/ Case Studies / AI Demand Planning Saves Restaurant Chain $31M a Year Case Studies AI Demand Planning Saves Restaurant Chain $31M a Year AI Demand Planning A large fast casual restaurant chain with 660 stores facing over $50 million in annual labor expenses due to inaccurate store manager forecasts. Our demand planning system accurately predicts hourly demand for each store, resulting in improved estimates of consumer demand and an annual saving of $31 million for the company. Critical Issue This company was wasting over $50M in on annual labor expenses due to poor store manager forecasts regarding customer demand, which led to erratic work schedules for staff, resulting in either too much or too little coverage. This had the further effect of causing long customer wait times and numerous complaints. Customer Profile Large fast casual restaurant chain 660 stores in 45 states Key Problems Over $50M of wasted annual labor expense on staffing empty restaurants Long customer wait times and complaints our solution We developed a demand planning system that accurately predicts hourly demand for each restaurant and product line. This system utilizes weather data and local event data to make precise predictions. It operates as a fully automated process and is currently running in production. Additionally, we have created a user-friendly dashboard that allows users to monitor the accuracy of the predictions and provides intuitive explanations for the forecasts. Our implementation process was completed in just 12 weeks by a team of 3 individuals. The technology stack used for this system includes Azure, Databricks, and Python. The results staffing optimization The company reported an annual saving of $31 million across 660 stores. Our innovative system has proven to be 30% more accurate than store managers’ forecasts, resulting in savings of $3,900 per month per store due to improved estimates of consumer demand. Reducing workload Annual savings of $3.4 million in man-hours by enabling store managers to save 10 hours bi-weekly by not having to make forecasts. This has the added benefit of accelerating the effectiveness of new to industry store managers. Additional Benefits Our solution led to the accumulation of institutional knowledge as the drivers of the business are learned, encoded, and shared. Additionally, store managers have reported experiencing less stress from top-down pressure to predict the future. Explore Our AI Solutions Interested in exploring how our AI solutions are creating net-new revenue streams? Contact Us Concurrency Center of Excellence Learn more about Concurrency Centers of Excellence online Learn More
