On May 25, the 25th day after Beijing suspended dine-in, Ms. Guo from Chaoyang District saw on the gourmet street of Heyin Middle Street that most restaurants had set up take-out stalls at the entrance. Several plates of crayfish are placed on the trunk lid of the car, holding a handheld gimbal, and they are selling live.
After communicating with the restaurant staff, Ms. Guo learned that the income from the takeout stall was just enough to maintain the cost.
From May 1st to June 5th, due to the requirements of epidemic prevention and control, all catering stores in Beijing will suspend dine-in services.
As an industry with large crowds and high risk of epidemic spread, how can the catering industry find a way out in the context of normalized epidemic prevention and control?
The "2021 China Chain Catering Industry Report" jointly released by China Chain Store & Franchise Association and Huaxing Capital shows that before the epidemic, the domestic catering market has always maintained rapid growth. From 2014 to 2019, the market size increased from 2.9 trillion yuan to 4.7 trillion yuan Yuan, while the scale of my country's catering market in 2020 fell by 15.4%.
By 2022, life seems to be even tougher for the restaurant industry.
On June 15, the National Bureau of Statistics released data showing that from January to May, catering revenue was 1,627.4 billion yuan, down 8.5%. In May alone, catering revenue was 301.2 billion yuan, down 21.1%.
On the days when dine-in is suspended, catering people become "stall people"
In the past few years, the rapid development of the catering industry has stimulated consumers to check in at Internet celebrity restaurants and taste Internet celebrity delicacies.
However, with the outbreak of the new crown pneumonia epidemic, such a scene will be difficult to reproduce after 2020.
The 36-day suspension of dine-in services in Beijing catering stores was dubbed "Black 36" by some catering people.
In the past, the bustling Beijing landmark food street, Guijie Street, was deserted, and the stores such as Hu Da and Guijie Zaizai, who often queued for hundreds of numbers, were deserted.
Huajia Yiyuan is a chain restaurant that mainly focuses on Beijing cuisine. On the days when dine-in is suspended, Huajia Yiyuan Dongzhimen "set up a stall" at the door, selling smoked chicken, biscuits, dumplings, etc. suitable for take-out food.
Mr. Zhang, a staff member, introduced that the launch of services such as out-swinging is to reduce losses on the one hand, and provide dining guarantees for nearby residents on the other hand. "The prices of products sold outside the store are relatively affordable. For example, a box of crayfish is 30 yuan, about ten A few." He said that Huajia Yiyuan has also established its own community group, and posted preferential dishes in the WeChat group. Residents can place an order in advance to pick it up at the store, and it can also be delivered for free within 3 kilometers nearby.
Other restaurants in Guijie are also trying their best to save themselves.
During the suspension of dine-in, in front of the Xiangkou Fish Crayfish Shop on Guijie Street, packages of packaged crayfish were neatly arranged, and the posters with "5 jins of lobsters 128 yuan" on the outside table were very eye-catching.
According to the staff, on weekdays, these lobsters are sold on a one-by-one basis. After the dine-in was suspended, the launched boxed package attracted many consumers to buy at a low price.
Well-known catering and time-honored brands have also joined the camp.
The fish head bubble cake brand "Wangshunge" has dozens of stores in Beijing, and the parent company "Wangshunge Group" has several catering brands.
According to Cui Yujian, vice president of Wangshunge Group, during the suspension of dine-in, each store has made dishes suitable for serving outside based on the actual situation.
Sichuan cuisine brand Meizhou Dongpo has launched special meals such as Leshan sweet-skinned braised duck for 48 yuan and 40 crayfish for 99 yuan, and has extended its outside business to surrounding communities.
In areas with a large flow of people, such as Liangma River in Chaoyang District of Beijing, the staff of Dongpo in Meizhou warmly solicited surrounding residents to buy in front of the booth.
Zhou Miao, general manager of the Meizhou Dongpo Brand Marketing Center, said: "All the outside products are at special prices, with a price discount of 50%-60%."
Beijing Huatian Catering Holdings Group Co., Ltd. has a number of time-honored brands. According to the relevant person in charge, during the suspension of dine-in, Beijing Huatian’s time-honored brands such as Tongheju, Gulou Makai Restaurant, Tongchunyuan, and Huatian Eryouju have increased their number of foreign brands. With categories, it also provides independent packaging to reduce the risk of epidemic transmission.
