Never before in history have restaurants completely shut down, not even during times of war, but the ongoing pandemic has severely hit India’s F&B industry and local restaurants. According to data released by Dineout, “There was a drop in bookings and reservations during the initial days of the slowdown.”
Dineout has seen a drop of 6 percent in the number of restaurants in the first week of March, another 20 percent in the subsequent week and it came to a standstill from April till mid of June.
Amidst this uncertainty and the ongoing country-wide lockdown, local restaurants have taken a severe hit as they have either had to shut operations altogether or limit their services to takeaway and delivery options to prevent contamination.
The foodservice industry has been extremely labour intensive and archaic. COVID-19 has shown the importance of digitalization and the long-term impact that it can offer.
“2020 has shown us that adverse times can teach us to be resilient, be diverse and fight back. This year has taught us a lot and has given us a larger headroom to think through,” says Sagar Daryani, Co-founder and CEO, Wow! Momo.
Having absorbed the initial shock and somewhat stabilised, it’s time to ask: what’s next?
Strategic thinking is all about new possibilities, new business models, new products and customer solutions.
To understand how the foodservice industry can revive, the Phygital Retail Convention‘s Happy Hours Kick Start Conversation session presents thoughts and insights from the stalwarts of the foodservice industry.
The session will be moderated by Rahul Singh, Founder & CEO, The Beer Café and the other participants are Anjan Chatterjee, Founder & CMD, Speciality Restaurants, Riyaaz Amlani, MD, Impresario Entertainment Hospitality, Vikram Bakshi, CEO & MD, Ascot Hospitality, Sagar Daryani, Co-Founder CEO, Wow! Momo.
Join them on October 14-15 on Track 2 – Boardroom to know how bright the future of the foodservice industry is.
Click HERE to register.