Restaurant Broker - Why Didn't I Attend This Event Sooner?

restaurant brokers We just got back from the National Restaurant Association show in Chicago. It was my first time attending this event in my career as a restaurant broker. My biggest question to myself (and largest regret is), why did I not attend this event sooner?

The answer to this is the same as that of restaurant owners. We all get caught up in our day to day comfortable little world. For most of us that works fine, but if I were to tell you that you can increase sales, cut costs and better track your key indicators for a lot less that what you think, could you find the time for a show like this?

Everyone is trying to do more with less and the restaurant brokers can tell you that most of the exhibitors at the show got your message loud and clear. The advancement in technology from every aspect of a restaurant has moved forward to places we could only have imagined just a few years ago and believe it or not, at affordable pricing.

From pre-packaged frozen food that has amazing taste and goes from the walk in freezer to the plate in less than 8 minutes to self-contained ten keg coolers that plug into a regular outlet right behind your bar with LCD display and mug chiller for about half the cost of walk-in keg cooler system. There were great tasting and efficient delivery systems on every aisle of this show.

The restaurant brokers saw things as simple as waiter wallet to make your wait staff more organized and efficient (only $14.95) to some of the most sophisticated mobile app and customer loyalty programs out there. You have to sort through the offerings of course (if you signed up for all of the mobile app/marketing offerings, a restaurant would quadruple sales according to the sellers - joking here!), but there were definitely some sales driving and efficiency providing tools in play.

The point I am trying to get across is that a restaurant owner should to go to this show at least every other year for several reasons:

To become a better operator
To get inspired by your peers and suppliers
To stay current and avoid becoming a dinosaur of your industry
To educate yourself (this is the best $99 you'll ever spend)
To find ways to overcome your current challenges
To taste great and interesting new products
To get away from your day to day
To get a fresh look at your operation from the outside
To attend one of their many free seminars
To have fun and network with your peers from all over the world

I did all of the above during the show. I came back to the office full of new energy, ideas, solutions and opportunities that the restaurant brokers are looking forward to sharing with our clients. We have so many new updates that will impact their entire business from site location to equipment technology to food cost and marketing.

Next time you need a restaurant broker make sure to ask them how much they know about your business before you trust them to handle your sale or purchase. I can tell you one thing the restaurant broker team at We Sell Restaurants does is stay current in the restaurant industry. We are committed to bringing you as much information as we can to help you increase your chances of being the best operator you can be.