Understanding your customers helps you build better relationships. A restaurant operator’s point of view may be different than that of a foodservice distributor when it comes to business interactions. This report details how restaurateurs think and act when ordering and receiving deliveries, based on an IFDA survey of 400 operators.
Highlights include:
- While a majority of operators make some preparations for receiving deliveries, not all are as ready as they could be. Ensuring drop-offs are smooth saves labor both in the restaurant kitchen and on the distribution truck, which in turn makes the delivery driver’s job easier.
- Nearly half of operators who regularly order ingredients and supplies from more than one source say they purchase from a larger number of distributors now than they did two years ago, indicating the competition in the space continues to grow.
- There’s some misalignment between how operators order and source ingredients now compared with how they would like to do so if distributors offered those options. For example, more operators say they prefer to place orders via smartphone app than by phone, though more are doing the latter currently.
- DSRs should primarily focus on identifying food cost savings, according to operators.
- The long-term growth in off-premise traffic at restaurants has led to evolving needs around staffing, frequency of orders and deliveries, LTOs, as well as food and packaging products.
Price: Free to all IFDA members as an exclusive member benefit.
