taking action.

Understanding the Risk of Inaction

The concept surrounding the Risk of Inaction—arguably a new form of ROI—captures the potential losses businesses face when they fail to take strategic actions.

Inaction in the hospitality industry can manifest in various harmful ways. Inaction can also stem from multiple sources: fear of change, lack of resources, or simply underestimating the competition.

Regardless of the manifestation or cause, the consequences are usually the same: stagnation, decline, and, ultimately, a shuttered business.

Let’s put this into context by taking a look at a sample of both a restaurant and a hotel business.

Failure to Innovate

If a restaurant does not act to continuously re-engineer its menu, it risks diminishing profits, providing a low-level guest experience, and mismanaging inventory. Without regular strategic updates, the menu may fail to reflect current culinary trends and guest preferences, which can lead to a decrease in interest and satisfaction.

Additionally, sticking with a static menu can prevent the restaurant from optimizing ingredient use, productivity, and cost-efficiency.

At the end of the day, this lack of adaptation and innovation will result in diminishing sales and profitability, making it difficult for the restaurant to sustain its operations.

Failure to Update Systems

If a hotel on the other hand decides to not use a modern and fully integrated Property Management System (PMS), it risks operating inefficiently and falling behind in today’s technology-driven hospitality environment.

A non-existent, outdated, or fragmented PMS can lead to significant operational issues, such as slow check-in and check-out processes, errors in room availability and booking management, and ineffective communication between different departments. That’s just to name a few crucial issues.

This inefficiency can impact guest experiences negatively, leading to dissatisfaction and potentially harming the hotel’s reputation.

Furthermore, without a modern PMS, a hotel may struggle with data management, limiting its ability to effectively analyze performance metrics, forecast demand, and implement dynamic pricing strategies. These disadvantages will result in lost revenue and reduced competitiveness in a space where guest expectations and operational efficiency are increasingly driven by technological advancements.

In each example above, the risk of inaction leads to missed opportunities and underperformance.

The Power of an ImpactMAP™

To combat the risks associated with inaction, your hospitality business can benefit significantly from developing an ImpactMAP™.

This strategic tool can help you identify where you currently stand, define where you want to go, and outline the steps required to get there, thereby helping you create not only strategic clarity, but drive and accountability.

KRG Hospitality ImpactMAP, flowchart and map

The Assessment

To create an ImpactMAP™ and to take action immediately, you need to first assess your operations.

An assessment of your hospitality business is a comprehensive evaluation process aimed at analyzing various aspects of your business to identify strengths, weaknesses, and areas for improvement or opportunity. The goal is to gather actionable insights that can help optimize operations, enhance guest experiences, and massively improve your profitability.

The assessment should involve on-site observations, staff interviews, and a deep dive into the following eight categories, culminating in a detailed report that provides recommendations and a strategic plan for future growth and sustainability.

For each of the eight categories, consider a 3x matrix with three responses to the following questions:

  • Where are we now?
  • Where do we want to go?
  • What resources do we need?
  • What’s holding us back?

Then, create a SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Timely) goal for each response in your “Where We Want to Go” list.

What are the eight assessment categories?

1. Brand Strategy

Assessment: Review your core values, story, messaging, philosophy, design, and reputation.

Opportunity: Enhance brand alignment across all touchpoints to ensure consistency while refining your brand messaging to better connect with targeted guest profiles.

2. Internal Programming

Assessment: Review your pricing strategy, guest experiences, property / menu / room management systems and programs.

Opportunity: Optimize your offerings based on guest preference data and a profitability analysis, along with potential upgrades to your amenities to enhance guest satisfaction and to compete with today’s market standards. In summary, implement efficiencies to improve guest experiences and operational workflow with a focus on your internal programming.

3. Marketing Plans

Assessment: Review guest profiles, guest journey maps, guest databases, awareness and retention strategies, and your digital marketing portfolio.

Opportunity: Integrate advanced digital marketing techniques to increase reach and engagement while developing targeted promotions and partnerships, and by leveraging data analytics to tailor marketing efforts more precisely to guest behaviors and trends.

4. Tech-Stack Plans

Assessment: Review guest facing technology, POS / PMS system, integrations, and marketing.

Opportunity: Identify current technology gaps and plan for a strategic integration of systems that enhance guest experiences while streamlining operations.

5. Standard Operating Procedures

Assessment: Review of all internal and external systems, plus training programs and SOPs.

