Our 5 Favorite Tips for Investing in New Restaurant Equipment
Source: Unsplash James Covin
Restaurant operators don’t have to go far to find advice about investing in new equipment for their restaurant. Just “Google” the topic and a long list of advice appears!
To help focus the advice, we’ve culled through the lists. Here are our five favorite tips to get you started!
1) Start with your menu
“Your recipes are the best place to start,” this article suggests. Go line by line through each recipe on the menu and list the equipment needed. This thoughtful exercise helps operators to stay mindful about equipment use. Taking an analytical approach like this can help an operator to prioritize which equipment to invest in first or may help an operator to make a choice about where to invest in higher price or higher quality equipment based on its usefulness — or frequency of use.
Tip: Consider how the Eate app may help you with a line of sight to recipe and ingredient lists.
2) Research, research, research!
Research, research, research! Don’t go into an equipment buying decision without taking time to research needs. It is important to understand how your purchase fits into the business model. This means not only considering how the menu aligns with your purchase but also factors like: “size of the equipment, its functionality, and how it integrates with your existing kitchen layout.” Research before a purchase decision helps an operator to make smart decisions about ongoing energy use of equipment, warranties, and even the quality of the equipment.
Tip: Consider reaching out to the Eate team, to help you bring a data-driven approach to your research.
3) Make a strategy
An operator with a strategy around equipment purchase decisions stays ahead of the game. This may seem obvious, but operators are busy and it’s easy to fall into the trap of buying a replacement item—only when it breaks down. Then the crunch is on! Rather, make reviewing your restaurant equipment a part of your operational strategy and set aside time to review your plan regularly.
Tip: Consider working with the Eate team to establish a data-driven plan for your business.
4) Keep practicality in mind
It's one thing to think about the overall strategy and another thing to manage the day-to-day maintenance of equipment. Ask: How easy (or difficult) will it be to maintain the equipment for your staff? The daily maintenance can add up to a big cost of business if the equipment is difficult to upkeep. Equipment with minimal upkeep can be a big time (and cost) savings for you and your team. Keep practicality in mind as you make equipment purchase decisions.
5) Keep the future in mind
Finally, our favorite tip of all. Keep the future in mind! This article points out that part of a robust strategy for equipment includes monitoring what might happen next. This means as operators craft their equipment-buying strategy that they keep an eye on possible growth, or expansion needs. Remember the menu? Keep in mind that you may shift or add some recipes in the future. Monitoring the future can help operators to plan for that possible growth including budgeting for new or different equipment needs now.
Investing in new equipment? We think our five favorite tips will get you off to a great start!
