Business expansion and automation are to address staffing challenges are top of mind for restaurants, retailers, according to an update from Fintech Square.
Recently, Square released its Future of Commerce report, with comprehensive analysis on how business owners and consumers are “considering the evolution of the restaurants, retail, and beauty industries.”
The update shared by Square reportedly “offers insights on how these businesses are shifting – and how consumers are responding – particularly amid further advancement in automation and generative AI.”
In collaboration with Wakefield Research, Square has “surveyed thousands of business owners and consumers on restaurant, retail, and beauty industry trends across the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Australia.”
Matthew O’Connor, Head of Verticals and Platform at Square, said:
“For businesses, the future is looking cautiously optimistic, and business owners say they’re looking to grow despite diverging consumer economic sentiment. With Square’s ecosystem, businesses can easily expand – whether that means opening a new location or introducing new non-core offerings – while continuing to drive customer loyalty and engagement.”
Decisively, 100% of surveyed restaurateurs in the United States “say they plan to expand their businesses in the next 12 months through offering new products or opening additional locations, and 79% report feeling more optimistic about the future of their restaurants.”
At the same time, three in four consumers “say they expect to pull back on restaurant spending in 2024 – so restaurateurs need to invest in more efficient ways to find and engage customers in order to see return on their investments.”
Consumers are looking for “a tech-forward approach from eateries – 73% of consumers surveyed are supportive of local restaurants using AI-based tools, and 78% would prefer to place their orders via self-serve kiosks.”
This bodes well for businesses “where staffing is top of mind, as understaffing issues have persisted at restaurants for a reported average of 19 months.”
Nearly all restaurateurs (98%) believe AI will “solve some of their staffing challenges, particularly around food prep and delivery management (42%), voice ordering technology”
(41%), predictive ordering and inventory management (39%), and food prep robots (38%).
Restaurateurs are not only “investing in AI to address labor challenges – more established automation tools are also on the agenda in 2024. 55% of surveyed owners plan to increase their spending on technology and automation tools in the next 12 months, and 80% of consumers want restaurants to invest in at least one area of automation when they’re not at full staffing capacity.”
As restaurant owners look to expand, 78% of those “surveyed say they’ll experiment in the coming year with non-core offerings like meal kits, subscriptions, events, and more. Restaurateurs say that right now, nearly 20% of their revenue stems from products and services outside of their core restaurant offerings.”
Ming-Tai Huh, General Manager of Square for Restaurants, said:
“Automation and AI are going to be key growth levers for restaurants in the coming year, though not in the way you may think. The vast majority of restaurants will be integrating AI into their operations in small, iterative ways – not through flashy robots but through automation in marketing or kitchen workflows – and these minor changes will add up to saved time and more profit.”