Opportunity: Ensuring that all staff are clear on their roles and responsibilities, which enhances overall service quality through the development of standardized procedures that ensure consistency and efficiency across the business. Implement feedback systems to continually refine and improve SOPs based on real-time challenges and successes.

6. People and Culture

Assessment: Review of staff experiences, onboarding, productivity, growth, and retainment.

Opportunity: Strengthen employee engagement through improved communication and support systems. Foster a culture of innovation and openness in which employees feel valued and motivated. Develop leadership from within to enhance management effectiveness and succession planning.

7. Financial Health

Assessment: Review of all financials, including Revenue, COGs, KPIs, Expenses, Debt, and Profit.

Opportunity: Identify cost-saving opportunities without compromising service quality. Explore new revenue streams that align with your brand values and market opportunities. Implement more rigorous financial tracking and forecasting tools (such as technology) to better predict financial trends and react proactively.

8. Mindset

Assessment: Daily habits, work / life balance, decisiveness, communications, and growth-based thinking.

Opportunity: Develop a mindset of continuous improvement among all staff levels (starting with yourself) to foster an environment of excellence. Cultivate resilience by planning for crisis management and business continuity. Promote a guest-centric approach, aligning all business decisions with guest satisfaction and personal development outcomes.

Creating the ImpactMAP™

By following the above 3x strategy for each category, you will have created 24 SMART objectives that will be the foundation of your ImpactMAP™ to move your business forward over the next one to six to 12 months.

Importance of SMART Objectives

What does SMART mean and how does it work?

  • Specific, Clarity, and Focus: SMART objectives provide clear and concise goals that everyone in your business can understand and rally behind. This clarity helps to focus efforts and resources on what’s most important.
  • Measurability and Tracking: By setting measurable goals, your business can track progress and make data-driven decisions. This measurability allows for adjustments to be made in strategies or tactics to ensure the objectives are met.
  • Achievability: Goals that are achievable motivate staff. Setting impossible goals can lead to frustration and disengagement, whereas achievable objectives encourage team effort and commitment.
  • Relevance: Ensuring that each objective is relevant to the broader business goals ensures that every effort made contributes to the overall success of your brand.
  • Timeliness: Incorporating a timeframe provides urgency, a deadline, and accountability, which can help prioritize daily tasks and long-term plans.

However, you shouldn’t try to accomplish all 24 objectives at the same time. Once you’ve set your 24 impactful objectives, prioritizing them is crucial to stabilize your hospitality business and aim for scalable growth.

Best Practices for Prioritizing Objectives

  • Assess Business Needs: Start by conducting that thorough assessment of your business to identify key areas that need improvement.
  • Impact Analysis: Evaluate the potential impact of each objective. Prioritize objectives that offer the greatest benefits in terms of guest satisfaction, revenue growth, and operational efficiency.
  • Resource Availability: Consider the resources available, including budget, people, and technology. Prioritize objectives that align with current resources or where adjustments can be made to accommodate necessary changes.
  • Quick Wins: Identify objectives that can be achieved quickly and with minimal disruption to your ongoing operations. These quick wins can boost morale and provide visible improvements that justify further investments in other areas.
  • Strategic Importance: Some objectives, while not providing immediate benefits, are crucial for long-term success. Prioritize these based on their strategic importance to the business’s future.
  • Stakeholder Input: Engage with various stakeholders, including management, staff, and guests, to gain insights into which objectives they feel are most critical. This can help in aligning the goals with the needs and expectations of those most affected by the changes.
  • Balanced Scorecard: Use a balanced scorecard approach to ensure that objectives across different areas such as guest services, internal processes, financial performance, and learning and growth are all being addressed.
  • Iterative Review: Regularly review the priorities as situations and business dynamics evolve. What may be a priority today might change based on market conditions or internal business changes over the next three to six months.

Once you have your objectives prioritized, it’s time to assign or delegate them as needed and have those assignees (including yourself) take ownership of the objectives with their signature to add another level of accountability.

Implementing the ImpactMAP™

Before starting, ask yourself one final question: What will happen if we don’t take action?

Be detailed and mindful of what the short-term and long-term consequences might be if you don’t act.

Effective implementation of an ImpactMAP™ requires knowledge of these consequences, along with a commitment from all levels of your business. It starts with comprehensive training sessions followed by regular review meetings, which are both essential to assess progress, address challenges, and refine strategies as needed.

