What is a cloud kitchen?

A cloud kitchen is a physical area where a commercial kitchen is set up specifically to prepare food for delivery orders or takeout only.

That means a virtual restaurant with no physical dining area for the customers. Cloud Kitchen does not have any dining area only customers order food online or through a third-party delivery service.

How does it work?

Virtual restaurants simply work, when customers order food from a cloud kitchen through a food delivery app or the restaurant’s website.

Then the order is sent to the cloud kitchen, where it is prepared and packaged. The food is then picked up by a delivery driver and taken to the customer.

What benefits of a cloud kitchen?

There are many benefits to opening a cloud kitchen. Below are some of the most common benefits:

• Low-cost start: Virtual restaurants require less physical space than dining restaurants, which can save on rent and be utilized for other expenses.
• Increased competence: This can be more efficient than traditional restaurants because cloud kitchens do not have to deal with dining room customer service.

• Significant flexibility:  Virtual restaurants can be more flexible because they can be located in smaller spaces and can be opened or closed more easily than traditional restaurants.
• Lower Risks: Cloud Kitchens does not require a large investment in real estate or large staff. So that they have a lower risk of failure than traditional restaurants.

What are the challenges of opening a cloud kitchen?

There are also some challenges faced while opening a virtual restaurants

•  Technology: Cloud Kitchen’s business model is fully based on technology ordering, delivery, and marketing which can be complex and set up for some people in the early stage.
• Competition: More and more traditional restaurants are opening virtual restaurants that’s why the Cloud Kitchen market is increasingly competitive.
• Regulatory Compliance: Any business must comply with a variety of regulations, Cloud Kitchen also follows this in food safety, zoning, and licensing requirements.

How to choose the right location for the Cloud Kitchen?

Always remember that whenever you choose a location it affects your business in the future both positively and negatively so choose carefully & remember the below points while selecting of location.

• Consider the target market: Choose the location where your potential customer is located.
• Look high footfall area: Choose an area that gets a lot of footfall and people can afford to buy what you’re selling.

• Make sure the location is commercial-zoned: Before signing for a lease or rent check whether the area is for commercial use or not, to avoid any obstacles in the future.
• Consider the cost of rent: Virtual restaurants are usually located off-market or in industrial areas, where Cloud Kitchen rent is lower than traditional restaurants.

How to set up a cloud kitchen?

While setting up virtual restaurants you should remember these point

• Get the necessary license: Cloud kitchens have the same regulations as traditional restaurants, so it is important to get the necessary permits and licenses before opening. 
• Buy the necessary equipment: It doesn’t matter if the equipment is old or new, having accessories matters. If you want, you can buy second-hand equipment from platforms like OLX or Quikr. Or find out if any restaurant is currently closed somewhere nearby because very cheap and good equipment is available from there too.
• Hire the necessary staff: If you are a cook and starting a restaurant, you will still need some staff help. And while hiring, keep in mind that there should be only qualified and capable people, because if you try to keep unqualified or incompetent employees to save money in the business, then your business may not last long. I am telling you this from my experience.

• Implement a food safety program: There should be a strict food safety program to ensure the safety of the food prepared by the cloud kitchen.
• Develop the marketing plan: There is no business without marketing so take time and research to make your marketing plan.
• Launched the cloud kitchen: This is the final step so before launching the cloud kitchen cross-check all the things you have done.

How to market a cloud kitchen? 

If you are all set and don’t know how to market a product then must learn.

• Partner with delivery services: A great way to get your food in front of potential customers is to partner with delivery services.
• Create a strong online presence: Make sure your cloud kitchen has a website and social media. It is essential, that virtual restaurants are all about digital presence. Where do customers find you? The cloud kitchen concept does not have a physical dining area, only an online way to order food from restaurants.
• Run marketing campaigns: These can be online or offline. Whether you bring Google Ads or do social media marketing or influencer marketing. It should be known to everyone that you have opened your cloud kitchen. Where a variety of foods are available. In the beginning, the work goes ahead in the expenses, as the profits come. It should be used according to the growth of the business.

• Offer promotion on the food aggregator platform: List your cloud kitchen on Zomato, Swiggy, Dunzo, Eatsure, etc. And start with huge discounts to attract a large scale of customers. Because initially brand is not established without great product marketing or discounts.
• Word-of-mouth marketing: If you stick with quality and value providing to customers. Then there is always a saying. The customer is the king means the customer will recommend your food to their family or friends. From here business will get ultimate growth.

How to manage a cloud kitchen?

• Track inventory: Track your restaurant inventory carefully to avoid out-of-stock food.
• Manage costs: Make sure to track all expenses and look for ways to reduce costs. Because Cloud Kitchen needs to manage costs carefully to stay profitable.
• Provide excellent customer service: Make sure to solve customer queries as quickly as possible. So that customers’ trust in the brand will increase. Virtual restaurants need to provide excellent customer service to keep customers coming back.

The Future of Cloud Kitchens

The Future of cloud kitchens is bright. The market in this industry is growing rapidly. Still, the peak of cloud kitchens has not yet come. Rebel Foods is the first unicorn internet restaurant company.

Rebel Foods operates 11  cloud kitchen brands with 450 plus online restaurant networks in 75 cities in India. This is the only market-leading company in this industry. Rebel Foods is the World’s largest online restaurant chain in the world.

Some of the popular brands of Rebel Foods are Faasos, Behrouz Biryani, and Oven Story. So we can say there is a lot of potential to grow in this industry. As more and more people turn to online food ordering, cloud kitchens will become an increasingly popular option for restaurants.