Tips to Start Your Restaurant

Congratulations. Taking the time to consider your staff’s appearance is a great step towards building your brand awareness, increasing productivity and much more. With all the challenges that restaurant managers and owners face, it is understandable that restaurant uniforms come close to the bottom of the list. With more than 925,000 restaurant locations in the United States, restaurant competition is growing fierce. If you have great food and service, you are well on your way to winning customers. But, there is more to it than just that. Many times people are looking for a good experience just as much as good food. What your staff wears adds as much to the experience as anything else. A well thought out uniform can do much for your staff and your customers.

Your staff is the face of your company. They represent you and your establishment. They should convey cleanliness and confidence to your customers no matter what kind of atmosphere you have, casual or formal. Even in the most casual diners, people want to see some uniformity. Maybe because it promotes professionalism and shows you care. For some sub-conscious reason, uniforms put customers at ease.

A smart waiter uniform creates brand awareness with or without imprint. We can immediately conjure up images of the striped shirt, suspenders and “flair” of one national chain. When we walk into that restaurant, we are immediately put into the fun mind set that their uniform creates. We are expecting a louder, happier, funnier waiter to put us at ease right away. Conversely, the tuxedo uniform or waiter jacket and gloves can create an exclusive or “special occasion” atmosphere that makes the customer feel important and fancy (and probably willing to spend lots of money). We expect a low-toned waiter that follows proper etiquette and knows all about the demi-glaze and Pinot Blanc.

Speaking of brand awareness, why not make walking billboards out of your patrons? Merchandizing can do a lot for your bottom line, especially if you operate in a tourist area. Offering the imprinted shirts and hats that your staff wears not only makes you money on the sale, you also get free advertising. Consider adding elements of the local interest point to your design. Unless you are lucky enough to actually be the tourist attraction, people will be more willing to purchase items that reference the lake, river or other destination they were visiting.

Outfitting your staff in a uniform can also impact productivity. It definitely creates a team environment and improves morale and attitude. People tend to act the way they look and feel. If your staff looks like a team, they are more likely to act like one. If they look and feel professional and confident they will convey that to you customers.

Now that we have discussed the “why” of restaurant uniforms, you may want to look at the uniform choices you have. Click here: restaurant uniforms to see a comprehensive selection of restaurant uniforms at affordable prices. In my next article, I will detail how you can easily implement a uniform program that fits your needs with creative ideas like embroidered polo shirts, colorful aprons, custom ties and much more.