Take a SMART-ER approach, which is where you Evaluate and Re-adjust the SMART objectives halfway through the timeline you’ve set.

Conclusion

Risk of inaction is a silent threat that can undermine any business, particularly in this dynamic industry.

Adopting an ImpactMAP™ and making a commitment to take massive action allows you to manage your operations proactively, adapt to changing market conditions, and set a course for sustainable success.

This strategic approach not only mitigates risks but also empowers your hospitality business to thrive in a competitive landscape—but it starts with you and your mindset toward taking action.

Image: KRG Hospitality

KRG Hospitality. Restaurant Business Plan. Feasibility Study. Concept. Branding. Consultant. Start-Up.

Chess pieces on chess board in grayscale
by David Klemt David Klemt No Comments

Empower Your Team to Make Decisions

Do You Empower Your Team to Make Decisions?

by Kim Richardson

Chess pieces on chess board in grayscale

Empowerment is about so much more than trusting someone to follow clearly defined rules; you must learn to trust your team’s judgement.

Yes, even when things don’t go according to plan. If you’re only training your team on the “rules,” you’re doing a disservice to them and yourself. So, let’s have a little chat about empowerment. What does it mean to you? What are your expectations of your team when you tell them they are empowered?

Looking back throughout your own work history, have you ever had a job where your boss told you that you were empowered to make decisions, but you didn’t actually know what to do or how to make decisions? Did anyone ever explain “the how” of decision making to you?

Now, look at yourself as a leader. Have you ever had employees that you’ve told are empowered to make decisions, yet they get a manager every time someone needs something out of the ordinary? Are you explaining to your staff “the how” of decision making, along with your expectations?

It’s frustrating to feel like the house might fall down when you’re not in it. That’s no way to operate a business. We all want our staff to be able to make educated decisions when we’re not around. We shouldn’t have to hold their hands and be part of every single decision.

Still, there are times when, left to their own devices, a team member doesn’t make the decision you’d want them to make. This makes owners and leadership team members feel as though they must be at work every second.

So, how do you move away from micromanagement and learn to trust your team’s decision making?

Leverage Teachable Moments

You’ll never be able to give an example of every possible situation that may arise. Therefore, you’ll never be able to train your team on everything that they’ll encounter on any shift.

How do you tell someone how to handle situations when you’re not around? You don’t, and I don’t suggest you even try. Instead, you need to instill a sense of empowerment in your team.

However, “empowerment” is just a word if you’re not educating your team. You need to teach staff how to make good decisions. And how do you even start to do that? Cash in on all the teachable moments that happen throughout the day!

Once upon a time we were all new to this industry. I’m sure you have a few stories of some mistakes you’ve made along the way. I know I certainly do.

Think back to those situations. Did someone explain to you why you made a mistake? More importantly, did they then help you understand what to do next time? Or did they just get mad and make you feel like a failure?

I’ve had the privilege of working with some amazing people over the years. There are several people that really put effort into teaching me. The different things they taught me helped me to understand the ins and outs of decision making, even in situations I know very little about.

Example 1: The Restaurant

For my first job ever, I was a hostess at an Italian restaurant and pizzeria. During the training process I was told to rotate sections when seating tables. That’s easy enough, right? Well…maybe not.

Sometimes I’d see exceptions to this rule. The same section would get sat twice in a row, for example. I watched exceptions to “the rule” get made with no clue as to why.

One day, I sat the same section twice in a row. I don’t remember why, but I do remember the server’s reaction.

Right after seating the second party in the server’s section she let me know how annoyed she was by my decision. Now, I knew I messed up immediately—she let me know. But I didn’t know why it wasn’t okay that I had double-sat her this time.

All I knew is there was a rule I was expected to follow…unless I wasn’t supposed to follow it. Sometimes it was okay to disregard the rule, sometimes not. The rule wasn’t clarified before I began my role as a hostess, it wasn’t explained during training, and it wasn’t explained in the moment I “broke” the rule.

At some point it was explained to me that there were several factors that influenced the “double-seating rule.” For instance, you might skip a section in the rotation if they were just sat a big party. You might double-seat someone if they were regulars, family or friends and the server was able to accommodate an additional table. Of course, there were several other factors that could come into play.

The biggest issue is that none of that was explained to me during training. Moreover, I was left to figure out the nuances of seating on my own.

