Will Groupon be the next Pets.com?

by Nate DaPore — President and CEO, PeopleMatter

Groupon continues to be front and center in the foodservice industry. A day doesn't go by where I don't hear the name Groupon from an operator, see an RSS feed…

Teach employees how to react in dangerous situations

Yasin Sara was robbed at his Y & S Supermarket this past week in Tampa, FLa. Sadly the robbery turned tragic when Sara confronted the gunman and was shot…

Why isn't your franchise growing?

by Cherryh Cansler — Publisher, FastCasual.com

Despite the poor economy, pizza franchises are booming, according to a recent report released by Franchisedirect.com. It studied 20 top pizza franchises and…

How to survive a down economy

by Scott Sharon — CEO, START

In my last blog I commented on how our poor economy was slowing down implementation of new technologies such as digital menu boards. I received a lot of…

Are you really ready for carry out?

by Ed Zimmerman — President, pizza.com

More and more Americans order prepared food to go – and eating establishments that cater to this trend are poised for a healthy increase in incremental sales.

Are you delighting your customers?

by Janet Eden-Harris — CMO & SVP Strategy, Market Force

The growth in our industry is just mind-boggling when you think about it. According to the NRF, you and I now spend 49 cents of every food dollar on dining…

Hold the pine nuts

by Jennifer Wright — CFO, Ecovention, LLC

So a funny thing happened to me the other day. While munching on blueberries one morning, I experienced, quite suddenly, a bitter, metallic and very pervasive…

Mom-and-pop shops targeted by cyber thieves

by Brad Cyprus — Chief of Security and Compliance, Vendor Safe Technologies

A Wall Street Journal article, Hackers Shift Attacks to Small Firms, has many more people paying attention to security issues, and for those of us in the…

Burglary prevention tips

Restaurant owners face many assaults on their businesses. The perpetual rise of commodity prices, unexplained inventory shortages, labor issues, and the…

Gluten-free isn’t trendy

by Betsy Craig — pres, menutrinfo.com

At least once a week I get asked "How long do you think this Gluten-Free fad will be around?" It is an interesting question in that many wish it would just go…

6 things retailers can teach pizza operators

by Cherryh Cansler — Publisher, FastCasual.com

Attracting good employees and improving customer service were top discussion points at a conference I attended last week. Although pizza wasn't on the agenda…

Drive productivity, compliance and revenue through automation

by Amanda Richardson — Senior Vice President of Product and Marketing, Snagajob

The use of too much paper cuts hiring efficiencies and weighs down your business. In fact, when reviewing the hiring practices of a publically traded…

Patents are measure of food innovation

by Darrel Suderman — President, Food Technical Consulting

I recently taught a course called Advanced Batter and Breading Technology at JBT Food Tech's technology training center in Sandusky, Ohio. Twenty years ago two…

Use of sea salt proves natural foods are taking over

by Melissa Abbott — Director, Culinary Insights, The Hartman Group, Inc

In its first fry redesign in 41 years, Wendy's recently unveiled Natural-Cut Sea Salt Fries — revamped 100 percent russet potatoes, cut with the skin on and…

A good business plan is good business

by Marla Topliff — President, Rosati's Pizza

A robust business plan is the first major test of your commitment to your business. It is the written result of extensive data collection and market research…

Tableside POS is a game changer

by Nate DaPore — President and CEO, PeopleMatter

Higher sales, fewer servers, faster table turns, and happier, more loyal customers – Tableside Point-of-Sale offers all this and more. I foresee that it is…

Mobile website or app: Which is better for your business?

by Nash Sherchan — VP Marketing, iMediAd Hospitality

The one thing I always get asked about going mobile is whether a restaurant should build a mobile site or mobile app.

Slow economic recovery slows digital menu board deployments

by Scott Sharon — CEO, START

Many of us have been working hard on the development of digital menu boards (and digital signage) and investing capital for several years because we believe…

You can’t get mustard only here

Always make sure you're in the right place.

Drive sales with kid-centric meals

by Ed Zimmerman — President, pizza.com

Many pizzerias feel the pinch of a stubbornly slow economy. High gas and food prices have many families cutting back on dining out or trading down to less…