Ken Burgin

Restaurant Productivity

Financial Management

Improve Restaurant Management

Using the 80-20 Rule to Cut Costs and Improve Restaurant Management

The 80/20 Rule is simple – it says that a relatively small number of causes (about 20%) is responsible for a great number of effects (roughly 80%). This is good news – if you find out what the 20% are and work on them, you can have a significant impact on sales improvement, cost reduction and improved restaurant management. This often means 80% of your sales come from 20% of your customers (particular individuals, or

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Restaurant Sustainability

Restaurant Sustainability is About Success, Not Just Recycling.

Sustainability is about survival and prosperity – can we put that upfront? Now more than ever, with soaring supply prices, staff shortages and crazy weather, sustainability makes sense across all business areas – it’s much more than recycled packaging and local vegetables. So let’s look at how it can make your business stronger. I rethought my approach when I hosted a panel on the topic at the National Restaurant Conference in Melbourne. Melissa Goffin from

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How to Sell a Cafe

Podcast 12: Buying and Selling Cafes and Restaurants

In this podcast, Ken Burgin talks with Paul Leach from GSE Business Consultants about Buying and Selling Cafes and Restaurants. Paul is an experienced business consultant and broker: he originally trained as a chef and has many years of experience as a cafe and bakery owner. There are some great hospitality businesses for sale, and many that will be disappointing – it’s essential to understand the factors that make the difference between a good purchase

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Restaurant Payments

10 Ways to Make it Easier for Customers to Spend Money – Remove the Friction in your Cafe or Restaurant

Nothing should interrupt a customer who’s keen to give you money! The sales term is ‘grease the slide’ – removing any friction that stops a customer completing a sale. Check for any bumps or roadblocks you may have created – here are some solutions: Take more Credit Cards: Do you accept the whole range? Amex fees are a bit higher, but ‘no Amex’ rules get people offside, especially if they want the points. Are you

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C.R.C. – 3 Words to Get Much Better Results

If your staff management, menu updates, and marketing is inconsistent, these 3 words will get you back on track. They create much-needed discipline in an industry that’s often ‘hit and miss’, and they also show staff and public that your business is professional and reliable. Calendar + Reminders = Consistency. And consistency is what makes the difference between smart ideas, and the implementation of them that creates results. Consistency is what your competitors rarely achieve

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restaurant podcast

I love this business interview with Nick Kokonas of Alinea and Tock

Make time to listen to one of the best restaurant business podcasts I’ve heard to in a long time: Patrick O’Shaughnessy interviews Nick Kokonas, founder of 3 great Chicago restaurants Alinea, Next, and The Aviary. He’s also co-founder and CEO of Tock, an innovative restaurant booking system. Alinea broke the mould with the way they pre-sold bookings to avoid no-shows and cancellations, and introduced variable pricing (just like planes and hotels). Kokonas then developed the

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Planning for the Worst: If You Decide to Close your Cafe or Restaurant

As the COVID crisis drags on, there are many operators who are contemplating closing up shop and walking away. Before it was hard work and OK profits, not it’s still hard work and no profit for the forseeable future. The best way to get out is to sell your business, and a good broker will help you to do that quickly. But what if that’s not possible? Here are some resources that could be useful…

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Online Events for Restaurants

Talking Reset & Refocus with Dani Valent on the Dirty Linen Podcast

You can also listen to the podcast here. From Dani’s description: ‘Ken Burgin is a hospitality consultant who reckons he’s stopped hundreds of hospo wannabes from sacrificing their own homes and futures for a starry-eyed food dream. He’s a realist and a numbers guy who loves helping people see the beauty – and the necessity – of a nice set of numbers. He sees the pandemic as an opportunity to reset and refocus…’ See more

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Measuring Staff Costs – Go Deeper for More Control & Better Results

Wages costs and productivity are everyone’s big issue. To track performance, you need figures that are accurate, easy to find, and easy to explain to people they affect. Managers need them to benchmark rostering and hiring decisions. Staff need to understand the productivity that’s expected, and how they contribution to business success. Important Staff KPIs: Total cost of labour – wages plus all on-costs. Some aren’t paid at the same time as wages, but are

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The Fraud Triangle: Could it Hit Your Cafe or Restaurant?

Ever had a trusted employee rip you off? When I spoke with a bar owner recently, she was still in shock after uncovering a six-figure fraud carried out by a ‘trusted’ manager over more than 4 years. I hope that doesn’t sound familiar. Most people who commit fraud against their employer are not career criminals. The vast majority are trusted staff who have no criminal history and don’t even consider themselves lawbreakers. Donald Cressey, a

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