2 minute read
Regional Shorts
SOCAL REGION: GETTING BACK TO NORMAL, STEP BY STEP
By Shannon Prendiville
It has been nearly a year since I wrote about the pandemic and the challenges of operating our restaurants during this “new normal” of social distancing and masks. Through it all, the KFC brand has seen tremendous success delivering “comfort food to comfort the masses.” Through the pandemic landscape, and even with lobbies closed, we increased sales and customer counts. Our loyal customers utilized delivery aggregators such as DoorDash, and drive-thru traffic remained at high levels throughout the year. This is all great news for the KFC family.
Now, as local business restrictions ease in the Northwest, we are faced with other challenges. How do we staff our restaurants with less labor available? How do we deal with strains on the supply chain? It appears we are in a new phase of pandemic challenges. As we move forward, we are hopeful that the buying habits and behaviors our customers developed over the last year will continue and remain their “new normal.”
However, we need to look at new technology to mitigate labor issues and further advance order-taking technology such as kiosks. In addition, we will have to navigate new climate policies that are sure to have an impact on our businesses. We strive to overcome these new challenges and others as we journey to the other side of the pandemic. Of course, the KFC family will continue to serve the Colonel’s Bucket, “From Kentucky with Love,” along the way.
The NWKFC Association fall 2021 meeting will be a virtual event this year in October; details are still being finalized. Together with the Southern California KFC Association, we will be on the “Big Island” in Hawaii for fall 2022! Save the dates: Oct. 22-28, 2022. Please find updates to all our meetings and regional information on our website at www.nwkfc.com.
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By Deborah Ossanlo
The Southern California Region has postponed its 2020 — and now 2021 — meetings due to the pandemic. However, we did join in the NW Virtual Fall Meeting in 2020 and enjoyed this informative event. Some of our vendor partners also sponsored the event, and we greatly appreciate their support.
The SoCal Region is looking forward to an “in-person” Spring Manager’s Meeting in May of next year. We have missed speaking with our vendors and look forward to their exhibits. Our 2021 Fall Meeting in Hawaii with the NW Region was again postponed to October 2022. We’re getting back to a “new normal” step by step n
