A touch of genius

A touchscreen EPoS system installed throughout the Le Bar Group is helping the pub chain to reduce its costs.

A new EPoS (electronic point-of-sale) system at London pub operator Le Bar Group has seen turnover from seasonal promotions soar by up to 40 per cent and the firm has also made a two per cent saving on stock worth £40,000 across its six outlets.

The company, established in August 2002, had just added City pubs Ryan's Bar and the Arbitrager to its portfolio in March 2003 when managing director Craig Douglas realised he needed a cohesive IT strategy for managing stock, improving efficiency and controlling the business as it grew.

At that time there was a different system in each pub. They collated data to a degree, but staff still had to remember prices.

"We needed a back-office system that could make management of the pubs transparent," Craig explains. "We didn't want to have to wait for a paper trail to reach us with management information. We wanted to view figures in real time. Another advantage of using the same system in all the pubs is that staff can move from pub to pub without having to be retrained."

So Craig invested in an I-Control system with real-time reporting, table mapping, intelligent receipting and a loyalty marketing module called N-Tice.

Each pub is equipped with a back-office system and two touch- screen tills plus cabling and printers for the kitchens, at a cost of between £6,000 and £10,000 per house.

"Installation was quick and easy - it took just over an hour per site," says Craig. "It took a little longer to iron out glitches, such as ensuring the correct pricing was uploaded into each system.

"Training for staff and management took another half-day and there was minimal disruption to the running of the pubs.

"In terms of return on investment, I-Control's systems gives a small company like ours significant savings," he adds. "For example, the system helps us save at least two per cent through better stock control and management, which accounts for £40,000 per year. The system helps us maintain maximum profitability.

"The EPoS systems in all our pubs have paid for themselves as a result of the operational savings generated."

The system includes:

• Table mapping​

Visual bar plans, showing the layout of tables onscreen, make it possible for staff to take orders or set up tabs with just one touch of the screen.

"To add the order staff literally touch the table where the customers are sitting and the kitchen works from the same plan," explains Craig. "On other systems we had to go through two or three screens to place a simple order for snacks. With I-Control one screen has space for up to 64 different snacks and other products. It saves time for staff and customers."

Stock control​

The reporting facility on the I-Control system enables directors and managers to check stock levels at any time of the day or night, which member of staff entered a transaction and which products are selling.

Managers conduct regular audits to check stock levels, which are now extremely accurate. They are able to find out what is missing, right down to a single shot of spirits, glass of wine or packet of crisps.

"The system provides more controls," says Craig. "We can change pricing at any time between 8am and midnight every day. Tills can be pre-set to run happy hours, for example, between 3pm and 5pm when the bars are quiet rather than when the bar is running at full profitability at 9pm. It also provides better reporting and virtually does the VAT returns for you as you go."

Intelligent receipting​

With I-Control's I-Receipt intelligent receipting it is possible to customise till rolls so the company can run advertising and promotions on the front and back of every receipt.

Each receipt can include details of the quiz at one of Le Bar's other pubs, seasonal promotions or offer 10 per cent off meals, providing an "effortless" way of encouraging customer loyalty.

"Receipts are regularly changing hands so it also gives us an opportunity to promote other pubs in the group," adds Craig. "If there is a business lunch at the Arbitrager, for example, the receipt might advertise a quiz at Ryan's. If that receipt is passed through the company's accounts team other people will see the advert and decide to come along to the quiz as well."

SMS promotions​

Text message promotions using N-Tice can, for example, offer a free pint between 5:30pm and 6pm at the Hampstead Street Bar on a certain date for everyone who receives a text. Each text has an individual code so it cannot be used again.

On St. Patrick's Day last year Le Bar Group ran a text promotion to give away Extra Cold Guinness and Magners Cider, helping to increase turnover by 40 per cent over the previous year.

Professionalism is the key​

EPoS is most effective where it meshes into a strong professional pub operation. To fully realise the benefits, Le Bar Group realised it needed to ensure every transaction was entered into the till. This would also help prevent pilfering and lost stock.

"The biggest issue for pubs is theft - because barstaff are generally paid such low wages they may take liberties they think they deserve," says Craig. "It's easy for them when 60 per cent of the business is paid for in cash, and when you are turning over thousands of pounds a day there is a high risk of money going astray."

One way Craig has responded to this is by paying his staff an average 60p to £1 more an hour than others in the industry, which he says ultimately saves him money on recruitment and training, as staff satisfaction is much higher. He also allows his managers to award up to five per cent of profits to the staff in the form of bonuses to encourage loyalty and hard work.

Another way Craig has tackled the issue of theft is to make it a policy that every customer receives a receipt for each transaction. If customers don't get a receipt they get their drinks for free and it is the staff who pay, not the company.

"This also presents a professional image to customers who know they have paid the correct amount for their drinks," Craig explains. "Customers have more confidence in and respect for our barstaff, which, at the end of the day, makes it a better place to work. And the advertising we now carry on each receipt also helps us maximise the potential of our promotions."

Craig gives Le Bar Group managers a further incentive to control stock levels and staff with incentive and bonus schemes. For example, he sets targets with his managers to make, say, £100,000 for the year and if they achieve any more over and above that figure he agrees to split it with them. So if the pub makes £120,000, the manager receives a £10,000 bonus at the end of the year.