Running a restaurant is not an easy task at all. There are hundreds of different things that you have to take care of and manage simultaneously. Preparing quality food is not the only thing that will keep customers coming back. You will also have to consider other factors, such as the ambience of the establishment as well as the quality of service. However, these are all client-side factors. On the back-end, you will have to consider factors such as making sure that supplies are stocked up and that a fresh supply of ingredients is available.
Obviously, managing all of this is very difficult. Customers at a restaurant pay a lot of attention to minor details. Whether it’s the dust on the back of a chair or a stain on your table cloth, your customers will notice very quickly. That’s why restaurant owners have to pay a lot of attention to the quality of their service. One of the most important things that you will need to consider is the consistent supply of linen at your establishment. Every time when a customer leaves, you will obviously change the serviettes and the table cloth.
There are two options available to restaurant owners. They can either purchase a lot of linen products, ranging from serviettes to napkins and table cloths, or they can hire a professional linen supplier. Linen suppliers generally offer linen products on a rental basis. There are many different things that you should know about how the linen rental industry works.
How Does a Linen Rental Service Work?
When you first contact a linen rental service, they will ask you about the products you need. You can then specify the number of table cloths that you will need in a day. For instance, if you are expecting at least 200 customers in a day, you should rent around 250 table cloths. That way, in case you get more customers, you will always have more supply.
Once you place your order, the company will give you a quote. You can decide whether the quote falls in your budget. The most important thing that you need to consider in this regard is your monthly expenditure. If you feel that the price is too high, you can place a smaller order.
Once your order is confirmed, the company representative will take down your address. The very next morning, a van will pull over to your restaurant and deliver the fresh linen at your restaurant. If this is the first time you have ever ordered linen on rent, you will be asked to pay up a security deposit. Depending upon the total order, the deposit will vary.
You can use the linen products throughout the day in the ordinary course of your business. By the time your restaurant closes, all the table cloths and serviettes will be dirty. This is logical since you won’t get time to clean them up as soon as the customers leave. Restaurant owners have to factor customer turnover into their establishment. The more customers you can serve in a day, the greater will be your overall revenue. That is why you need to replace the table cloths and have new customers seated as soon as possible.
The next morning, the rental service van will pull over at your restaurant and ask you to hand over all the dirty linen. Once all the dirty linen is loaded up, the company will then deliver fresh linen for the day. The whole process is hassle-free and requires very little hassle. You will be asked to pay for the linen rental at the end of a week or a month.
Why Should You Hire a Linen Rental Service?
The number one reason why you should hire a linen rental service is because of the fact that it will help you save a lot of money. If you are running a restaurant and choose not to hire a linen rental service, the only other option left to you is to purchase your own linen. You will have to buy similar quality table cloths and serviettes. Most importantly, you will need to buy a lot of material. When one batch is completely dirty, you will send it back for dry cleaning and use another batch.
Needless to say, this is a sizeable expenditure on your part. Furthermore, after a few months of use, the linen is likely to get frayed and permanently stained. You will then have to buy new linen products.
Combined with the regular costs of dry cleaning and the hassle of transporting the linen from one place to another, you will end up incurring a great deal of additional expenditure. However, if you choose to work with a linen rental service, you don’t have to worry about anything at all. If you are not satisfied with the quality of the linen, all you have to do is pick up the phone and launch a complaint.
There are numerous established linen rental services in the UK that deliver to some of the largest hotels and restaurants in the country. For instance, Stalbridge Linen is one of the oldest linen rental services in the UK. With the passage of time, Stalbridge Linen has reached a landmark 40 years of service, thus making them one of the most reliable suppliers of linen to the hospitality and service industry.
The most important thing that you need to know before you pick up the phone and call a linen rental service is the amount of linen that you need. Some people tend to order more linen than they need, which ultimately increases the costs of rental. Don’t let optimism cloud your judgement. Look at the average amount of customers that you pull in on a daily basis, and then place your order. Obviously, you should order just a bit more in case more customers tend to show up!