"You can't save yourself when you lie down", catering workers expand services such as take-out
At the same time of carrying out the out-swinging, online takeout has also become another self-help way for the catering industry.
Zhou Miao said that since the outbreak of the epidemic in 2020, Meizhou Dongpo has adjusted its strategy, opened a cheap vegetable station, strengthened contactless take-out, promoted small programs, carried out community services, and launched discount packages in community groups, with a minimum price of 200 yuan. The above can be delivered to your door.
Wangshun Pavilion will launch a takeaway service in a timely manner. In order not to affect the taste, the staff will put a professional heating insulation bag in the takeaway box.
Cui Yujian said that the group has also developed fish head pre-made dishes, cooked food gift boxes, semi-finished seafood, fresh vegetable gift boxes, large fish sauce, pies, etc., to further expand the categories of takeaway services.
Four Seasons Minfu, a well-known roast duck restaurant in Beijing, has also opened a takeaway service.
Beijing resident Han Yujie ordered a set of roast duck. When she received the dishes, she found that there were self-heating bags under the lunch boxes to ensure the temperature of the dishes. , although the take-out is not as good as dine-in, the good thing is that there is no queue.”
Transitioning to take-out is the most direct self-help measure for diners after dine-in is suspended.
The Japanese food brand "Xiao Sushi" operated in a small store model has more than 30 stores in Beijing. The founder Chen Xiaodong said that after the outbreak of the epidemic in 2020, "Xiao Sushi" adjusted its business strategy and increased the proportion of takeaway business. The proportion of online sales of "Xiao Sushi" has increased from 26% to 46%. "After Beijing suspended dine-in in May, our takeaway business has increased slightly."
"One of the biggest drawbacks of food delivery is that there is no interaction between consumers and operators. We actively communicate with consumers by telephone and other means, and solve complaints in a timely manner when consumers have complaints." Chen Xiaodong said that he has been exploring the field of food delivery for more than two years, " Xiao Sushi's takeaway business is relatively mature, with the speed, quality, and after-sales service all taking shape.
However, for hot pot, barbecue and other high-end food and beverages that require freshness, takeaway is not an easy way to go.
A staff member of a barbecue restaurant in Wangjing, Chaoyang District, Beijing, said that there are not many people who place orders after the store goes online. "Most customers will order dishes such as bibimbap, but very few people order barbecue dishes."
A reporter from China Youth Daily and China Youth Daily saw that even if a customer placed an order for barbecue, their evaluation was uneven.
Some customers reported that the take-out barbecue did not come with barbecue sauce and side dishes, which were given to customers during dine-in; some customers reported that the meat delivered was not fresh enough; some customers reported that the packaging was excessive and the portion of the dishes was insufficient.
It's not just the question of whether the dishes are suitable for takeout.
Ms. Wang is the owner of a daily food store in Beijing's East Third Ring Road. She introduced that if you want to increase the volume of takeaways, you need to rely on the takeaway platform, but the platform needs to draw a certain commission. even lose money."
In order to reduce the cost of layers, she aimed at private domain operations, and advertised takeout and group purchases in the circle of friends.
Lin Junhuan, founder of Thirty-Six Flavored Pig Trotters, also advertised in the circle of friends: "Undertake corporate breakfast, team building, and book box lunches." Lin Junhuan said that after the suspension of dine-in, he tried various methods, "Go Street stalls, errands for takeaways, live broadcasts... I have several more ways to make a living."
One day, Lin Junhuan received an order for 400 breakfasts. In order to satisfy the customer, the team started preparing the ingredients at 10:00 p.m., the next day at 1:00 p.m., starting the packaging at 5:00, going out at 7:00 for delivery, and at 7:30, the hot Teng Teng's breakfast has been delivered to customers.
Lin Junhuan said: "This year is difficult. But you can't save yourself by lying flat. You can grow up if you work hard."
There are many difficulties, what is the way out in the future?
Personnel costs, rents, and raw material costs are the three big mountains that weigh on the shoulders of catering companies.
Cui Yujian said that after the suspension of dine-in, there is no cash flow, and one of the problems facing the group is that it needs to pay tens of millions of yuan in wages to employees.