Example 2: The Hotel Sales Office

I worked at a hotel in the sales office for my first job out of college handling group room blocks.

The contracts I sent out to clients had cutoff dates 30 days prior to the event. Again, sounds pretty simple, doesn’t it?

One day a bride emailed me asking if she could extend the cutoff date. The cutoff date fell on a holiday weekend and she was concerned that people might not have time to book their rooms. I wrote her back and very politely told her no. So she reached out to my boss, Jill, who told her yes.

And then I got called into Jill’s office.

I remember that conversation like it was yesterday. Jill was very nice about the situation and explained that it was okay to make exceptions for people sometimes. Sometime later, I extended a cutoff date for another group. Should be an acceptable exception, right?

Nope. I got my hand slapped on that one. There was a citywide event going on over those dates. The hotel was fully sold out and turning away business. In this circumstance, it was actually a huge problem to extend the cutoff date.

Great—here we go again with a rule that exists in a gray area, and no one explained its nuances. As it turns out, there are factors that go into extending a cutoff date, such as how many rooms the group has already picked up; how busy the hotel is over the dates of their room block; and the relationship you have with the client.

I don’t know if anyone ever flat out explained these gray areas to me. Instead, I was left to figure out the nuances through trial and error.

Example 3: The Dish Tub Incident

At that same hotel several years later I started handling banquet events. One day, a client told me their registration desk needed dish tubs lined with cloth napkins. I threw it on the banquet event order.

Well, I happened to work at a Five Diamond hotel. Dish tubs with napkins sitting out in view of the public? That’s not how we did things. Enter: Bruce the Banquet Manager.

No detail, however small, escaped Bruce. Referring to the dish tubs and napkins, Bruce asked me why they were necessary. I actually had no idea what the client wanted with the tubs and napkins. So, I reached out to the client.

Turns out all she needed was a way to store welcome packets for event attendees. These days, we just put up a QR code and call it good. Once I let Bruce know what the containers were actually for, he understood. However, we weren’t about to load unsightly dish tubs with welcome packets. Instead, we found something more aesthetically pleasing and in line with our level of service.

I spoke about the Dish Tub Incident with Jill. To her credit, she helped me understand that people who are planning meetings so frequently are sending standard specs. Sometimes there would be a request on a BEO that wouldn’t make sense for the venue. Crucially, she taught me that if I ever saw something that didn’t make sense I needed to ask questions.

Truthfully, I don’t remember if it was that conversation or another but Jill taught me one of the best lessons: Ask the client what goal they’re trying to achieve. By understanding their goals we could provide solutions that made sense for us and honored their wishes. Additionally, we’d deliver the excellent service they had come to expect.

Example 4: The Hotel Cafeteria

Let’s take a little break from talking about my mistakes and talk about somebody else’s.

Many years later, I was working at another hotel. One day, I went to the cafeteria and the fruit bowls had Asian pears in them. I love Asian pears, so I was really excited about those bowls.

Now, those particular pears were probably a day away from being spoiled. I went to the cafeteria the next week and there were the Asian pears again! This time, they were perfectly fresh, crisp pears.

Well, I certainly enjoyed that. You want to know who didn’t enjoy that? The executive chef!

As it turns out, Chef sent the pears that were about to go bad to the cafeteria because they were leftovers from something else. He didn’t want them to go to waste. But the fresh, crisp pears that were out the following week? Those were a different story.

There was a kitchen team member who saw the Asian pears go down the week before. When he was setting up the cafeteria the following week he threw some in the fruit bowl. No one had told him that Asian pears are expensive. Also, no one had told him the pears were just going down to the cafeteria because they were close to spoiling. They’re not typically the type of thing set out in the employee cafeteria.

While I would never expect Chef to stop and explain every single decision he’s making, it’s the perfect example of seeing one of your superiors doing something and thinking you’re supposed to do the same.

Leaders Teach

When I look back on some of the mistakes I made, they seem pretty obvious with many years of hindsight.

The solutions to unexpected situations are common knowledge to me now. If you also have some years in this industry, they’re likely common knowledge to you.

And that’s my point.

I was young. I was inexperienced. People didn’t always tell me the things they had learned that were common knowledge to them. So, they also didn’t share their expectations with me.

I can only assume that you have people on your team that are young and inexperienced. As seasoned hospitality professionals, we all make decisions every day that can be teaching moments. These moments are part of the learning experience. Using them to shape your team will help your business run better.

