If your business is growing fast, that’s a great sign. However, behind the scenes, this rapid growth can begin to create new problems. More sales mean more ingredients, more staff, more outlets, and if you're not careful, more wastage. Managing it all becomes hard without a proper backend system. And if you don’t scale the backend to match the growth, things can start falling apart.

You would be thinking that an ERP system is the only solution, but do you even know what it is, and is it the right thing for your restaurant? 

Let’s find out if you even need an ERP system for your restaurant, and if not, then what could be an alternative to that? 

What is an ERP system?

An ERP system is a software that helps companies manage and automate their business processes. It connects departments like procurement, sales, inventory, finance, and HR into one single system. Enterprise resource planning systems are widely used in industries like manufacturing, retail, and logistics, where they help manage complex operations across various locations.

So yes, an ERP brings everything together into one place and helps you track your data in real time. On paper, it sounds like the perfect tool.

But here’s where things get tricky.

Why is enterprise resource planning important?

Enterprise resource planning systems are designed to improve efficiency, reduce manual work, and provide a single source of truth. When everything from your purchases to your finances is connected, you can get detailed reports and insights to make better decisions.

If you’re managing multiple outlets, this kind of system sounds essential. You want to reduce mistakes, prevent wastage, and understand your stock movement clearly. You want to plan ingredient orders better, avoid overstocking or understocking, and reduce dependency on manual spreadsheets.

This is why many growing F&B businesses start exploring ERP solutions when their backend becomes too complex.

How is ERP relevant for restaurants?

You might feel that an ERP system is the next logical step. And yes, some parts of enterprise resource planning do fit your needs.

For example, if you’re running five or more outlets, managing procurement without a system can become a nightmare. Ingredient stock needs to be tracked accurately. You want to know what’s selling and what’s not. You need to order the right quantities to avoid wastage. Also, your finance team wants to know where the money is going.

ERP systems are built to solve these problems. But the issue is—they are not built specifically for your kind of business.

Why ERP system an overkill for restaurants?

Here’s the truth: most ERP systems are built as general-purpose tools. They are designed to work across different industries. If you want it to handle F&B-specific needs like recipe-level stock tracking, supplier comparison, or outlet-level demand forecasting, you’ll need to customize it heavily.

And customization is expensive. Some ERP customizations can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. You may also need to hire consultants and external developers just to make the system work for your kind of business. Not only does it increase the cost, but it also slows down your team.

Another issue is training. ERP systems are complex. Your staff may take months to fully understand how to use them, and even then, mistakes can happen.

According to a report by Panorama Consulting (2024 ERP Report), nearly 51% of ERP implementations go over budget, and 46% face major delays. And what’s worse, only 42% of businesses achieve the expected benefits after implementing an ERP.

For F&B chains, the situation is even more complicated. You deal with perishable goods, fluctuating ingredient prices, and daily stock movement. ERP systems don’t come ready to handle these edge cases. And unless the system is tailored for your needs, you might end up wasting time, money, and energy.

Many businesses feel happy when sales go up. But growth without control is dangerous. Imagine this—your sales are increasing, but so is your wastage. You don’t even know where the excess stock is going or why your food cost is going up.

90% of growing F&B businesses don’t even track their wastage properly. (Source: Food Market Hub Internal Survey, 2024)

This is where backend control becomes essential. You don’t just need a fancy system—you need the right system.

What can solve your issues better?

You don’t need a system bloated with features you’ll never use. You need a system designed specially for F&B. One that fits right into your kitchen, your accounts, and your outlets. One that works smoothly with your POS and your existing accounting software.

Food Market Hub (FMH) is that system.

It’s not an ERP system. But it works like one, just without the unnecessary features. FMH gives you all the control you need over your procurement, supplier management, ingredient tracking, and inventory control.

And the best part? It integrates directly with your POS system and your accounting tools. So there’s no need to change everything just to make it work.

Big brands like Pizza Hut and KFC already use FMH to manage thousands of outlets. It helps them reduce procurement costs, control wastage, and get real-time visibility across all locations.

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If you’re serious about growing the right way, without throwing money into complicated ERP systems, FMH can be your answer. It’s built for your kind of restaurant business.

Your business growth should make your life easier, not harder. You shouldn’t have to deal with stock errors, late deliveries, and manual spreadsheets just because the backend isn’t scaling. But jumping into a traditional ERP system might give you more headaches than solutions.

Before spending on something that wasn’t even built for F&B, consider a system that is. A system that understands your pain points, your ingredients, your suppliers, and most importantly, your speed of work.

If you’d like to know how Food Market Hub can help your business grow without chaos, we’d love to show you. Just reach out.