.png)
Overview:
Austin Eastciders, located on the east side of
Austin, Texas started producing cider in 2012. Their meticulously crafted ciders quickly became a cult favorite. They later expanded their cider line to include a range of tasty flavors such as Hopped, Blood Orange, and Texas Honey. They now also offer a variety of spiked seltzers such as Peach and Black Cherry spiked seltzer.
In July of 2020, Austin Eastciders opened a combination tasting room and restaurant in downtown Austin. The location is named after Barton Springs, a natural spring that is a popular spot for tourists and locals alike. The restaurant includes an outdoor patio with a stage for live music. The menu features cider brined cured meats, pizzas, sandwiches, salads, brunch fare, and other shareable items that pair well with ciders, cocktails, and a full wine list.
The Opportunity:
Austin Eastciders brought on Joshua Thomas, formerly of Mattie's in South Austin, to be the General Manager for Barton Springs. In addition to managing restaurants, Josh also had experience working for a restaurant software company. One of Joshua’s priorities was to select an inventory control and menu management system.
Joshua’s first decision was to implement an accounts payable automation system called Plate IQ. He used Plate IQ’s invoice scanning and accounting interface to eliminate manually coding and posting invoices to accounts payable.
Joshua wanted an inventory system that interfaces tightly with Plate IQ. He also knew exactly what an inventory control system should do based on his experience working at Compeat.
“Plate IQ introduced me to COGS-Well. I was impressed by how tightly COGS-Well integrated with Plate IQ. Unlike other inventory systems, COGS-Well eliminates all of the requirement for manually entering item detail from invoices.” Joshua Thomas, General Manager.
The Solution:
In mid-September 2020, Joshua selected COGS-Well. COGS-Well completed an initial setup for Joshua, including the inventory item database and an interface to their Toast POS system in about a week. Joshua was able to count his September ending inventory using COGS-Well.
“My experience with other systems is the customer is required to build their inventory database. The process usually takes 3 to 4 months. I was amazed that COGS-Well did most of the setup for me and in only about a week.” Joshua Thomas.
Barton Springs takes inventory counts monthly. Joshua looks at actual inventory usage to help him make better decisions. He also uses the theoretical inventory on-hand report. Storage space is limited at Barton Springs, so they don’t want to over-order.
Joshua takes advantage of COGS-Well’s unique ability to allow an end-user to open multiple features (referred to as tabs) at the same time. Up to 10 tabs can be open at the same time. For example, while viewing a recipe item, Joshua can concurrently research the inventory item, run a recipe report, view a past invoice, and review an inventory count.
“COGS-Well’s User Interface could not be better. Their menus are very intuitive. The tabs make getting things done much easier than in other systems. COGS-Well knocked it out of the park on ease of use.” Joshua Thomas.
The Return on Investment:
According to Thomas, COGS-Well provides better controls and added insights. He knows the cost of goods sold calculation is accurate because it is based on what they started with, purchased, and ended with using the weighted average of item purchase costs.
Joshua monitors their actual inventory usage to make better ordering decisions. He also uses the inventory usage variance report to compare what was used (based on counts and purchases) to what should have been used (based on sales and recipe portions).
When it comes to making restaurant inventory control easier to use, COGS-Well totally nailed it. They used their years of experience to create a system that helps customers be more successful.” Joshua Thomas.
Next Steps:
Austin Eastciders is now making their own, hand-crafted liquors. This will create even more inventory to control. It will also result in more recipes that need to be managed.
Going forward, Austin Eastciders plans to start using COGS-Well’s suggested ordering and to finish building out their recipes. Joshua also just purchased a tablet which will further speed up the process of taking inventory counts.
“COGS-Well distilled something complex, restaurant inventory control, into something simple, and simplicity is what makes inventory control feasible for an operator.” Joshua Thomas.