Amongst the recent trends to emerge along with online food delivery is the concept of cloud or ghost kitchens. Not only are they cheaper and more efficient for existing restaurateurs, but also present an excellent opportunity for first-time entrants into the F&B industry.
Before we delve deeper into this topic, let us briefly explain the concept of a cloud kitchen and how you, as a restaurateur, can make the most of this technology and logistics driven opportunity.
The ‘Cloud Kitchen’ model
Cloud Kitchens are essentially fully equipped centralised kitchens, not including any front of house operations. Its main objective is to prepare food for multiple brands and deliver it directly to the consumer. Delivery kitchens are another similar concept as cloud kitchens, except they operate under only one owner or a single brand.
With cloud kitchens, you do not need to have separate kitchens for every restaurant brand. Neither are the chefs restricted to preparing meals for a single brand. They can be involved with multiple brands operating from the same cloud kitchen.
How can a cloud kitchen benefit you as a restaurateur?
Taking into consideration the current market conditions, operating a full-service restaurant could be challenging for new entrants in the food and beverage industry. The growing trend of online delivery aggregators has made the F&B segment more competitive, making it harder for restaurants to increase footfall and maintain margins.
Operating out of a cloud kitchen allows restaurateurs to lower their risks, by providing them an opportunity to cut down on several operational costs that are associated with having a complete front of house and a dine-in experience. We have listed below a few benefits of using cloud kitchens to expand your restaurant business.
While expanding a restaurant’s reach through cloud kitchens comes at a price, the benefits far outweigh the associated costs. Restaurants get an opportunity to expand their reach and increase their customer base with lower investments and better margins. Existing restaurants can focus their efforts on their store operations, while new restaurants get a chance to ‘test’ their concept before incurring a heavy investment.
If you would like to understand more about how to tie-up with a cloud kitchen for your restaurant brand, Ribbon Consulting can help you. Our restaurant consulting solutions are tailored to each clients’ needs. From concept development to project management and execution, we can help you connect with the right cloud kitchen or even successfully launch your own cloud kitchen operations.