If you own a bar, you can lose money if you don’t protect your inventory. Excessive pours, spillage, unauthorized free drinks and even theft can result in significant losses for bar owners.
Fortunately, bar owners have tool to better manage liquor, and one must-have tool is a liquor control system.
The liquor control system is a game-changer, and it’s drastically changed how bar owners manage inventory. With the right control system, a bar owner can accurately and quickly determine if the amount of alcohol poured lines up with sales, as well as track bottles, to maximize profitability.
Wondering what a liquor control system is? And how can your bar start using one to manage inventory? This guide highlights how a liquor control system works, reasons why your business needs one, and how it helps bars increase profits.
What Is a Liquor Control System?
A liquor control system is a set of tools that measures the amount of liquor poured and sold by bartenders. These systems typically include electronic pour spouts, to accurately measure pours, as well as liquor inventory tools to measure the amount of liquor that’s been poured from bottles.
Ultimately, a liquor control system enhances accuracy, security and accountability in managing bar inventory and drinks. Some key goals of a liquor control system include:
- Preventing over-serving
- Reducing overpours
- Enhance security and prevent theft
- Reduce waste and spillage
- Improve accuracy in drink preparation
- Streamline inventory management
Often, these systems integrate with bar POS systems, as well, to measure if sales volume is in line with inventory. In addition to a possible POS, liquor control systems typically include electronic pour spouts, barcode scanners and RFID tags to track alcohol usage.
How Can a Liquor Control System Help Your Business?
Liquor control systems give bar owners complete control over alcoholic beverages. Using it, they can guarantee consistent alcohol content in the drinks they serve, as well as determine how many drinks they’ve sold at the end of each month.
Some of the key ways these systems help bars include:
- Electronic pour spouts ensure consistent pours
- RFID tags and electronic spouts provides a measure of alcohol dispensed for each drink
- Provides data analytics and has reporting capabilities
- Enhances security and regulatory compliance
- Prevents over-pouring and reduces costs
- Guarantees customers receive consistent and high-quality beverages, which results in customer satisfaction and encourages loyalty
- Enhances security and regulatory compliance
- Helps identify discrepancies or potential losses and enables taking quick corrective actions
- Provides real-time information about inventory levels, sales trends, and preferred drink choices
- Boosts bar efficiency and profitability
Top 8 Reasons Bars Need Liquor Monitoring Systems
Liquor monitoring systems are critical in bars and other establishments serving alcoholic beverages. Here are some specific tasks bar owners can do with liquor control:
Avoid Theft
Bars produce huge volumes of alcoholic beverages, which makes them susceptible to theft by customers or employees. The liquor monitoring system prevents bartenders from giving away free drinks, as well as keeps tabs on all of the inventory in your storeroom.
Staff Accountability
A liquor monitoring system makes staff accountable for the drinks they serve to customers. It helps prevent over-pouring, for example, which reduces revenue loss. It also encourages responsible behavior among employees to create a trustworthy work environment.
Stay Compliant
Bars are subject to various regulations related to the sale of alcohol. These systems help the bar adhere to legal regulations and compliance requirements. Liquor monitoring systems help prevent legal issues, license revocation, and fines, ensuring the bar operates within the law.
Controls Cost
With a liquor monitoring system, owners can get data on the usage patterns of different alcoholic beverages in their stores. Bars can use this information for inventory optimization, decrease wastage, and negotiate better deals with suppliers. This control over costs is important for maintaining profitability.
Excellent Customer Service
With accurate inventory data, bars can ensure that preferred drinks are always in stock. It improves customer satisfaction as patrons can order their preferred beverages consistently.
Analyzing Data
Liquor monitoring systems generate valuable data that helps us understand customer preferences, preferred drinks, and peak hours. This data-driven approach lets bars make informed decisions about promotions, pricing, and menu offerings.
Reduces Shrinkage
Shrinkage refers to the difference between the amount of alcohol purchased and the amount sold. Liquor monitoring systems help reduce inventory shrinkage by accurately measuring sales and inventory levels.
Prevents Over-Serving
When alcohol is over-served, it can lead to legal issues and risk customers’ safety. Monitoring systems help bartenders track the amount of alcohol served to each customer, ensuring responsible service.
How to Weigh Liquor Bottles for Accurate Tracking?
In the hospitality industry, weighing liquor bottles is a standard method to ensure accurate inventory tracking. Here are some tools you need:
Digital Scale
You can use digital scales to measure weight differences. This helps you weigh liquor bottles precisely and accurately.
Taring the Scale
Put an empty container on the digital weighing scale and reset it to zero. This process, known as taring, ensures that you’ll measure the weight of the liquid content, not including the bottle or container itself.
Weigh the Bottle
Put the liquor bottle into the container and reset to zero. The weight you see on the display screen is the weight of the bottle’s liquid content. You should also weigh bottles as they arrive. This will help you understand the liquid weigh of an unopened bottle.
Update Records
Regularly re-weigh bottles to update inventory records and find any differences.
How Liquor Control System Helps Increase Profits
- To increase profits, ensure each drink has the correct amount of alcohol by stopping pouring too much. This allows you to serve more drinks per bottle.
- Reduces theft and pilferage, which helps bars and restaurants sell more of their inventory. It helps prevent losses and improves profit.
- Bars can optimize inventory, reduce wastage, and ensure popular drinks are always in stock. It reduces unnecessary expenses and increases profit margins.
- Data provided by the liquor control system helps identify slow-moving inventory. Bars can carry out targeted promotions and upsell items. This helps move inventory faster and prevents wastage, resulting in maximizing profits.
Conclusion
Liquor inventory management systems and monitoring systems ensure legal compliance, financial health, and customer satisfaction. By providing accurate data, enhancing accountability, and encouraging responsible practices, these systems are a must-have for the modern hospitality industry.
