Small Steps, Big Impact

— By Erich Lawson — 6 simple ways to reduce food waste in restaurants.   Every year a lot of food is wasted, of which restaurants are major contributors. Recyclable items like cardboard and paper waste find their way to

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Safer & Smarter Kitchens

— By Tom Dunn — How active fryer management improves employee safety, reduces costs and increases sustainability.   Restaurants and commercial kitchens are demanding environments. Quick-service operators, fast-casual franchisees, full-service restaurant owners and facility kitchens everywhere often struggle with a

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All in the Family

— By Katie Lee —   At Mamoun’s Falafel, it’s one big, happy (growing) family — with over 40 new franchises soon to join the fold.   As one of the oldest falafel restaurants in New York City, Mamoun’s Falafel

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Be the Change

— By Jamie Johnson — Seven energy-saving changes businesses can make to save on energy costs.   Operating a business has various costs, some we have control over and some that we don’t. In my business, I love the costs

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Self Importance

— By Jeff Hill — The growth of self-service kiosks presents new challenges for quick-service restaurant facilities teams.   Do you like self-service kiosks, or would you prefer to interact with a human cashier when visiting your favorite quick-service restaurant

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Pathogen Problem

— By Robert Kravitz — What if electric hand dryers sometimes do more harm than good?   The men’s room in a Chicago restaurant included a sign many of us have seen before in other restaurants, movie theaters and similar

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Winter Is Coming

— By Maia McNair —   Time for a floor care overhaul before winter sets in.   With winter right around the corner, facility managers must have a sound floor care strategy in place to keep surfaces looking their best,

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Bacteria is Bad for Business

— By Flavia Da Silva-Benson —   Disrupting facility cleaning traditions.   The public places a great deal of trust in the restaurants and retailers they patronize. They feel safe in the assumption that these facilities maintain clean and hygienic

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Building as a Battery

— By Keith Gipson — Using a building’s thermal mass for efficient energy management.   Efficient energy usage has been, and continues to be, one of the hottest topics in the building management industry. Each year, businesses spend tens of

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Finding a Better Way

— Interview by Katie Lee — At Blink Fitness, it’s not just another gym — it’s a better approach to customers, to franchisees and to facility operations overall.   As Thomas Flaherty of Blink Fitness likes to say: “There’s always

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Caught On Tape

— By Del Williams — Taking convenience stores to the next level with IP network surveillance systems.   Convenience stores and mini marts have traditionally installed surveillance cameras to deter crime and encourage safety, but too often these have provided

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Heavy Lifting

— By Jim Arabia — How facility managers of multi-location maintenance projects can benefit from an automated, single source heavy equipment rental provider.   Every project manager and maintenance director knows the importance of having the right construction equipment delivered

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Maintaining 4 Floors

— By Aaron Hartung — Developing a maintenance plan for your facility’s carpet, LVT, VCT and ceramic floors.   Flooring maintenance protects your initial investment, paying dividends when compared to ripping and replacing every 5 years. And here’s an insider

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Benefits of Closure

— By David Dawdy — Alternatives to elevator lobbies are a game changer for the retail and hospitality industries.   In 1980, a kitchen fire tore through the casino floor of the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. The inferno sent

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Protect & Serve

— By Rusty Amarante — The future looks bright for service-based franchises.   Providing specialized and on-demand services, service-based businesses currently represent a large portion of the franchise establishments in the United States. For almost a decade, service-based franchises have

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Light & Liability

— By Ted Stouch — Parking area liability: are you vulnerable? In a retail or restaurant setting, a dark and foreboding parking lot or garage is a business owners’ worst nightmare. While a perfect setting for a horror movie, in

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Franchising Franks

— By Katie Lee — Pasadena, California-based Dog Haus is entering new markets through franchising and partnerships with Kitchen United and Live Nation.   Dog Haus is an emerging new restaurant concept that, frankly, isn’t that new. But it is

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MC Group: Signature Vendor Spotlight

— Interview with Tim Eippert —   R&R: Where are you based and how long has the company been in business? Tim Eippert: MC Group was founded in Ashtabula, Ohio, in 1953 as MC Sign Company, serving Northeast Ohio and

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HOODZ International: Signature Vendor Spotlight

— Interview with Keith Turner —     R&R: Where are you based and how long has the company been in business? Keith Turner: HOODZ was started in 2009 and is headquartered in Ann Arbor, Michigan. R&R: What is your

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Month to Month

— By Dr. Nancy Troyano — The most common pest issues in restaurants by month — and what you need to know to defeat them.   With plenty of food, sugar-rich beverages, moisture and heat, restaurants are essentially the perfect

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A Serious Threat

— By Jay Hart — How businesses can plan for the growing concern of active shooters and workplace violence.   Active shooter incidents used to be rare. But now, people realize they are more likely to be involved in an

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Needs Further Assessment

— By Gene Belli — What retail and restaurant facility owners need to know about environmental and condition assessments. At some point or points during the life of a thriving retail or restaurant property, it will inevitably require an assessment

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Controlling Interest

— By Carol L. Carey — How to control social media and news coverage of your establishment through effective, preventative pest control.   Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, local news outlets and even national television cover everything: the good, the bad

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(Right) Size Matters

— By Dan Brickner — Now trending: right-sizing and reducing the store footprint with smaller-format stores. Retailers have discovered there is no longer a “one-size-fits-all” approach to market expansion. As a result, astute retailers are “right-sizing” their retail footprints and

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Design For Experience

— Interview by Katie Lee — How The Container Store’s new prototype design enhances the customer experience. When The Container Store unveils a new store prototype, you can bet it is innovative, organized, high-tech, and a completely refreshing customer experience.

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Maintain a Little, Save a Lot

— By Mike Rosen — How your parking lot can drive down operating costs.   Of all the areas you’re responsible to maintain, the parking lot is one of the largest. And, in the fast-paced retail and restaurant industry, it

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