Inventory in the restaurant - digital, reliable and simple

As a restaurateur, you know the problem: stocktaking is usually an unloved chore. However, a digital inventory in the kitchen and bar can work wonders, as it makes stocktaking quick, precise and uncomplicated. Instead of spending hours counting all your stock with a clipboard and pen and then laboriously typing the figures into Excel, you can get a reliable digital snapshot of your inventory in no time at all. This allows you to maintain full control with minimal effort - whether in a single restaurant or a small restaurant group.

What makes stocktaking in a restaurant so challenging

Stocktaking in the food service industry brings with it special challenges. You have to keep an eye on many different items:

• Enormous variety of items: from fresh food to wine, beer and soft drinks to spirits - the product range in the restaurant is huge. Spirits and food alike have to be taken into account in the inventory, which increases the workload.
• Distributed storage locations: Your stock is not in one place. Cold rooms, freezers, dry storage, counters and bars - stock is stored everywhere. This makes counting all the stock very time-consuming.
• Many consumables: Non-food items such as to-go packaging, napkins or cleaning products are also part of the inventory and must be counted. They must not be forgotten when taking stock.
• Staff & time pressure: In hectic shift work, there is hardly any time for stocktaking. Counting often has to be done after work, when the team is already exhausted.

The most common problems of classic inventories

With conventional inventory methods, you always come up against the same hurdles:

• Paperwork and errors: Notepads, clipboards, Excel lists - it's easy for errors to creep in during manual stocktaking. Transposed figures or illegible notes can distort the results.
• No overall view: Companies with several locations in particular often lack a central overview. Each branch counts for itself with its own lists. Without standardized inventory software for restaurants, it is difficult to keep track of the stock at all locations.
• Time and stress: A traditional stocktake takes a lot of time and is therefore often postponed until the end of the month or year. The result: a hectic rush at the last minute - stocktaking becomes a stress factor.

But there is another way.

How BarBrain relieves restaurants

Modern inventory software for the hospitality industry like BarBrain is specially designed to take the pressure off you and your team. BarBrain offers functions to make stocktaking digital, reliable and simple:

• Simple quantity recording: Instead of laboriously scanning each bottle using a barcode or manually entering numbers, you can conveniently enter stock levels using a slider or +/- button. This is lightning fast and avoids input errors - even opened bottles can be recorded precisely.
• Individual storage structure: BarBrain adapts to your business. You can divide your inventory into any number of categories and storage locations - e.g. kitchen, bar, cellar or main warehouse. In this way, the app maps your business structure, but you still keep an overview of the total stock.
• Store-capable and centrally analyzable: Do you operate several locations? BarBrain enables standardized stocktaking across all branches. All data is centralized so that you can keep an eye on the total stock even for a small restaurant group.
• Offline mode: No internet in the cold store? No problem - you can also take an inventory without Wi-Fi or a mobile network. BarBrain saves all entries offline and synchronizes them as soon as you are online again. A permanent connection is not necessary.
• Intuitive & ready to go: The app is user-friendly, so your team doesn't need lengthy training and can get started straight away - without disrupting ongoing operations.

Your advantages with BarBrain

• Up to 60% time saving: With BarBrain, you can complete your inventory in less than half the time. What used to take four hours is now done in under two hours. You can use the time saved for your guests.
• Reliable inventory data: You receive an accurate inventory on the reporting date that you can trust. Transposed figures, estimates and gaps are a thing of the past.
• Recognize shrinkage at an early stage: Clear inventory figures help to uncover stock shortages and losses. For example, you can recognize when spirits are dwindling unusually quickly or food is missing. This allows you to counteract theft and spoilage in a targeted manner and plan your goods purchases better.
• Suitable for kitchen and bar: Whether food in the kitchen or drinks at the bar - BarBrain covers all areas. You can also easily add seasonal items or changing offers so that you always have a complete overview.

BarBrain has made day-to-day work in the L'Osteria restaurants much easier. "We save at least two to three hours per inventory," reports Appo. The app is not only quick and easy to use, but also makes the process more pleasant for employees. "Stocktaking used to be a tedious task, but now employees almost enjoy doing it because it's super quick and no longer stressful," he adds.

Conclusion: Inventory in the restaurant - child's play with BarBrain

The days of cumbersome clipboard stocktaking are over. With a digital inventory, you can record your stock efficiently and reliably - without stress and without hours of counting. BarBrain makes stocktaking in the restaurant child's play - the app saves time and avoids errors, so you always have an overview of the kitchen, bar and warehouse. For you, this means less headaches and more time for your guests. Inventory software for restaurants like BarBrain gives you back control of your stock.