Have you implemented an onboarding process? Do you have a detailed employee manual? Do you have actual systems in place? If so, great—you’re ahead of the curve.

But do you think that you’re training new and existing employees on every situation that will ever pop up during their shifts? Really, that’s impossible. Instead, be on the lookout for teachable moments. Put people on your leadership and empower them to do the same.

In turn, they’ll help empower your staff to make the “right” decisions for your business. And importantly, they’ll feel empowered to learn from mistakes so they don’t repeat them. Over time, and it won’t take long, you and your leadership team will be able to step away and work on other parts of the business. In fact, you’ll find that you can step away from the business from time to time.

People are going to make mistakes. That includes you. Don’t let these teachable opportunities go to waste.

Image: Hassan Pasha on Unsplash

KRG Hospitality. Boutique Hotels. Resorts. Properties. Consultant. Feasibility Study. Business Plan

Marina City Towers in Chicago, Illinois
by krghospitality krghospitality No Comments

KRG Hospitality now Serving Midwest Region

KRG Hospitality adds Midwest Region

Marina City Towers in Chicago, Illinois

KRG HOSPITALITY NOW SERVING MIDWEST REGION

Toronto-based hospitality industry consulting firm with offices throughout Canada and the USA now serving the Midwest through Chicago office.

CHICAGO, IL (March 17, 2023)—Today, KRG Hospitality announces the addition of the Midwest region of the US to their North American service area. The team will operate out of an office in Chicago, Illinois. However, the agency will serve Midwest markets outside of Chicago as well.

KRG is excited to announce their presence in the region and their ability to serve clients effectively. The agency will offer the full suite of their proven hospitality solutions, including: hourly consulting and coaching; complete feasibility studies, fully customized concept plans; in-depth, focused business plans; project support and management; food and/or drink menu development and consulting; and personalized F&B education.

“I was born in Chicago and first entered the hospitality industry in the Northwest Suburbs. I got my first taste of nightlife in Chicago’s incredible bar and nightclub scene,” says David Klemt, partner and director of business development of KRG Hospitality. “Those experiences shaped my entire hospitality career trajectory. It will be an honor to serve the great people of the Midwest and bring their hospitality visions to life.”

“2023 is turning into quite the growth year for KRG, with the addition of team members Kim Richardson and Jared Boller, and now an exciting new market,” says Doug Radkey, KRG Hospitality founder, president, and project manager. “We see great opportunity in the Midwest, not only in Chicago, but many of the surrounding regions. The food, beverage, and hotel scene is incredibly strong, and we’re open to the challenge of not only helping launch new hospitality brands but helping transform existing brands scale and be successful in the new era ahead.”

KRG is ready to work with clients of all experience levels in the Midwest. The consulting agency’s suite of solutions serve new operators looking to open their first concept and veterans seeking a rebrand or expansion. From independent pizzerias and QSRs to multi-unit regional chains and boutique hotels, and everything in between, the KRG team is eager to take client visions and transform them into brick-and-mortar realities.

To schedule an introductory call to learn how the KRG Hospitality team serves clients, please follow this link.

About KRG Hospitality

KRG Hospitality is a storied and respected agency with proven success over the past decade, delivering exceptional and award-winning concepts throughout a variety of markets found within Canada, the United States, and abroad since 2009. Specializing in startups, KRG is known for originality and innovation, rejecting cookie-cutter approaches to client projects. The agency provides clients with a clear framework tailored to their specific projects, helping to realize their vision for a scalable, sustainable, profitable, memorable, and consistent business. Learn more at KRGHospitality.com. Connect with KRG Hospitality and the Bar Hacks podcast on social: KRG Twitter, Bar Hacks Twitter, KRG Media Twitter, KRG LinkedIn.

Image: Tobias Brunner from Pixabay

KRG Hospitality Start-Up Restaurant Bar Hotel Consulting Consultant Solutions Plans Services

Pink neon "breathe" sign
by David Klemt David Klemt No Comments

The Crucial Role Systems Play

The Crucial Role Systems Play

by David Klemt

Pink neon

Having efficient systems in place does more than just streamline day-to-day restaurant, bar, and hotel operations and increase productivity.

Of course, that’s an excellent reason for operators to ensure they implement multiple systems. Front-of-house, back-of-house, and leadership team members need systems to perform at their best.

