THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

Challenges encountered by Business Establishments (Boosalis, 2020)

Restaurant owners mentioned that financial sector is the most common problem
and biggest challenge for any business.

(Some of the challenges are balancing the budget and being able to pay the bills
which caused decreasing cost of operations making them promote and rely on
alternative ways for revenue.)

On the other hand, Cosh (2019), concluded that SMEs suffer more from the
marketing sector (loss of customer/market) than financial support.

(Given this, the aftermath strategies should focus on how to increase demand)

Moreover, noted by Sam and Rakatomanga (2020), most of the businesses’

production and growth was greatly affected during the Covid-19 crisis.

(Thus, it is crucial to manage the blood life of any businesses such as to

evaluate cash flow constraints while timely recovery of debtors, payments to suppliers
and employees, and servicing banks’ interests and debts)

Other note from Sam and Rakatomanga is that many businesses were either
ordered to close down by law during the lockdown and rest are unprepared to work from
home

(because of IT infrastructure not ready, lack of reliable IT equipment, poor /

saturated internet connections in some areas, and more.)
 And additional challenges were also faced for those who were able to work
remotely from home due to their own private and family situation.

(Including working couple do not have sufficient space at home to work together,
children at home who needed their own space for studying or playing, parents having to
take care of underage kids at the same time as working)

In additional, a study from Looze (2020) for any business, finding new customers
was the most common challenge. Among those with a new business less than 1 year
old, 4 in 5 reported this as a challenge (80%), compared to about 7 in 10 owners of
businesses that were 5 years or older (70% among those whose business was between
5-10 years old, and 69% among those whose business was 10 years or older).

However, entrepreneurs who just started their business face the greatest
difficulty to retain their existing customers. Nearly 7 in 10 reported this to be a challenge
(68%) compared to just over half of those with a mature business 10 years or older
(54%).
Coping Strategies adapted by businesses, in general due to the pandemic

Klaus and Manthiou, (2020) discussed how importance managerial attention is to

assess how the disruption affects customers and employees. One way to deal with the
crisis is the service innovation which improves the existing services and create new
ones according to Heinonen and Strandvik, (2020)

 To Go Digital Nong (2018),

(Businesses as stated by Nong (2018), can use network communication

platforms such as Facebook and Weibo to explore new business opportunities during
crisis events. Also newsletters and customer subscriptions can help the business
survive while keeping customers informed on new updates. )

 Provide proper training for managers to have a better guidance on stress

management and for staff on food preparations while maintaining its high
quality and resolving conflicts in the workplace.
 Timely communication. Tang (2018) and Nong (2018)

(E-commerce during this time of crisis is crucial as it can boost robustness and flexibility
which became widely used as a channel as it provides effective crisis communications,
thus it is highly demanding in terms of managing this pandemic crisis)

 As of the Wholesale and Retail industry developing a contingency plan is

one way for them to deal with changes through buying from numerous
suppliers and increase product diversification.
 Another strategy they implement is reducing operation hours, cutting down
non-essential operating costs, and reducing inventories.
  In terms of human resources, restaurants must reduce staffing
requirements while protecting employees and customers from the COVID-
19 virus together with workplace hygiene practices. As well as maintaining
workplace order and health and safety.

(While the good thing is the pandemic prompted extraordinary interest in

innovation of restaurants, including calls to inspire, initiate and coordinate innovations
beyond those already designed and implemented.)
Health Protocols implemented by the Department of Trade and Industry along
with restaurant and fast food establishments

In the food industry, they are required to comply with the minimum health
standards set by the Depart of Trade and Industry (DTI) to mitigate the spread of the
corona virus.

The following are DTI's minimum health standards that shall be implemented in
dine-in restaurants and fast-food establishments:

 "No mask, No entry"

 Maximum number of persons are only allowed
 Alternative methods of payment and in ordering and pick up of orders.
 In every entrance of restaurants, they are required to provide floor mat
with disinfectant.
 There must be queuing area for customers who are waiting to be seated
with roving officer for compliance with the social distancing policy.
 A calibrated thermal scanner for temperature reading must also be
provided.

For the kitchen protocols declared by Department of Trade and Industry

 Directional arrows on the kitchen floor must be established to control flow of

traffic and reduce interaction between cooking and clearing area.
 They need also to restrict access into food preparation area from
workers that are not involved in the preparation stage.
  Checking and recording of personnel's temperature check before
and after work shift, as well as whereabouts before work to be sent to the
restaurant or fast-food manager via SMS.

Department of Trade and Industry would also like to guide the process and systems of
food delivery.

 Orders must be taken through phone calls, email or any online mode.
 Assigning drop-off sites right outside a door outside the building with easily
noticeable signage or markers.

Challenges encountered by restaurant businesses during the Covid-19 pandemic.

( According to Crum (2021), some of the restaurants have decided to close the
business permanently or temporarily due to the Covid-19 pandemic. However, other
restaurants found ways to be resilient in their approach just to cope up with the
situation)

Huddleston Jr. (2020), stated that restaurants have confronted a huge

disturbance to their revenue sources and plans of action one reason is an absence of
provider influenced by certain food brands and one of the models is the Coca-Cola
organization that diminished their net incomes.

Other test for restaurants is that a portion of their contributions and

administrations have gotten pointless for certain clients, who would prefer to cook all
alone to keep away from wellbeing hazard.

As indicated by Nurin, common subsidizing from the bank was consistently in

favor just to the huge restaurant businesses.

