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4 Skills You Need to Run a Profitable Restaurant Business

Running a Restaurant is Not for the Faint of Heart Running a restaurant isn’t something anyone does for easy profits. Sixty-percent of restaurants (and in some regions, 90%) fail within their first year, according to Philip B. Stark of the University of California, Berkeley. Even when everything works, industry profit margins are typically stuck in the low single digits (National Restaurant Association). But There is an Upside So, are restaurant entrepreneurs crazy? No. After all, someone’s turning a profit. Restaurant industry sales are set to exceed a record $863 billion in 2019 (that’s 3.6% year-on-year growth). Consumer confidence is so strong that the National Restaurant Association’s 2019 annual report refers to it as “pent-up...

Why Brick and Mortar Stores Aren’t Going Anywhere

Brick and mortar stores were supposed to be finished. The future of retail is online, industry experts have been saying for a while now. And sure, it’s true that consumer habits have changed, and we all know of traditional retail businesses - large and small - that have suffered from the ‘Amazon effect’. The low margins and convenience of internet shopping have made it seem like just a matter of time until traditional stores were a thing of the past.Here’s the thing: it mostly hasn’t happened that way. As we head into 2020, the ecommerce sector is hovering at around 12% of total retail sales (Statista). Brick and mortar businesses still dominate the marketplace - and some are even experiencing something of a revival. Think about this:...

Big Business vs. Small Business: 4 Reasons Bigger Isn’t Always Better When it Comes to Employee Experience

The reality is, when it comes to hiring, big corporations are often at an advantage. They can attract talented people with big, resume - building projects and supercharged growth opportunities. In an historically tight labor market, it might seem tougher than ever for small businesses to attract top talent. However, small business owners shouldn’t feel too bad. Here’s why.While they might get less time in the limelight, companies with fewer than 100 employees do still employ more than a third of the U.S. workforce, according to the most recent census. What is attracting these employees to smaller scale operations rather than big names? A lot of it comes down to having their voices heard, being part of great teams, and seeing the...

The Challenges of Scheduling a Multi-Generation Workforce

For the first time in history, there are now five generations working side-by-side. Generation Z (born after 1997) is leaving college and entering the workforce and Traditionalists (born before 1946) are still contributing. This broad range of experiences is great for a dynamism and getting a different perspective but can create challenges for managers.Managing a multi-generational workforce requires understanding the needs and working styles of employees born over fifty years apart. Over the past five decades technology has revolutionized the way we work, but that’s not all that’s changed—so have values. Different generations have different expectations about things like feedback and career development but will likely also differ when...