In order to cope with the crisis, Wangshunge Group cooperated with large supermarkets to implement a "shared employee" system to expand the income source of employees.
Another issue is rent.
Especially for first- and second-tier cities, rent is the biggest cost.
According to Cui Yujian, the catering stores of Wangshunge Group are basically more than a few hundred square meters, and some stores mainly for banquet business have more than 6,000 square meters, and the monthly rent is not cheap.
Government departments are also trying to solve the difficulties of catering enterprises.
On June 2, the Beijing Municipal Government issued the "Implementation Plan for Coordinating Epidemic Prevention and Control and Stabilizing Economic Growth in Beijing", requiring state-owned houses in Chaoyang, Haidian, Fengtai and other high-risk areas to reduce or exempt rent for 6 months.
"However, most catering companies choose their stores in commercial complexes with high traffic flow. Although the government has issued a rent reduction policy, it does not apply to private enterprises. We also tried to discuss with real estate companies about some rent reductions, but we did not get a response. "Cui Yujian said.
These difficulties are also the difficulties faced by other catering companies, and the opening of dine-in is a common expectation.
But in the process of racing against the virus, the virus always attacked unexpectedly, making social life repeatedly press the pause button.
On June 9, four days after the opening of dine-in, a cluster of epidemics occurred again in Beijing.
On June 11, the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Commerce issued a new version of the guidelines for the prevention and control of the new crown pneumonia epidemic in the catering industry, requiring catering stores to strictly control the density of people, advocating separate seating, and advocating reservations for dining.
On June 14, Chaoyang District, Beijing announced that more than 700 catering enterprises in Sanlitun Street, Chaoyang District, all stopped dine-in.
"The repeated epidemics and the suspension of dine-in meals have actually sounded the alarm for the catering staff. In the future, they will have to walk on multiple legs and cannot rely on a single dine-in meal." After being forced to stop, Cui Yujian and the team were also thinking about how to find new way out.
Like other catering people, they set their sights on short videos and live broadcasts.
On the Douyin App, the account "@wangshunge fish head bubble cake" is broadcast live from time to time, and group purchase coupons and group purchase packages are listed.
Zhang Yaqing, founder of Wangshunge Group, also opened his own Douyin account to record short videos.
Meizhou Dongpo is also actively broadcasting live broadcasts and mobilizing the enthusiasm of employees. A food team voluntarily formed by Meizhou Dongpo employees will live broadcast and bring goods on platforms such as Douyin, and different forms of discounts and preferential measures will be arranged for each live broadcast.
More and more catering businesses are targeting short video platforms for marketing.
Douyin life service data shows that after Beijing suspended dine-in in April this year, the online growth of small and medium-sized businesses ushered in a wave of climax. According to the publicly released Douyin life service data, the number of catering merchants currently broadcasting on Douyin in Beijing area A 20% increase from the end of April.
"In the future, Wangshunge will also increase investment in the field of e-commerce, focusing on live broadcast delivery." Cui Yujian said that through live broadcast delivery, Wangshunge Group's pre-made dishes and other products are selling well, and the group has established a special The e-commerce company of china has invested manpower and material resources in supply chain, sales, logistics, etc., and vigorously developed e-commerce business. "This may be the development direction of catering in the future."
This has also been affirmed by industry insiders.
On June 10, at the "2022 China Food and Beverage Digital Industry Relief Summit" hosted by the China Hotel Association, industry insiders said that in the face of repeated epidemics, catering companies should actively try digital transformation, adopting the expansion of online takeaways and remote locations. A series of measures, such as meal-to-store pickup and online shopping malls selling pre-made dishes, are striving to achieve recovery.
Chen Xinhua, president of the China Hotel Association, said: "The epidemic has accelerated the process of industry digitization, and a new round of technological revolutions such as big data, cloud computing, Internet of Things, blockchain, and artificial intelligence can gradually reduce transaction costs, production costs and organizational costs in the catering industry. cost, and realize cost reduction, efficiency increase and value-added of enterprises.”
Chen Xiaodong said that in the future, catering companies will gradually reduce labor costs, ordering, payment, billing and other links will be completed through online procedures, reducing human-to-human contact, "We have been doing this kind of attempt, this may be in the future. trend".
China Youth Daily, China Youth Daily reporter Zhang Min Source: China Youth Daily