We’re in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic and governments are announcing that all pubs, clubs, bars and restaurants should close for dining and all people should self isolate if possible. This is a very challenging time for hospitality businesses.
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However, the demand is higher than ever! Customers still need to eat and drink and the supermarkets are struggling to meet demand. With most people now practicing social distancing, the opportunity to directly supply food, drink (including alcohol if permitted) and essential items for pickup or delivery has increased exponentially.
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Enterprising Hospitality business owners will now see that if they quickly pivot and turn their establishments towards pick up and take away that they can meet this demand and sail through this uncertainty with their businesses, workforce, suppliers and sanity intact!
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Not only can business owners keep the cash flowing but this transition is essential as people urgently need quick and easy access to food during this time to help essential workers, local customers and vulnerable people stay fed and healthy, and to keep the economy pumping.
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With a variety of online food ordering platforms such as Deliveroo, Just Eat & Uber Eats, it is entirely feasible to keep staff in work and continue to make money for your business, making minimal sacrifices.
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We have put together a set-by-step guide below to enable hospitality businesses to seize this opportunity, but in fact even retail businesses, bars, pubs, theatres, gyms, coffee shops, delis, bakeries or members clubs that currently serve food, coffee, soft drinks or alcohol (where permitted) can transition to becoming a takeaway, in no time at all.

10 steps to turn your business into a Takeaway

Decide - Pickup,
Takeaway or both?

Do you want to just offer pickup? Or do you want to use a delivery partner such as Deliveroo, Just Eat & Uber Eats. They will charge a fee but help you reach many more customers and start up quickly. If you already have a loyal following or don’t fancy the fee, you can also do it yourself or employ your own driver(s). For customers with an Epos Now system you can request to work with Deliveroo directly from your back office.

Simplify your Menu

With in house dining, it may be easy to have a sprawling menu with complex dishes, but when looking at large volume deliveries you will want to simplify menu items so they can be quickly prepared and easily put into containers for transportation. With a decent point of sale system you can disable any menu items saving them for later or quickly create simpler menus that are cheaper, quicker and simpler to create.

Source Containers

This may seem like an obvious one, but with many businesses scrambling to do the same, less obvious sources like Amazon or your local supermarket may be less in demand than catering supply companies. Alternatively, if you are the UK you can head over to Packaging Environmental and use the code PAY15 for 15% off your orders.

Solid Inventory Management

Stock can be hard to keep track of at the best of times, moreso when you have orders going out here, there and everywhere. With an in depth inventory management system, you’ll be able to track individual stock levels as well as menu items.

Get an Ordering System
in Place

Taking orders on paper to go to the kitchen may not be the most efficient system for takeaways as orders are lower value but more frequent. Orders that are misplaced or lost cause impacts to customers and in turn more negative reviews. Ensure your ordering system is fully integrated with a kitchen display or kitchen printer so you can better plan for capacity and be free to keep the orders coming in.

Get an Efficient Payment System

Given the current health crisis and social distancing advice, it’s better to only take card payments over the phone or online and with an integrated card payment system which links with your website and point of sale system and is quick to set up.

Update your Website

Or make one in minutes with Shopify or Wix.com, both of which even include online ordering. A lot of customers who work with a partner (such as Uber Eats) normally skip this step and just refer orders to the delivery partner for processing.

Let your customers know

Use mailchimp to quickly email all of your customers and regulars, also make sure you update all of your social media accounts and channels stating clearly that you are now temporarily transitioning into a takeaway and inform them exactly how they can order from you. Try our mailchimp integration free for 6 months.

Attract new customers

Flyers are a great way to get the message out and these are available currently with a 25% discount for per 1,000 at vistaprint.com. We would suggest that you create a new promotion with a code on flyers so you can track the orders and measure the success of each campaign.

Build Loyalty

Offer all new customers a discount (our suggestion is 10%) for their first order and ensure you save all your customers phone numbers and email addresses (all good POS systems do this). You can now track which customers are ordering the most and reward them and send special offers to customers who have ordered before. Loyalty systems are one the easiest ways to boost revenue and keep your audience engaged. We are offering 3 months free loyalty integration for all new customers.

We are here to support all of our customers during what is undoubtedly a tough time and will provide as much help and advice possible to ensure you continue to be profitable.
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If you would like to know more about how to turn your business into a takeaway, you can contact us below and we will be happy to help

Become a Takeaway: A hospitality survival guide