Staying Alive: What Moe’s Southwest Grill Is Doing To Keep Revenue Flowing

About 80% of fast-casual Moe’s Southwest Grill locations have stayed open for delivery, curbside pick-up and to-go options. Dining in has been prohibited at most locations. The 20% of its outlets that are closed are mostly located in malls and airports.

Moe’s Southwestern Grill has 700 locations nationwide; most are franchised with only three company-owned in 40 states,

Erik Hess, Atlanta, Georgia-based president of Moe’s Southwest Grill, has noted that people spend more money when dining in compared to takeout and deliveries. “There’s an increase of 30% to 40% on average checks from in-store compared to delivery, curbside pick and to-go,” he said.

Despite the lower check averages, Moe’s has seen a spike in its to-go and delivery orders. “Sales have grown double digits since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic,” Hess noted.

The key to keeping revenue flowing during a pandemic crisis is to develop several “channels of revenue,” Hess pointed out. He rattles off several examples including: ramping up curbside dining, doing delivery through Moe’s apps, and delivery via third-party vendors including Uber Eats, GrubHub and DoorDash.

To boost sales, Moe’s offered free delivery from March 16 through April 17 on its Moe’s app. The current delivery price is $5 per order.

Its orders via its mobile app have also been growing. In fact, Moe’s loyalty program has blossomed into 3.4 million users.

It also launched Moe’s Market, which appeals to customers dining at home, and offers three to four pounds of steak, pork, adobo chicken and ground beef. And those proteins can be supplemented by rice, beans, guacamole and chips and hola, you have dinner for a family.

Another inventive strategy was creating Taco Kits, where Moe’s sells the individual components of making tacos and families can go home and prepare them for four to six people. “If families can’t come to Moe’s dining room, they can take the tacos home and have dinner with their kids,” he explained.

Keeping their employees and customers safe during a coronavirus crisis has also become a priority. Moe’s has established mandated masks for staff and deliberate social distancing via markings.

Moe’s has also employed social distancing with a sense of humor. When a customer is on line, there are markings on the floor that say, “You’re now one step closer to your burrito.”

Some of Moe’s 170 franchisees also participated in the Paycheck Protection Program. A spokeswoman for Moe’s said, “Some of the franchisees were fortunate enough to receive funds and have used the funding toward employee compensation and qualifying expenses.”

Hess says that the pandemic has been difficult for Moe’s, but in a certain way, it accelerated changes in their procedures. “Ordering through the app and digitally was creeping up incrementally, but now through a crisis, that has changed exponentially,” he asserted.

Since Moe’s Southwestern Grill is almost 97% franchised, will the pandemic weaken its ability to grow and attract new franchisees? Hess replied, “That will be a function of how quickly we get back to the sales level we had before. As we move unit levels forward, everything will take care of itself.”

But the key to Moe’s getting through the pandemic is, “holding our loyal customers close. You’re always looking for new ways the customer can use a brand like Moe’s. You always look to be more accessible, through curbside delivery and our app.”