Pizza Today - March 2022 - 48

W
OPERATIONS
What Days to
Close, if at all?
With a tight labor
market, operators are
looking at their open hours
By Mike Bausch
Photos Josh Keown
hen we fi rst opened
in 2004, we wanted
to add delivery as
soon as we could. Th is was way
before third-party delivery.
When we fi nally were able to, we
only had enough delivery drivers
for the dinner shift, a few days
of the week. Th at only lasted for
two weeks. Th is was for a total
of 14 days, where we had limited
delivery times of 5:00 p.m. till
close Wednesday to Sunday. And
then starting the 15th day, we
had delivery from open to close,
seven days a week.
Th en something weird happened.
For months I was asked
almost daily, " I've called in the
past, and you weren't doing
delivery yet. So, I wanted to see
what time you start delivering
tonight? " or " Are you not delivering
today? " Calls like this went
on for a long time from multiple
customers. I knew if three people
were calling with this question,
another 50 had it in their mind.
I learned the hard way, having
odd hours of anything stays in
customer's brains for way longer
than I gave enough credit to.
Customers don't live in your
world. Th ey live in their world,
and we, as hospitality purveyors,
need to mold ourselves to their
world and not assume they know
our business' ins and outs. If you
can be open for lunch and
dinner seven days a week, then
you should be open. You should
be open without a break in the
afternoon because when you
do close from three to fi ve, you
disenfranchise your 5:30 p.m.
customer. Now they might
question, " Hold on, I know they
close in the afternoon, but I don't
know if they're back open yet.
I'm not sure if these hours online
are right. Let's order online
from someone we know for sure
is open. " Th at's the feeling you
don't want your customer getting.
It's more typical than you'd think.
Th at's the type of decision that
costs thousands over time when
you assume your customer knows
48 / PIZZATODAY.COM / MARCH 2022

http://www.PIZZATODAY.COM

Pizza Today - March 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Pizza Today - March 2022

Vital Restaurant Reports
Commentary
Digital
Conversation
Mike's Monthly Tip
Man on the Street
Building Blocks
Tony's Trending Recipe
Knead to Know
Destinations
Nurturing Young Talent
Six Money Savers
Regulatory Red Tape
Operating Hours
Solid Slice Sales
Trending Tavern Style
Southeast Asian Fusion
Pasta for Profits
Hot Topping: Chorizo
Valuation of the Biz
Transferring Ownership
The Spinoff Pizzeria
Employee Morale
Go on the Offensive at Pizza Expo
On the Road: Triple Jay's Pizza, Atlanta, Georgia
Product Showcase
Pizza Today Yellow Pages
The Marketplace
Expo Spotlight
Pizza Today - March 2022 - CT1
Pizza Today - March 2022 - CT2
Pizza Today - March 2022 - Vital Restaurant Reports
Pizza Today - March 2022 - Cover2
Pizza Today - March 2022 - Commentary
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 4
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 5
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 6
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 7
Pizza Today - March 2022 - Digital
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 9
Pizza Today - March 2022 - Conversation
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 11
Pizza Today - March 2022 - Mike's Monthly Tip
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 13
Pizza Today - March 2022 - Man on the Street
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 15
Pizza Today - March 2022 - Building Blocks
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 17
Pizza Today - March 2022 - Tony's Trending Recipe
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 19
Pizza Today - March 2022 - Knead to Know
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 21
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 22
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 23
Pizza Today - March 2022 - Destinations
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 25
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 26
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 27
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 28
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 29
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 30
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 31
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 32
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 33
Pizza Today - March 2022 - Nurturing Young Talent
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 34A
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 34B
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 35
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 36
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 37
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 38
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 39
Pizza Today - March 2022 - Six Money Savers
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 41
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 42
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 43
Pizza Today - March 2022 - Regulatory Red Tape
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 45
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 46
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 47
Pizza Today - March 2022 - Operating Hours
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 49
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 50
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 50A
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 50B
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG1
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG2
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG3
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG4
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG5
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG6
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG7
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG8
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG9
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG10
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG11
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG12
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG13
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG14
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG15
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG16
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG17
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG18
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG19
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG20
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG21
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG22
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG23
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG24
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG25
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG26
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG27
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG28
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG29
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG30
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG31
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG32
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG33
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG34
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG35
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG36
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG37
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG38
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG39
Pizza Today - March 2022 - SG40
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 51
Pizza Today - March 2022 - Solid Slice Sales
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 53
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 54
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 55
Pizza Today - March 2022 - Trending Tavern Style
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 57
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 58
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 59
Pizza Today - March 2022 - Southeast Asian Fusion
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 61
Pizza Today - March 2022 - Pasta for Profits
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 63
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 64
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 65
Pizza Today - March 2022 - Hot Topping: Chorizo
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 67
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 68
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 69
Pizza Today - March 2022 - Valuation of the Biz
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 71
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 72
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 73
Pizza Today - March 2022 - Transferring Ownership
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 75
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 76
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 77
Pizza Today - March 2022 - The Spinoff Pizzeria
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 79
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 80
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 81
Pizza Today - March 2022 - Employee Morale
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 83
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 84
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 85
Pizza Today - March 2022 - Go on the Offensive at Pizza Expo
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 87
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 88
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 89
Pizza Today - March 2022 - On the Road: Triple Jay's Pizza, Atlanta, Georgia
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 91
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 92
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 93
Pizza Today - March 2022 - Product Showcase
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 95
Pizza Today - March 2022 - Pizza Today Yellow Pages
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 97
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 98
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 99
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 146
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 101
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 102
Pizza Today - March 2022 - The Marketplace
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 104
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 105
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 106
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 107
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 108
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 109
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 110
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 111
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 112
Pizza Today - March 2022 - 113
Pizza Today - March 2022 - Expo Spotlight
Pizza Today - March 2022 - Cover3
Pizza Today - March 2022 - Cover4
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