Six Sigma, kaizen, the technology stack, checklists, manuals, marketing strategies, the guest journey… Each of those systems and more are key to the long-term success of restaurant, bar, and hotel operations.

In fact, these systems should be developed and ready for implementation before the doors ever open for the first time.

Further, effective systems communicate the expectations for roles and tasks. Onboarding and training systems improve recruitment and retention. Also, they provide the transparency that today’s professionals expect from their employers. On top of that, systems help develop consistency, which keeps guests coming back.

A strong leadership team is effective at implementing and following systems. Overall, a strong team is one that understands, embraces, and adheres to a systematic approach to operations to achieve shared goals.

Simply put, the only way achieve success is to be strategic. One can’t be strategic without the implementation of systems.

But there’s another crucial role that systems play in restaurants, bars, and hotels.

Get Out

This topic is the byproduct of a recent KRG Hospitality client call. While explaining our approach to projects, our team touched on the importance of systems.

However, the topic wasn’t brought up simply to detail what systems the client would need to have in place.

A crucial role systems play in a successful operation is getting an owner away from their four walls. More importantly, allowing them to confidently and comfortably leave their business.

If an owner—be they a sole proprietor or business partner—can’t step away from their restaurant, bar, or hotel without worrying, something is wrong. Either the systems in place are ineffective, they don’t address every element of the business, they aren’t being adhered to, or they don’t exist.

Effective systems allow an owner to take time away from their business without micromanaging staff. Systems should also be in place so the owner or owners don’t feel anxious when they’re not working on the business.

Breathe

Stepping away to pursue a hobby, engage in self care, spend time with family and friends, or just because one wants to take a “lazy day” is necessary.

The strategic implementation of systems makes it possible for someone to take time away from their business. They can take that vacation, pursue that goal that doesn’t relate to their business directly, recharge, etc.

Of course, having systems in place also mean an owner and members of their team can travel. They can comfortably attend industry shows, make a guest appearance at a peer’s bar, or host a pop-up without worrying about the business. Having systems in place also makes it possible to travel to discover new F&B items, learn new techniques, and forge relationships with industry peers.

In other words, systems help owners and operators do something they likely haven’t done in months, if not years: breathe.

Image: Fabian Møller on Unsplash

Wendy's fast food restaurant exterior and sign
by David Klemt David Klemt No Comments

Wendy’s Looks to Ghosts for Growth

Wendy’s Looks to Ghosts for Growth

by David Klemt

Wendy's fast food restaurant exterior and sign

Wendy’s is the latest foodservice company to announce plans to open ghost kitchens in Canada, the US and the UK.

The fast-food giant’s scheme is large-scale and part of an expansive growth strategy.

Per the company, Wendy’s plans to open 700 ghost kitchens.

Embracing the Trend

Here’s a question for you: Do you hear and read the word “pivot” or the phrase “ghost kitchen” more often these days?

Ghost kitchens seem to be the pivot of choice for restaurant groups and enterprising tech companies looking to leverage the next big thing. (There, a sentence with both “pivot” and “ghost kitchen” in it,)

The trend also appears more often than not to be the domain of Big Business.

Former Uber executive Travis Kalanick is the founder of CloudKitchens. DoorDash is also entering the ghost kitchen space, running a trial in California to see if pursuing the idea is viable.

Now, enter Wendy’s, not exactly a mom-and-pop shop in the restaurant space.

Ghost vs. Virtual Kitchen

We don’t revel in the semantics game, necessarily. But we know people are going to refer to Wendy’s ghost locations as “virtual” kitchens as well.

However, ghost kitchens and virtual kitchens have unique definitions and characteristics.

Wendy’s isn’t creating a new brand with new items they’re preparing in their existing brick-and-mortar locations. Nor do they plan to do so with their new locations under constructions currently.

Were that the case, their strategy would be a virtual kitchen plan.

Instead, the 700 locations will be separate facilities without storefronts. Also, the units will focus solely on delivery, leveraging on-demand consumer behavior.

So, the lack of storefront is arguably the greatest defining characteristic of a ghost kitchen.

Conversely, a virtual kitchen operates in a location with a storefront. However, the brand on offer exists online and not in the brick-and-mortar world of an established brand. In essence, an existing brand is offering a brand that they don’t want to dilute what they’ve already built.

That’s a Lot of Ghosts

Per reporting, Wendy’s is joining forces with Reef Technology to open and operate their ghost kitchens.

