The Healthy Menu Podcast – Episode 17: How to Operate in the New Post-COVID Era
Light Transcription
We want to highlight some of the important things to remember when it comes to reopening in this episode, and what exactly you can do to prepare your foodservice business for this long-awaited phase in the economy.
As the re-opening phase is underway, we find ourselves arriving in the post-COVID era. Undeniably, the coronavirus pandemic has had a significant impact on consumer behavior. Here we will look at some of the major consumer trends and how food services can pivot to meet the new demands. The good news is that customers are longing to return. Many are experiencing COVID fatigue and desire to escape the boredom of home.
Cleanliness
We’ve been inundated with messaging about the role of hygiene in preventing the spread of the coronavirus pandemic. Most consumers have learned to be hypervigilant about cleanliness – from Lysol wiping anything that comes into the home, to wearing disposable gloves in public. Food services have to meet a lot of regulations when it comes to sanitation and reopening. Now is a great time to share what you are doing to keep staff and customers safe from contaminated surfaces.
Value
As the threat of recession looms, many households with reduced incomes will be looking for ways to maximize their dollars. Consider adding value by increasing portion sizes so consumers can have leftovers for work/lunch options the next day. Nourish Food Marketing suggests developing lower-cost small-sized treats that will appeal to consumers during a recessionary spending period.
Post-COVID Profit Model
Business models used in 2019 or even in February of 2020 will not likely be successful in the post-COVID economy. The way food services operate cannot be the same as before. Restaurants reopening will face some major revenue challenges as a result of capacity restriction, change in sanitization procedures, customer’s being cautious about eating out, and disappearing catering and buffet revenues.
The reality is, we’re in an incredibly strange time right now. We don’t know what ‘normal’ will look like after this, but we’ll have to do what we, as humans do – adapt. We’ll establish the best way to work around this bump in the road and things will level out once again. But we have a lot of work to do until then.
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