MANY RESTAURANTS-ONE KITCHEN(CLOUD KITCHEN)

The rapid growth of Online Food ordering sector creates new business opportunities for existing & upcoming restaurants to grow their business, one such upcoming trend is the Cloud Kitchens business model. Nowadays all the restaurants you visit collaborate with online food ordering portals like Zomato, Swiggy, etc,. to ease the ordering process and expand their business as well.

While we were busy licking out fingers we never realized where is the restaurant from where we are getting this.

So,What Is The Cloud Kitchen Model?

 A cloud kitchen/ Dark Kitchens / Ghost Kitchens / Cloud Kitchens / Virtual Kitchens is a restaurant that has no physical space and no dine-in or takeaway facility as it does not exist as a restaurant of any sort. It relies entirely on third-party integrations or home delivery orders placed on call or through a website.

The cloud kitchen format gives the restaurant the flexibility to more than brand using the same kitchen infrastructure. For example, if a restaurateur who owns a delivery kitchen and delivers South Indian food, decides that he should start delivering Mexican food as well, but instead of adding Mexican to the menu of his current band, he can start operating a different brand that sells Mexican from the same delivery kitchen. Customers are most likely order pasta from a restaurant named La Italiana instead of Punjabi Delight even if the same chef is preparing the pasta. But the customers don’t need to know that!

Here’s what happens exactly in a cloud kitchen model:

Orders come in, meals are cooked, packed and then whisked immediately to their delivery locations by the assigned fleet. Quite easy isn't it!!

There are many other advantages of it also:

Lower real estate costs, since you’re removing table servicing out of the equation and offering a delivery-only service, you’ll save a huge amount on real estate costs. Also, the best thing about cloud kitchens is that you don’t need heavy investments to begin. You can start small but expand fast. Once you build a brand and get loyal customers, expanding to new localities and even new menu variety gets easier.

There are cons too in this business Cons, online only visibility as there is no physical restaurant present, challenging brand building brand recognition becomes a big challenge as there is less customer interaction.

To overcome this cons marketing plays a major role as cloud kitchens have very less visibility comparing to restaurants with physical outlets. Hence it is important to have a strong online presence. Social media sites such as facebook, instagram, pinterest can helps to spread a word about business. Regular updates to engage customers makes them try out your food. Online listings is also a must to enhance your presence. SMS and email marketing helps  to notify your customers about the launch of new items, discounts, etc. For the offline presence, pamphlets mentioning the discounts, signature items, contact details, etc could be circulated. One can also put up a stall at carnivals, food fest to announce presence louder. 

Very important roles is being played by the material used to pack, the design involved, the way it is packed plays an important role in building repeat business with loyal customers. Using modern technology once we get the database and food habits of loyal customer we can offer discounts accordingly.

So you might be thinking what all you need to start a cloud kitchen business.

Starting a cloud kitchen involves various decisions. From the delivery areas and restaurant name to equipments, licensing and so much more. Don’t worry we have a step by step list to help you in planning your next action.

Location

Keep these elements in mind while choosing your cloud kitchen’s location:

·         Accessible for target delivery areas – As all your orders will be delivery-only, it’s important to ensure that the location of your kitchen is near the locations you want to deliver for.

·         Affordable – That’s the main point of opening a cloud kitchen – saving on rent and other real estate costs. Make sure you have a cost-effective space and you make the most of it.

·         Windows and space to breathe – Cloud kitchens are usually built in closed spaces, garages, and small complexes. With hectic cooking happening all day – it becomes even more important to make sure that the space has windows and enough space to breathe for your cooks and staff.

·         Safety-checked – Safety should always be your priority, make sure all the health, electric and other concerns are double checked before signing up for the place.

Technology

Let’s talk about 2 pillars of restaurant technology that are essential for setting up a cloud kitchen:

Online Ordering Platform

In a delivery-only model, your online ordering platform or app is the front-of-house place where your customers interact with the brand. From a profitability point of view too, it’s always preferred to get orders on your own platform so that you do away from the third-party commissions.

POS & Order Management

When running a cloud-kitchen, having a restaurant POS that helps you integrate with different tools and runs on cloud-tech will make your life much easier. Another must-have technology is an order management system that can bring orders from different third-parties into one place, as fast as possible.

Equipment

From racks to oven and other electrical items, equipment forms a major part of setting up your kitchen.

Licenses

Licensing is a really important step whenever starting a new restaurant. From your FSSAI license to GST registration and various municipal clearings for trade and safety, it is advisable to consult fellow restaurant owners or an agent that can help you in making a list and acquiring them all before starting out full-fledged operations.

People

Running a faced-paced delivery kitchen can get very hectic. You need people that can handle that level of pressure and still churn great orders.

Here are a few roles that are necessary to be present and filled for a cloud kitchen:

·         Chefs

·         Operation Handlers

·         Cleaning/Housekeeping Staff

·         Your own Delivery Fleet or Delivery Partner

Discussing of cloud kitchen how can we forget about Rebel Foods, it gained a head start as it pivoted from a quick service resturant to pure cloud kitchen. The company has built 10 brands each serving different segments Behrouz Biryani, Fassos, Oven Story Pizza, Mandarin Oaks, Firangi bake, The Good Bowl, Kettle and Keg, Lunch Box and Navrasam all catering to different cuisine and are made in same kitchen.

Rebel Foods  has silently raised $125 million (about ₹864 crore) in a fresh round of funding, led by New York-based technology-focused hedge fund Coatue Management.  Series-D round, which is reported to have valued the nine-yearold company at $500-525 million and closed last month, also saw capital injection by Indonesian ride-hailing firm Go-Jek and Goldman Sachs.

Lastly, Are you ready for the time when even more than half of the restaurant consumption happens outside the restaurant? It’s certainly around the corner.