(Most of the bank store suppliers were offered thought to the enormous eateries. Just
5% of little and autonomous cafés were accepting asset help.)
 Bingham and Hariharan (2020), expressed that the worries identified with the
business operational coherence for all individuals from the association, worker
assurance, and market safeguarding are the main concerns. Thus, As verified by
Hardines (2020), neatness has consistently been a need for any eatery.

Coping Strategies taken by restaurant businesses due to COVID-19

Despite of how challenging the pandemic is on restaurant industry, they were still
able to be more strategic and innovative. They came up with different methods to
manage their survival and to sustain their operations due to the pandemic's challenges.
Just like how they start to

Restaurants start to invest in social media marketing including promotions while

developing effective and efficient pricing strategies would be advantageous for
restaurant businesses. Meanwhile, reducing costs associated with order processing,
products and services, product and service innovation would best serve or satisfy
customers, and maintaining a good ambiance for customers dining in could be a tactic
and a help to sustain production service.

Furthermore, training or seminars of employees is necessary to prioritize as they

keep customer’s health and safety.

Dine-in restaurants on the other hand implement limitations of gatherings to a

certain number of people which makes restaurants invested on massive online delivery
food services and offer ready-to-cook meals, pick up or delivery via food couriers

Another way to mitigate the possibility of putting workers and customers at risk is
to implement employee sick leave policy or addressing time off for ill employees.

(By alleviating these concerns with relevant communication and safe, convenient
choices, restaurants must provide assistance customers will remember and appreciate
(Olohan, 2020) )
Innovative Strategies Used by Businesses and Restaurants

According to (Henry Sacha, 2020) many businesses opted to initiate innovative

strategies such as:

 Social initiative advancements lay on people's generosity to nearby

organizations, and the environment and citizen groups.

A large number of these advancements have a social measurement,

focusing on cultural prosperity by providing them actions in economic and
behavioral.

 Service innovation on the other hand from a strategic perspective of

Heinonen, (2020) mitigates adverse results by triggering a change of
mindset and stimulating business opportunities that would not have been
considered under normal circumstances.

Applying an essential focal point to support advancement in problematic

settings such as advocacy campaigns

 Delivery innovation according to Henry, (2020) is the contactless

advancement or far off conveyance through robots, pass through or local
area driven delivery.
 Service delivery for instance, restaurants offer web-based booking and
scheduling, as well as dedicated shopping hours for weak clients.
 These advancements consolidate worldly and spatial value elements that
focus on the time and location of service delivery and use.

 Furthermore, as per Heinonen and Strandvik, (2020), Social Distancing

Innovations guarantee the execution safety of wellbeing and security
measures and adequate distances between people, in view of both
unmistakable and elusive specialized highlights.

Example of wearable and gadgets, for example, the mechanical Fortum Vipu (for
opening entryways without contacting the handle); the keen gadget Aura Aware, which
helps to maintain a safe physical distance from others and the Safe Hands wristband for
checking facial contact conduct. Intangible physical distancing innovations include
mobile phone apps like Snapchat's My Social Distance AR focal point, a visual guide to
help keep safe social distancing in the open spaces. The spatial and social worth
segments of these advancements center around the spaces and settings in which
people move.

 Remote Presence Innovation enables users to be mentally present at

one location while physically located at another place, as in virtual travel
and encountering social areas from one's own home.

Restaurants, craftsmen, and other specialist co-ops additionally offer

applications that permit one to encounter their administrations basically or
distantly or virtually. For instance, the UK distillery Signature Brew
fostered the item group Pub in a Box to carry the bar to clients' homes.
 CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK

Profile of Business
Challenges Encountered by Sustainability of
Restaurants Restaurant
Business
Coping Strategies Adapted by
Restaurants (DEPENDENT
VARIABLES)
(INDEPENDENT VARIABLES)

Innovative Solutions

This study shows the relationship between the independent and dependent
variables. It also uncovers innovative solutions for the sustainability of restaurants and
at the same time to deal with the challenges encountered by the restaurant industry
while adapting different strategies.

The profile of the business is the demographic information of the restaurant firm.

It gives information to better understand background characteristics of the

business: number of years in operation, Initial capital, present capital, Initial # of
employees, present # of employees. This demographic information affects the
sustainability of the business, since if there is a big gap between the initial capital and
present capital, initial number of employees and present number, it can be deduced that
the business will soon no longer be operational.

The sustainability of restaurant is affected by the challenges. When a business is

unable to surpass the problems and the strategy they come up with is poorly managed,
therefore that business would not be able to keep their operations.

Studying the challenges encountered by the restaurant businesses that will help
them address those problems. Understanding obstacles are faced by the business must
be overcome by coming up with a coping strategy

Moving on with the coping strategies, these are the response of the business
with the intention of battling these challenges and are the specific course of action with
the intention of solving the problem faced.

It is what people employ to minimize or eliminate the risks which the challenges
obtain. If the strategies turn out to eliminate the challenges, thus it can sustain the
operation of the business.
 Innovative solutions are the specific efforts in solving a particular problem with
the use of technology; these are useful innovations that could be a huge advantage
when dealing or handling challenges.

They could be the best course of action to be implemented. One example is

Delivery innovation. These innovations are contactless or remote delivery through
robots, drive-through or community-driven deliveries. Other innovations relate to the
timing of service delivery; for example, restaurants offer online booking and scheduling,
as well as dedicated shopping hours for vulnerable customers. If a business would
utilize effective innovative solutions, thus, undeniably it would help the restaurant
business overcome the underlying challenges, moreover, prolong and uphold their firm.

The profile of the business, challenges encountered, strategies applied and

innovative solutions as the independent variables show that it impact the sustainability
of the operations of the restaurants as the dependent variable.