Company Overview
Local Kitchens is a tech-enabled, multi-brand restaurant company with a mission to bring communities together through food. By bringing dishes from beloved local restaurants and nationally recognized chefs together under one roof, Local Kitchens brings great, convenient food to every neighborhood. Their community-centric environment fosters authentic connections between guests, staff, and food creators. With 12 locations across the San Francisco Bay Area and the greater Sacramento Area, they serve as a gathering place for families, friends, coworkers, and couples, strengthening local communities one meal at a time.
Challenges Faced Before Force4Good
Before implementing Force4Good, Local Kitchens encountered several administrative and operational challenges with their fundraising efforts. Overall, the process felt informal and unofficial to guests, making it hard to source fundraisers. The application process involved extensive back-and-forth coordination with issues such as:
- Manual creation of flyers: Each individual fundraiser’s marketing flyer had to be created manually, which was time-consuming and inefficient.
- Manual entry of fundraiser sales: Post-event, fundraiser sales were tallied and added manually, increasing the workload and potential for errors.
- Unique code creation: A unique online ordering code had to be generated for every single fundraiser, adding another layer of complexity.
- Manual reminders: The kitchen operations team and guests had to be manually reminded about fundraisers leading up to the event.
Discovery and Selection of Force4Good
Local Kitchens sought a solution that would accelerate their social impact initiatives and simplify execution. Force4Good stood out from the beginning due to several factors:
- Social impact focus: Force4Good was a good fit due to its focus on social impact.
- Ease of execution: Simplifying fundraiser execution was critical. Force4Good’s software addressed each of Local Kitchen’s challenges listed above.
- Reputation and support: Force4Good was a front-runner because of its existing portfolio of restaurants and experience in the fundraising and philanthropy space.
Achievements with Force4Good
Force4Good helped Local Kitchens achieve and exceed their planned goals:
- Q1 2024 fundraiser sales: Local Kitchens set a goal of raising $30,000 in sales, which they exceeded, achieving a total $37,558.45 in event sales.
- Increase average order value (AOV): The Q1 fundraiser AOV was $41.32, compared to the average portfolio AOV of $25.40 (a 62.6% increase).
Feedback from Restaurant Operators
The feedback from the restaurant operators highlighted the positive impact of their fundraisers: General Manager in Los Gatos: “We really do enjoy these fundraisers. Guests are excited when they walk in.”
- Overall sentiment: Kitchen operators appreciated how fundraisers brought people together, fostering a sense of community while growing brand awareness and increasing sales.
Community Feedback
The community response to the increased fundraising efforts was overwhelmingly positive:
- Ease of hosting: Feedback indicated that hosting with Local Kitchens was easier than with other restaurants.
- Successful fundraisers: Participants reported that it was the most successful fundraiser they had hosted all year.
- Future hosting excitement: There was a high level of enthusiasm for hosting future events with Local Kitchens.
Recommendation for Other Restaurants
Local Kitchens strongly endorses Force4Good to other restaurants:
“This will grow your business. The investment is absolutely worth it! Not only will it save you time but it will show your guests that you’re serious about giving back to the community.”
Conclusion
By partnering with Force4Good, Local Kitchens was able to streamline its fundraising operations, increase its social impact, and achieve significant business growth. The collaboration met its planned goals and brought unanticipated successes, strengthening its community ties and enhancing its reputation.
