By Nate Schwandt
Rising food, energy and labor costs have hurt pizzerias around the country. In recent years, both big chains and plucky independents have gone bankrupt as escalating rents and rampant inflation took hold, making turning a profit a big challenge in a competitive marketplace.
While pizzerias can increase their menu prices, these actions can hurt sales volumes and drive customers away. However, optimizing the supply chain is one of the best ways to drive down operating costs and stay profitable.
Let’s explore what pizzeria owners can do to thrive in these challenging times.
Related: Why this red-hot pizzeria is adding extra-large pies to the menu
For starters, a great pizza needs excellent ingredients, and a financially viable pizzeria needs optimal ingredient sourcing. Here are some of the best ways to transform your ingredient sourcing:
Streamline Your Menu
Many restaurants streamlined their menus post-pandemic to counter the surge in costs. While offering a broad selection is good for consumer choice, putting a greater focus on the items that actually sell high volumes is good practice. In a National Restaurant Association article, one general manager said any ingredient she purchases must be cross-utilized across the menu, stating, “If I don’t use it across multiple applications, the expense becomes insane.”
Supplier Diversity
Working with a single supplier is good for building deeper relationships and even negotiating discounts. However, being over-reliant on one source is risky. Partnering with multiple suppliers is smart because you can deal with price fluctuations by choosing the most competitive prices. Similarly, it ensures that you’re not as exposed to supply chain disruptions.
Outsourcing Logistics
Third-party logistics providers have become increasingly relevant for supply chain management in pizzerias and other restaurants. These services help restaurants outsource things like inventory management and supplier coordination, allowing managers and chefs to focus on what they do best: making great food.
These vendors help restaurants reduce transportation costs by consolidating shipping from a diverse range of suppliers. They can also help pizzerias drive down ingredient costs by managing large volumes of shipments across multiple clients.
Use Local, Seasonal Ingredients
Where possible, use locally sourced seasonal ingredients. It’s a great way to support local farmers and keep your menu fresh and interesting. However, there are other practical reasons why buying seasonal ingredients is smart. In many scenarios, seasonal ingredients are easier to grow and require less pesticides and energy. Farmers can pass down these lower production costs to their suppliers, meaning prices are more competitive.
Additionally, when ingredients are in abundant supply, this can be reflected in their price. Finally, buying locally means the food has to travel less distance, meaning it’s fresher and tastier while incurring lower transport costs.
How Partnering with Local Suppliers Can Speed Up Delivery and Cut Costs
What pizzeria couldn’t benefit from quicker, lower-cost ingredients? There are many compelling reasons to partner with local suppliers in your area, especially for pizzerias and Italian restaurants.
Here are a few of the more considerable benefits:
- Reduced distances mean that orders get to you quicker and fresher and with lower transportation costs attached.
- Using local suppliers means you can replenish your inventory more regularly. The net result is leaner inventory that takes up less storage. You’ll also save money on lower ingredient waste.
- Local suppliers are more responsive, allowing you greater flexibility as you adjust to demand.
- If any issues arise, you can resolve them far more quickly with a local supplier.
- Suppliers in your area have a deeper understanding of the intricacies of the local market.
- Working with nearby suppliers helps your local economy.
Of course, working with local brands and suppliers is also good for your brand. It can signal to people in your community that your pizzeria is committed to sustainability, allowing you to attract like-minded customers.
Using Technology to Simplify Your Pizzeria’s Logistics
Logistics is complex and relies on accurate real-time information. Here’s how technology can make supply chain management more user-friendly.
Inventory management software: These tools help you automate ordering, track ingredients in real time, and even predict demand, which takes the guesswork out of ordering. Additionally, by having more control and oversight over your ingredients, you can gain deeper insights into where and why spoilage happens, ensuring you can make money-saving, data-driven decisions when ordering.
Digital transformation: Ordering over the phone and managing paperwork takes away the time you need to run your pizzeria. Supplier portals let you order ingredients, track deliveries and manage invoices digitally. Again, this saves time and lets you invest more time into your core tasks, like marketing, customer services and making great pies.
Analytics: Supply chain management tools give you the data you need to make the right decisions. You can track things like supplier performance, delivery times and even how much of each ingredient you actually use, allowing your business to run more efficiently.
Maximizing Freshness Through Effective Delivery and Logistics
If you get your delivery and logistics right, you can ensure a consistent supply of fresh ingredients. That means your pies are at their best, helping your restaurant grow through return customers and word-of-mouth. Here are a few actionable tips for optimizing your delivery and logistics operations:
- Ensure your fridges and food storage facilities have the right temperature to keep each ingredient at its best.
- Use inventory management data to make your deliveries as lean as possible. If your holding time is too long, ingredients will lose freshness. So, aim to produce some version of the just-in-time (JIT) inventory model for your restaurant.
- Ensure that everyone is committed to a strict First-In, First-Out (FIFO) inventory model. This process helps reduce spoilage and waste while maintaining standards.
- Train all your employees on how they should receive, store and handle ingredients. If everyone is on the same page, you’ll be able to keep your inventory fresh while decreasing the amount of profit-shredding waste at your restaurant.
- Cheese, leafy greens, fresh vegetables, and meat are highly sensitive. Refrigerated trucks or temperature-controlled storage containers are a good choice here. So, seek out suppliers who take adequate care of these perishable items, especially if you’re operating in a region with higher temperatures.
Nate Schwandt is director of marketing for Sheer Logistics. With nearly a decade of experience in the logistics industry, Nate leverages a diverse background that spans roles in marketing, sales, account management, technology, and customer success.