At least 50 such locations are in the works to open this year. The other several hundred locations will open between 2022 and 2025.

That means we should see more than 150 Wendy’s ghost kitchens going live per year across Canada, the US and the UK.

Partnering with Reef Technology is an interesting and telling maneuver. Reef, per their website, focuses on “urbanization” and reshaping “our urban infrastructure.”

And as CEO Todd Penelow stated last week, Wendy’s doesn’t isn’t strong in urban areas. The vision for Wendy’s new strategy is to penetrate urban markets, adding new stores and new franchisees as the brand moves forward.

Should things go according to plan, Wendy’s expects to expand from 6,500 units worldwide to somewhere between 8,500 and 9,000 in 2025.

Image: Michael Form from Pixabay

Message icon and emoji in form of white neon sign
by David Klemt David Klemt No Comments

Leadership: What is the 10 Second Rule?

Leadership: What is the 10 Second Rule?

by David Klemt

Message icon and emoji in form of white neon sign

Anyone who spends any time reading publications that focus on business will come across the “10 Second Rule.”

So, what is this rule? And why should you care?

After all, many entrepreneurs who enter hospitality do so partially to reject “corporate life.”

Adapt Rather than Reject

First, let me say that we understand the allure of eschewing the traditional business world. KRG Hospitality is itself a rebellion against corporate life.

However, we believe that some proven business strategies absolutely have a place in independent restaurant and bar operations.

Indeed, there are lessons independent and boutique operators can learn from their chain and corporate counterparts.

Conversely, independent and boutique entrepreneurs can teach chains quite a few things.

In fact, there are chain operations out there that go to great lengths to appear independent. They strive to leverage the perception that they’re local and small.

So, rather than outright reject corporate strategies and tactics, operators should adapt them to streamline operations, reduce costs, maximize profits, and thrive long-term.

Ten Seconds

Hospitality and foodservice are fast-paced—that’s not news. When front and back of house find themselves in the weeds, passions rise quickly. Often, a blow-up is on the menu.

The same can be true during shift and staff meetings. Perhaps one or two employees aren’t engaging, or maybe there’s a long-simmering issue that’s close to boiling over.

Or, perhaps a change to operations and expectations—the reason for the meeting—immediately ruffles feathers. This rule also applies to one-on-one discussions between ownership, management, and staff.

Engaging in a dust-up can be tempting. Not many people appreciate having their authority questioned or perceived slight left unaddressed.

The 10 Second Rule I’m addressing pertains to communication. Of course, we all know communication is often two things: crucial and difficult.

Simply put, the 10 Second Rule tells us to be quiet for ten seconds. If tensions are rising (often accompanied by volume), put an end to the situation by shutting up and counting to ten.

According to people who champion this rule, a few things happen: the person who implements stops feeding the tension; that same person can now respond without emotion; it provides time to remember that the other party isn’t just an opponent; and the other party tends to also cool off.

It’s a simple rule that can have a huge impact on workplace culture. A healthier, more positive culture leads to happier staff, which improves recruiting and retention. That’s a huge payoff for just ten seconds.

Image: Jason Leung on Unsplash

Try the free KRG Hospitality Bar & Restaurant Start-up Calculator, rectangle
by David Klemt David Klemt No Comments

Introducing the KRG Start-up Calculator

Introducing the KRG Bar & Restaurant Start-up Calculator

by David Klemt

The KRG Hospitality Bar & Restaurant Start-up Calculator banner

We are incredibly excited to announce the launch of a helpful new tool for new and veteran operators alike: the KRG Hospitality Bar & Restaurant Start-up Calculator.

It couldn’t be simpler to use, and it will give users an idea of how much funding their project will require.

Just enter the square footage you desire or that you know you’ll need. Then, our brand-new calculator generates more than 40 key costs for your review.

Know Your Numbers

New or veteran, single unit or multi, success in this business requires an obsessive knowledge of numbers.

Costs, in particular, are operators’ eternal opponents. People incur the greatest costs before they ever open their doors for business.

Now, that’s just common sense on one hand. Securing a location, kitting out a kitchen, building out the front of house—these are five-, six- and sometimes even seven-figure endeavors.

However, on the other hand, the massive costs that come with opening a new restaurant or bar are often the result of surprises or insufficient planning.

That’s where our calculator comes in.

Here to Help

There’s a reason that the KRG Bar & Restaurant Start-up Calculator populates more than 40 fields.

