Hospitality companies are turning to technology to do more with less amid labor shortages and economic uncertainty

Lightspeed’s 2022 Global State of the Hospitality Industry Report Reveals Hospitality Companies Are Implementing Automation to Save Time and Streamline Operations While Navigating Industry Challenges and Trends

MONTREAL, January 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ – Lightspeed Commerce Inc. (NYSE: LSPD) (TSX: LSPD), the one-stop commerce platform enabling merchants around the world to simplify, scale and create exceptional customer experiences, today released its 2022 State of worldwide in the hospitality industry. Lightspeed surveyed 1,100 hotel owners, managers and operators and 7,000 consumers of United States, Canada, AustraliaUK, France, Germany and the Netherlandsto take the pulse of challenges and trends across all regions, gather insights into customer experience and expectations, and identify how industry leaders around the world are coping with modern challenges and trends.

As restaurateurs around the world grapple with high inflation rates, staff shortages, and global economic uncertainty, technology appears to be a key tool in tackling macroeconomic conditions. The ability of hotel operators to do more with less is critical, with survey results indicating that a majority of industry respondents attribute the adoption of POS or restaurant management software to streamlining shifts, including new or expanded online ordering systems or the use of new technologies to automate tasks.

“Digital adoption has been a significant lifeline for hospitality businesses and it’s clear that there is greater efficiency to be achieved with new technologies,” said Pierre Doughertygeneral manager of Hospitality at Lightspeed. “Our goal is to partner with our customers, sharing trusted information at every level, from an industry, region, customer perspective, down to what works best on the menu. Our product hotel flagship, Restaurant at the speed of light, is an easy-to-use omnichannel solution that uses data to deliver actionable insights to restaurant owners, helping them make smarter decisions about their business.”

Main challenges

The rising cost of food and supplies is one of the biggest hurdles hospitality businesses face, with 37% of restaurant owners surveyed citing it as their biggest challenge. While it can be daunting to raise menu prices (for fear of losing customers), more than half (61%) of restaurateurs said this is how they fight inflation.

Restaurants like Kotsu Ramen and Gyoza, in California, were hesitant to raise their prices, but ultimately decided it was a necessary change. According to the design director, Grant MacDonaldthe decision to raise prices ended up being beneficial in many ways.

“There is a feeling that customers are incredibly price sensitive, and we were actually very nervous about being able to raise our prices,” Grant said. “In a way, inflation gave us the opportunity to finally make some price changes that were needed and move to new price levels that really needed to happen.”

While inflation seems to be the dominant issue, followed closely by new hires (23%) and staff retention (11%), sustainability has become an emerging consideration that cannot be ignored. Nearly half (47%) of hotel owners surveyed by Lightspeed agree that implementing eco-friendly initiatives will attract more guests.

Industry Tactics to Address Current Challenges

Lightspeed surveyed 1,100 restaurant owners and 7,000 consumers globally with OnePoll in 2022 (September to October 2022). Industry respondents noted the following tactics to address current challenges:

• 57% of respondents agreed that adopting new technologies over the past two years has been critical to the survival of their business.
• 42% of operators have improved food costing and inventory practices to ensure they are spending correctly and wasting less.
• Nearly a third of business owners (30%) are limiting the number of days and/or hours they are open, particularly during slower months, to help offset costs due to inflation while avoiding burnout when working with an understaffed team.
• Almost a quarter (21%) have integrated online ordering to avoid third-party charges.
• 60% of restaurant owners agreed that inventory data (stock levels, waste) is important to them and 40% said they have already adopted inventory practices to work more efficiently and reduce food waste.
• 43% of restaurateurs operate with fewer staff.
• To bolster sustainability, 39% are offering more vegan options, while 37% are adopting a food waste policy.

Industry trends have changed since last year

• When asked which technology had most improved business this year, 12% of industry respondents said they had adopted new technology to streamline employee shifts (new point-of-sale or management software ), which represents a 7% increase compared to 2021..
• Overall, beverage sales (alcoholic and non-alcoholic) saw the largest increase from 2021, due to the return of on-site catering. Other climbers like small plates, desserts and breakfast also increased in 2022.
• Thanks to the return of on-site dining, returning restaurants appear to be increasing the size of their menus after shrinking them over the past two years.
• Inflation seems to have a negative impact on consumers’ spending habits, forcing them to rethink and control their spending more tightly. While eating out is an established habit and there is still a desire to support local restaurants, half of consumers surveyed said they would go there less often for economic reasons. The same goes for home delivery, which is also less used by 48% of respondents.

Download full Lightspeed Global Hospitality Industry Report here.

About Lightspeed

Powering the businesses that are the backbone of the global economy, Lightspeed’s one-stop commerce platform helps merchants innovate to simplify, scale, and deliver exceptional customer experiences. Our cloud commerce solution transforms and unifies online and physical operations, multi-channel sales, expansion to new locations, global payments, financial solutions and connection to supplier networks.

Founded in Montreal, Canada in 2005, Lightspeed listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: LSPD) and the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: LSPD). With teams across North America, Europeand Asia Pacificthe company serves retail, hospitality and golf businesses in more than 100 countries.

For more information, see lightspeedhq.com

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