Challenging Industry, Challenging Resolves
- chefdcsa
- Jun 9, 2019
- 4 min read
Updated: Jun 11, 2019
Had a rather taxing day today. You know the ones, don't you? Shit was just piling, and there was no "Aha" moment where everything clicked into place and became fluid. So I sat myself down & took a breath. Lit a smoke, drank some coffee and took in my surroundings. Through the years I have become somewhat good and roping my stress levels in. You see, I don't allow myself the luxury of a freak out session, or meltdown. Not anymore. Every moment is to important, I cant allow them to be wasted on thoughts of life is hard, or why me.
This is hospitality after all, here you learn to power through the hard times or you get left behind. Now I see struggles all around me, I'm witness to the brutality this industry can deal. Now, with a ridiculous string of new taxes etc forcing restaurants into a corner, more and more proprietors have their backs against a wall.
A few years ago I was witness to a restaurant owner who's plain stubbornness resulted in them losing everything. She wouldn't see reason even though everyone in her life was pleading with her to make changes but she believed her way was right, was the only way she could mend her struggling café. It tanked. She lost everything she had invested and the look in her eyes when she realised it was done etched itself into my very structure. That scared animal sort of look, asking why is it being killed...
It was then I decided I would work my way into a position where I could better utilise my talents to help. The restaurant industry as a whole (ZA) is in its own unique recession. You see the signs if you look, look beyond the string of closing outlets. Look deeper & you see the divide between consumer and restaurant owners widening. Restaurant owners do not have a choice, they must up their prices but the consumers are up in arms at the slightest hint of higher prices. Funny thing that, these same consumers are the ones that are the loudest to complain that the groceries they purchase are far too expensive. Now what makes them think that the restaurant industry doesn't have to deal with the very same increases is beyond me, yet I digress.
Food prices have risen by around 10% over the last year.
Fuel is a whole rand more then this time last year.
Theres that silly sugar tax.
Minimum wage went up.
Other costs are also skyrocketing, think rent, liquor licenses, gas etc.
This is the pickle restaurant owners must now swallow. Factor in the sometimes devastating effect of the social ninja movement where establishments are often torn to shreds in minutes on Facebook and the like, how must the industry handle this one?
Its nearly impossible. We have become so used to the idea of restaurants closing that its just an every day occurrence. Not to the people suffering the closure. The only word that does any justice is devastating. The crippling concoction of uncertainty & failure can destroy a human being, not only for the owners, but the restaurant team as well. Its not easy finding work as it is and to come into work one day only to be told the restaurant is out of business... its not an easy scenario to navigate.
I am intent on doing my bit to help where I can, two of the restaurants that closed in Cape town last month I had approached a month or two before. I've trained myself to analyse F&B scenarios and even though I had never set foot in those places I could see the writing on their walls. I basically said "Im here, I can help" to which they both declined even with me offering them my services pro bono. It was extremely frustrating to see them close. I suppose people see consultants as a premium service and so are reluctant, but not always. I for one live this industry, and I feel for the owners battling to keep their places open everyday.
Yet I suppose sometimes its out of our hands. Our beloved industry can be a truly volatile bitch given the opportunity. There is no success for the weak willed, for those that refuse to move with the times.
But restaurant owners can help themselves out a bit. This must not be allowed to become a restaurant Vs consumer fight. Owners must find ways to better engage with the population, win them over, be more open. 86% of the people that took part in a poll I did a while back felt that restaurants were not engaging with the public enough. That's almost everyone and besides the figure showing me how proprietors have gotten it wrong also showed me how the public would welcome the opportunity to be apart of the solution. That's great news!
Humans can be surprising when the times get tough. So, to the owners out there, be more open to engaging with the public, your life blood. To the consumers, be more understanding & I plead with you to be careful of unintentional malicious reviews. 1 review might just be the nail in someone's coffin keeping in mind that all of us are trying to do better every day. Restaurants are the same, and they are not oblivious to bad service. Be more open to grabbing an owners attention and talking it out. Livelihoods are at stake here.
Have you been affected by a closure or know of someone struggling? Perhaps you have a personal view of how restaurants are handling their prices? Leave a comment & lets bring this subject more into the spotlight!
Comentarios