In 2012, Auckland Region Restaurant Record estimated that there were 2000 restaurants in the Auckland area. Therefore, with fierce competition in the market, it is important for small restaurants to think how they can save costs and be more competitive.
This research aims to identify feasible measurements for small restaurant businesses to control food and labour costs in order to possess advantages in the competitive environment. This research contains both quantitative and qualitative research by convenience-based sampling methods. The researched restaurants are located in Hamilton. To analyse the answers from the participants, the responses will be compared with results shown in the literature review and displayed as graphs. Due to limited time and resources, the sample selecting, size and location will be limited.
The tentative results from the research illustrate that few of the researched restaurants take measures to deal with food waste and leftovers. They usually dispose of waste into the rubbish bin. Apart from participants who are unaware of inventory storage systems, they adopt FIFO as their storage inventory method. Moreover, employees are not happy if their wages/working hours are cut down, and some of them will decrease their working quality or efficiency. Consequently, restaurants need to balance between employee wages and work efficiency.