Do you still use spreadsheets to manage your restaurant inventory? If so, you know exactly how challenging and time-consuming it is. In 2021, there has to be a better way to track food.
In this article, we talk about how to build restaurant inventory management software from scratch and when it’s better to use an off-the-shelf solution. But first, let’s go back to spreadsheets for a minute to outline what problems you can get rid of by creating a brand-new food inventory management system.
Reasons why inventory management software for restaurants is better than spreadsheets
In addition to being cumbersome, there are a number of other good reasons to stop using spreadsheets:
- Vulnerable to human errors
- Require plenty of time to plan and design
- Don’t give you Cost of Goods Sold (COGS)
- Don’t generate reports
- Are difficult to analyze
- Don’t provide you with historical inventory data
- Don’t ensure real-time updates
Unlike old-school spreadsheets, inventory software for restaurants tracks your restaurant’s inventory automatically and helps you manage your inventory effectively.
What is a restaurant inventory management system?
A restaurant inventory management app provides restaurants with an up-to-date and accurate picture of their food inventory and helps them manage stock levels and purchase orders.
Source: dribbble.com by reut kabilo
These days, an inventory management system for restaurants is a must, not a luxury. This kind of software makes restaurant inventory tracking easier and helps restaurants:
- Know their food inventory in real time
- Automate inventory management
- Decrease the number of employees required to manage inventory
- Get control of food costs
- Minimize food waste and prevent losses
- Automate the supply chain
- Streamline operations
- Reduce human error in inventory management
What features does your restaurant inventory software need?
The features you include in your restaurant management system can vary depending on what you want to accomplish. Below, we outline functionality that can be helpful.
Inventory management: Upload and update
This is the main feature of restaurant food inventory management software. You need to be able to upload ingredients and menu items and update their quantities. You should be able to enter data such as product name, supplier, quantity received, and Universal Product Code (UPC).
To update inventory automatically, integrate your management system with your PoS system so that each time a customer purchases food and drinks, the system instantly updates your stock levels.
Source: calazan.com
Real-time alerts
Enable your restaurant software to alert you when a menu item is about to run out. Also, you can set notifications when any menu item becomes less profitable or when your suppliers’ prices rise. This notification can be an email, push notification, or dashboard notification.
Read more - Develop a restaurant inventory management system
Do you still use spreadsheets to manage your restaurant inventory?
If so, you know exactly how challenging and time-consuming it is.
In 2019, there has to be a better way to track food.In this article, we talk about how to build restaurant inventory management software from scratch and when it’s better to use an off-the-shelf solution.
But first, let’s go back to spreadsheets for a minute to outline what problems you can get rid of by creating a brand-new food inventory management system.
Read more if you have questions on how to create an inventory system
