Supply Chain Planning for a New Restaurant Opening

4 Min Read By Consolidated Concepts

MRM's "Ask the Expert" features advice from Consolidated Concepts Inc.

Please send questions for this column to Modern Restaurant Management (MRM) magazine Executive Editor Barbara Castiglia at bcastiglia@modernrestaurantmanagement.com.

Q: What is a basic supply-chain checklist for a new restaurant opening? 

A: Opening new locations means your brand is growing. It’s an exciting time, but there is a tremendous amount of planning required from a supply chain standpoint to support the growth. The location of a restaurant isn’t just important from a customer count and sales standpoint; it’s also critical to make sure products can be delivered efficiently from the appropriate distributors. This means supplies get delivered at the right time and at cost-effective prices. 

Most restaurant chains have a list of proprietary products that must be available to all locations. These are the products that identify their brand and separate them from their competition. If a distribution…