Some restaurants are already using surge pricing and reaping big profits as Wendy’s plans fluctuating charges

Published

2 months ago

March 5, 2024

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Dozens of restaurants nationwide have quietly begun using surge pricing and have reaped tens of thousands of dollars in profits from the controversial practice, The Post has learned.

Barbecue chain Tony Romas and nearly 100 other small restaurants have already turned to fluctuating menu prices during peak times — similar to the rollout planned by fast-food giant Wendy’s next year — according to one company that sells the software specializing in dynamic pricing.

Los Angeles-based Sauce Pricing — a startup backed by founding members of Sweetgreen, Uber, Airbnb and several private equity firms — said restaurants have the opportunity to increase item prices by 10% to 20% during the lunch rush so customers might pay an extra $1 to $2 for a $10 item, according to a blog post on its website.

In some cases, weve actually seen some restaurants go from having a 10% profit margin to a 20% profit margin, the blog post said.

One of its customers, Las Vegas-based casual eatery Rachels Kitchen, earned $64,000 in additional annual profit across three stores, according to Sauce Pricing’s website.

The Rachel’s Kitchen CEO Debbie Roxarzade confirmed the company uses Sauce Pricing’s software.

The prices “don’t increase or decrease [by] more than 15%, that’s our cap for all menu items,” she told The Post on Tuesday. She also said the price fluctuations only apply to the restaurant’s delivery orders from Doordash, UberEats and Grubhub.

Orlando, Fla.-based Tony Roma’s, popular for its ribs, did not return calls for comment.

Ice cream favorite Carvel was also listed as a Sauce Pricing customer on its website, but the Fudgie the Whale maker denied any ties to the startup when contacted by The Post.

Sauce Pricing founder Colin Webb did not immediately return calls and emails for comment.

Uber-style surge pricing allows a business to hike up the cost of an item when a restaurant is slammed. Theoretically, restaurants can also lower prices during slower times, though it’s not clear whether Wendy’s will let favorites like Dave’s Single fall below its base price.

The announcement by Wendys chief executive Krik Tanner this month that the burger chain will invest in a “dynamic pricing” pilot sparked anger and anxiety from inflation-battered customers fed-up with ever increasing food prices.

Price gouging. The corporate food company go to, posted one angry user on X.

Most of the price adjustments, however, are on online orders and are meant to help restaurants cope with rising labor costs and delivery fees from Doordash, Grubhub and UberEats, Sauce Pricing’s website notes.

Delivery accounts for a growing portion of restaurant revenues and costs, particularly since the pandemic, experts told The Post.

One industry veteran pointed out that restaurants have long lowered and raised their prices to lure customers during slow and busy times.

Happy Hour is dynamic pricing and so is a burger that costs more at dinner than at lunch or an offer of free delivery during a thunderstorm, said Chris Webb, chief executive and founder of ChowNow, an online food ordering company.

But people like reliability and having prices change because the demand is higher is not hospitality.

Other experts said its just a matter of time before the restaurant industry catches up with industries like airlines and hotels that have mastered surge pricing.

Sometimes you check a flight and the price change within a week is dramatic, but it doesnt stop people from flying, said restaurant analyst Mark Kalinowski.

Ultimately, consumers will accept it if a large number of restaurant chains do it, too.

Sports

Keys to the offseason: What’s next for the Bruins, Avs, other eliminated teams?

Published

1 hour ago

May 18, 2024

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Keys to the offseason: What's next for the Bruins, Avs, other eliminated teams?

Ryan S. Clark
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Ryan S. Clark

NHL reporter
Kristen Shilton
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Kristen Shilton

ESPN NHL reporter

May 18, 2024, 02:00 AM ET

The 2023-24 NHL regular season was an entertaining one, with races for playoff position, point and goal leaders, and major trophies all coming down to the bitter end.

But not every fan base got to enjoy all of it so much.

With eliminations piling up, it’s time to look ahead to the offseason. Clubs that didn’t quite hit the mark this season will use the draft, free agency and trades in an effort to be more competitive in 2024-25.

Read on for a look at what went wrong for each eliminated team, along with a breakdown of its biggest keys this offseason and realistic expectations for next season. Note that more teams will be added to this story as they are eliminated.

Note: Profiles for the Atlantic and Metro teams were written by Kristen Shilton, while Ryan S. Clark analyzed the Central and Pacific teams. Stats are collected from sites such as Natural Stat Trick, Hockey Reference and Evolving Hockey. Projected cap space per Cap Friendly. Dates listed with each team are when the entry was published.

Jump to a team:
ANA | ARI | BOS | BUF
CGY | CAR | CHI | COL
CBJ | DET | LA | MIN
MTL | NSH | NJ | NYI
OTT | PHI | PIT | SJ
SEA | STL | TB | TOR
VGK | WSH | WPG

World

Ron Benjamin: Body of Israeli hostage kidnapped during cycling trip on 7 October found in Gaza, IDF says

Published

2 hours ago

May 18, 2024

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Ron Benjamin: Body of Israeli hostage kidnapped during cycling trip on 7 October found in Gaza, IDF says

The body of an Israeli hostage who was captured by Hamas militants while on a cycling trip has been recovered from Gaza, the Israeli military has said.

The Hostages and Missing Families Forum said Ron Benjamin, 53, was riding his bike in the Kibbutz Be’eri in Israel when he was taken hostage during the 7 October attack.

The group said he was a “family man who loved cycling” and that he “used to go out for a ride every Saturday, just as he did on that fateful Saturday when he was taken hostage”.

It added: “Ron loved traveling in Israel and around the world, and he loved music.”

The Israeli military said on Saturday that Mr Benjamin’s body was recovered by its forces operating in Gaza.

Chief military spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said Mr Benjamin was “brutally murdered by Hamas terrorists at the Mefalsim Intersection, and his body was kidnapped to Gaza”.

Mr Hagari said Mr Benjamin were found along with three other murdered hostages whose repatriation was announced on Friday.

The remains of Itzhak Gelerenter, 56, Amit Buskila, 28, and Shani Louk, 22, were discovered in an overnight operation carried out by Israel’s military and intelligence agency Shin Bet, Mr Hagari said.

They were killed at the Nova music festival on the day of the Hamas attack.

The Israeli military, citing intelligence information, has said all four hostages were killed on 7 October.

They were among the 252 people seized by Hamas-led Palestinian gunmen during the attack.

This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly.

Please refresh the page for the fullest version.

You can receive breaking news alerts on a smartphone or tablet via the Sky News app. You can also follow @SkyNews on X or subscribe to our YouTube channel to keep up with the latest news.

Business

Marks & Spencer’s website and app go down

Published

4 hours ago

May 18, 2024

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Marks & Spencer's website and app go down

Marks & Spencer’s website and app has not been working for several hours, with a message telling shoppers “you can’t shop with us right now”.

“We’re working hard to be back online as soon as possible,” it adds.

All the menus and images have disappeared apart from one showing a model in a green jacket.

Customers trying to use the app got the message: “Sorry you can’t shop through the app right now. We’re busy making some planned changes, but will be back soon.”

The site is understood to have been down for several hours.

Replying to one customer on X, the retailer said: “We’re experiencing some technical issues but we are working on it.”

M&S is the latest high street name to have technical issues – last month some Sainsbury’s shoppers had problems with their online orders.

The outage comes a few days before M&S is expected to reveal a big jump in annual profits.

It’s been a successful year for the brand, with strong sales across the business following a turnaround plan that has included store closures and cost cutting.