That reason is simple: preparation is key.

For instance, does your current plan budget for utility deposits, business insurances, opening F&B inventory, soft opening and launch month strategies, the complete array of construction or renovation costs?

Here’s a real-world example of our calculator at work:

Let’s say you want to open a 2,200-square-foot pub. At the minimum, you should budget at least $2,547 for business insurances and nearly $8,200 for opening F&B inventory. And you’ll likely want to set aside at least $14,806 for emergencies.

Try it out for yourself today!

Disclaimer

As with any online calculator, this free calculator is to be used as an initial reference point. Every project is unique in its own way. Property and leasing costs, equipment, and renovation costs will heavily fluctuate based on market, concept, and the status/condition of a chosen property.

Image: KRG Hospitality

by David Klemt David Klemt No Comments

How to Address Temporary Restaurant and Bar Closures: 5 Social Media Examples

How to Address Temporary Restaurant and Bar Closures: 5 Social Media Examples

by David Klemt – 12/1/2020

Repeated restaurant and bar closures have, tragically, become a hallmark of 2020.

Operators have had to learn how to communicate closures to potential indoor guests, as well as delivery and takeout guests.

For most operators, the possibility of closing their doors—temporarily or otherwise—has moved well past “if” territory. At this point, it’s not even a question of when a restaurant or bar will have to close, it’s a matter of when it will happen again.

There are a few reasons a F&B business will have to close due to the Covid-19 outbreak: official mandate, reduced indoor and outdoor dining capacities, and voluntary temporary closures.

Mandated closures are, on the surface, straightforward. Government officials decree that certain types of businesses must close their doors by a specific date and time, and owners are expected to comply.

Closures induced by capacity restrictions are less straightforward. It has become woefully apparent that most lawmakers don’t understand (or don’t care) that at a certain threshold, reducing indoor and outdoor dining capacities is as good as forcing a restaurant or bar to close; the value proposition of remaining open simply isn’t there.

A voluntary temporary closure can come about because of capacity limitations, but they can also be the result of other factors. A significant workforce reduction, lack of traffic, rising costs of goods, or an internal Covid infection.

The stark reality is that the likelihood today’s operators are going to have to craft social media posts and emails announcing temporary (and possibly extended) closures is anything but slim.

Below are four examples of effective closure announcements that bars across America have posted to Instagram recently.

Machine, an upscale cocktail bar and restaurant in Chicago, made the difficult decision to close their doors to in-person dining guests throughout the remainder of 2020. The post addressed the reason for the decision but made it clear that Machine would continue to operate for delivery and curbside pickup orders placed online. Community health and safety was held up as a priority, and though the news was disappointing and no doubt difficult to break, Machine’s post was positive.

Award-winning Chicago cocktail bar Lazy Bird, located in the basement of the Hoxton hotel, was forced to close due to indoor dining restrictions. The post image was short and to the point, with the caption explaining in detail why the bar was closing temporarily. Lazy Bird is part of the Boka Restaurant Group and their post included a call to action for people to support venues within the portfolio that would still be able to offer outdoor dining, delivery and takeout.

Three days ago, award-winning restaurant Compère Lapin announced a temporary closure due to a team member being exposed to Covid-19. Like the Machine post, Compère Lapin’s message explained their decision was based on safety. Similar to Lazy Bird, the restaurant urged guests to visit James Beard Award winner Chef Nina Compton’s other restaurant, Bywater American Bistro (BABs).

In Woburn, Massachusetts, just ten miles northwest of Boston, the Baldwin Bar alerted guests to their temporary closure because a staff member tested positive for Covid-19. The message, like that of Machine’s, was transparent, straightforward, reassuring, and positive overall. Not only did the Baldwin Bar share that the venue was undergoing a deep clean, they named the company tasked with providing the service.

The Baldwin Bar, thankfully, got to post the following message a little more than a day after posting their closure announcement:

Operators who find themselves in the terrible and frightening position of having to announce a temporary closure would do well to follow the examples above. While hope isn’t a viable business strategy, a hopeful tone can help garner support from the community.

Equally important are an emphasis on health, safety and cleanliness so guests feel comfortable placing orders for delivery and takeout, and returning when the doors open once again. As difficult as it may be when faced with closure, focusing on the well-being of the guests can help ensure there are guests lined up upon reopening.

Image: Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash

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