​The struggles of going ghost

As restaurant operators have tried to accommodate off-premise guests in recent years, the ghost kitchen quickly emerged as an appealing solution – giving operators a low-overhead option for starting a new foodservice concept or keeping an existing one humming while dining rooms were closed. But growing pains have begun to emerge for the industry. A recent Restaurant Business report indicated that operators were struggling with the high cost of delivery from their ghost kitchens, as well as attracting and paying staff and marketing locations that were designed to be invisible to the public. But since ghost kitchens were initially promoted as operator-friendly entry points into the industry, some say their difficulties may be more rooted in the experience of the operators themselves. John Meyer, CEO of Ghost Financial, which provides loans, insurance, payroll and other financial products to ghost kitchen operators, told Restaurant Dive that ghost kitchens have been attracting operators who lack industry-specific skills in digital advertising, targeted advertising and integration with delivery apps. But as we have learned from the pandemic, every challenge creates an opportunity: To help ghost kitchen operators get up to speed, Meyer developed GhostU, an online educational program designed to help restaurateurs build, scale and run a profitable ghost kitchen. Restaurant Dive reports that the program provides a minimum of 12 videos, along with step-by-step worksheets and three months of access to Ghost Financial’s Ghost Kitchen Community, where ghost kitchen owners can share their experiences and access interactive workshops and Q&A sessions.

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