Collaborative Kitchens. Where brands meet to compete.
As the demand for online delivery services increases due to convenience and other facilitating factors, proprietors have increasingly been working on creative models to either bring food and service to you, or to improve taste and ingredients with more modern and novel recipes. Although there are still a number of outlying issues with food delivery services—suffice to say in logistics and costs—it hasn’t stopped the foodie think tank from attempting to improve it’s fundamentals and drive business through its doors. We now have everything from mobile services delivery to cloud kitchens and centralized institutions where the busy circuit of mobile delivery can pick up items from a primary node to either make the logistics process more efficient or dig into alternate routes and strategies for delivery. With that being said, a topic other than your standard food delivery or cloud kitchen business model that has gained some importance, but may be a sincere possibility to entertain higher collaboration, reduce rental and leasing costs, and improve skill within the restaurant sector and staff are “Collaborative Kitchens.” Kitchens, restaurants and food establishments that have some how worked in an agreement to share each other’s resources, branding and marketing pipeline to reproduce signature dishes from your favorite restaurants locally where conventionally access and marketing may have be limited.
The concept of such kitchens allows proprietors to discuss and negotiate licensing deals with strategic partners to reproduce and cross sell original brands and / or food within the existing restaurant environment by allocating staff, resources, ingredients, sales, marketing and equipment to your partner(s) of choice. We have seen examples of this in the past with brands like KFC, Taco Bell, Long John Silver’s and others all under one roof. However, with the advent and implementation of mobile food delivery, customers now have a choice, and mom and pops and pop ups have an opportunity. With ease of access, collaborative kitchens may be able to cross brand, rebrand, remake signature dishes while training affiliates and new partners; all processes and experiences could be under one oven; over the same grill, and the use of the same refrigeration.
Examples of a Collaborative Kitchens could mean lowering operational costs, connecting approved trade ideas and trade strategies under one roof, partnerships, lowering overhead costs such as rent, equipment, supplies, insurance, leases and etc. Although the process would require research and good sales skills to get other brands and pop ups to sign on, it could bring new food experiences to people. It could also improve the ability of the establishment to pay its rent every month.
Example of collaborative kitchens could be:
- A pop up collaborating with a local Italian place to train and supply their favored Mexican flavored dishes.
- A local burger joint working with a pizza parlor to make and cross sell it’s burgers.
- Two different restaurants under the same category exchanging skill to cross sell one another’s brand.
- Online influencers and home cooks may work with local restauranteurs to cross sell creations and branding to local, state or international markets.
- Shared recipes, facilities, lease agreements and rent under on roof to sell partnered brands, foods and experiences.
- Exchanging skill, teamwork and tools for a division of profits and ownership.
- Utilizing online food delivery services in the US and abroad to sell your food items.
The ideology of collaborative and shared kitchens outside of the cloud kitchen model would in essence improve food options, reduce distances in delivering food, improve skill and increase availability. Potential proprietors should always consult with local offices to see what rules and licensing are required.