Rising rent, production and food costs have forced Brooklyn Boy Bagels owner Michael Shafran to proactively research ways to manage expenses.
As a native New Yorker, Michael Shafran missed one thing when he moved to Australia: bagels. “I tried so many bagel places and didn’t like any of them,” he says. “So, I figured I could teach myself to make them.”
After 12 years of baking for friends, Michael bit the bullet with a pop-up store before expanding to farmers’ markets. “I realised there were enough people who cared about getting quality artisan bagels,” he says. It was only after signing up his first wholesale customer, that he knew he could make a go of it.
Michael, who has been running Brooklyn Boy Bagels since 2013 and has 1 bakery site and 2 cafés in Sydney, says he’s seen the effects of the rising cost of living. “This has been one of the tougher years we’ve had – it’s been hard to grow,” says Michael, who sees customers struggling, too. “People are still buying but they’re buying less.”
Facing a rent increase of 50% on the bakery site, Michael has swung into action, analysing where changes can be made. “We’re going to focus more on the wholesale part of the business – we’ve got someone to manage our farmers’ market business.”
Michael is also looking for efficient ways to track his rapidly changing food costs. “We usually review our pricing quarterly; that’s been too slow for the way prices are rising now.” The team is looking into software that alerts you when an invoice has increased. “Then we can see if we need to raise prices or take something off the menu.”
Being proactive is how Michael stays positive: “There’s a lot of pressure in the industry right now. I try to find ways to deal with the challenges.”
“Best reliever of stress is action.”
Michael’s tips
Make use of tech
“We’re trying to use AI to save labour. I used it for my bathroom cleaning and maintenance schedules – it did them in about 5 minutes.”
Be brave with pricing
“It’s always stressful to raise prices but things cost what they cost and sometimes you just need to do it.”
Be open with staff
“When staff ask for a raise, we have honest conversations saying, ‘Revenue is here, the wage cost is this much so we have to work together to increase revenue or find ways to be more efficient.’ When you’re honest, it gives them some control.”
