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Back to school 2025 in the foodservice industry: the complete operational & marketing checklist

08 August 2025
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As soon as the last tourist leaves, it's back to school time. And when it comes to catering, there's no time to take it easy: the team has to get back up and running, adjust the menu, get the regulars back on track, attract the working people back to the office... all in just a few weeks.

The September-October period is short but decisive. Well prepared, it can boost your visitor numbers, secure your margins and put you on the right track for the end of the year.

So you don't have to improvise from day to day, we've put together a clear, actionable operational and marketing checklist for you.

A single objective: to make a success of your return to school and gain peace of mind for the months ahead.

Anticipating the upturn: an express audit of your summer and a September-December projection

Analyze summer KPIs

Before setting off for a new school year, take 2 hours to take stock. Look at your July-August figures: sales, average ticket, turnover rate, digital share of sales, number of Google reviews, etc.

Identify slack periods, best-selling products and recurring problems.

It's a good time to sort out what to keep, what to adjust and what to throw away.

Setting back-to-school goals

Don't get ahead of yourself. Set 2 or 3 clear objectives to be achieved by the end of October.

For example: 

➜ increase average basket by €1

➜ reach 20% ordering via Click & Collect

➜ get 20 new customer reviews a month

➜ fill your CRM with 300 qualified customers

No need to overdo it. Simple, quantified goals that you can follow week by week. And above all, that have a direct impact on your margin or customer experience.

Plan actions from late August to mid-October

Your action plan should fit on one page. Otherwise, you won't use it.

Organize it by weeks, mixing operational and marketing actions:

➜ week 1: menus updated, back-to-school offers activated
➜ week 2: email/SMS reminder for inactive customers
➜ week 3: testing a new order path to optimize upsell
➜ week 4: testing a "remote" offer (hot drink + cookie) weekday afternoons to boost attendance

Don't forget to include measurement times (e.g. Monday morning before the rush) and a weekly team ritual to share results.

Card: optimizing supply and profitability

Identify best-sellers and low-margin products

Before touching the menu, open your stats. Which dishes sold well this summer? Which just took up space on the menu?

Look also at the impact of extras: supplements, sauces, options. They often make the difference at the end of the day.

Once you've sorted all this out, you'll have a clearer idea of what to do next.

Rethink the order path to trigger more upsells

A good upsell is first and foremost a good order path. In other words: how you get the customer to consider something other than what they had planned.

And for this, digital is a real lever.

On Self ordering kioskyou can guide your customers step by step, without overloading them:

✔ offer a topping, drink or dessert at the right moment in the course
✔ display attractive visuals with high-margin products
✔ test several combinations according to time, day or average basket

When it comes to front-of-house service, remember to keep the menu simple and to take care with its layout (location, visual hierarchy, well-chosen single photo). 

Better one well-placed suggestion than 10 irrelevant products with no link.

Create attractive "back-to-school" offers (compatible with meal vouchers!)

In September, your customers are looking to get back into the swing of things. Think working people returning to the office and students on a budget.

Here are a few ideas to get you started:

✔ attractive lunch options for students
✔ special "lunch" selection on order terminal or digital menu, visible from the home screen
✔ limited weekly offers to create rhythm without revisiting the entire menu

Think about the communication around these offers: posters at the entrance, posters at the entrance, targeted messages by SMS or emailand personalization of your onboarding pages on digital menu (e.g. "Formule midi", "Happy Hour" or "Sur place / À emporter").

Process: streamline service and cash without wasting time

You've taken stock of your margins, your objectives and your card. All that remains is to tackle what can really make a difference on a daily basis: time.

And if you haven't yet digitized certain key steps, back-to-school is a good time to get started.

Ordering and payment at the table (QR code) to reduce waiting times and speed up turnover

The bill is often the moment that gets in the way. The customer is waiting, the team is running around, the table remains occupied... You're wasting time, and therefore cutlery.

With QR code ordering and payment at the table, everything goes faster. The customer consults the menu, orders and pays without raising a hand. You keep up the pace, even when you're short-staffed.

✔ fewer round trips for the team

✔ more flexibility for customers

✔ faster turnover = more turnover with constant staffing levels

And you choose the level of autonomy: menu only, orderor complete course with payment.

Click & Collect for midday workers

Back-to-school also means a return to quick lunches. Visit Click & Collect allows you to absorb this flow without saturating the room.

✔ Control from office PC or telephone

✔ Online prepayment
✔ Rapid withdrawal in a defined time slot

It's ultra-easy to set up, and allows you to reach a new audience without mobilizing the whole team.

Digitized tips for transparent sharing with the team

Cash tips are on the decline, especially for card and mobile payments. By switching to digital tipping (via payment at table), you make life easier for your customers and enhance the value of your team's work.

✔ an additional source of income for your servers
✔ better motivation on the floor
✔ a fairer, clearer sharing system to manage

It's also a good HR lever, especially in tense times. Teams see the difference at the end of the month.

Want to find out more? See our resource ➜ Restaurant: how to boost tips?

Back waiter on duty in a traditional restaurant

Marketing & acquisition: relaunching regulars and attracting new flows

September is back to the office, back to habits and good addresses. If you didn't communicate so much this summer, it's time to re-launch a few targeted actions to boost your traffic.

Email/SMS automation "We're back" + limited offers

A small message is often enough to bring a customer back, provided it arrives at the right time, with the right offer.

To be tested from the end of August:

➜ "Back to work" message with limited offer (free coffee, lunch menu discount, added product).
➜ dunning customers who have been inactive for more than 45 days

Don't know what to send? Don't panic, we've prepared some sample messages to copy and paste for inspiration ➜ Customer loyalty calendar: 10 campaigns not to be missed

Google Business page: back-to-school updates (photos, schedules, menus)

Your Google listing is often your first shop window. If timetables are wrong, or the latest menu dates back to May, you'll lose customers before they've even got through the door.

Take 30 minutes to :

➜ check your schedule
➜ add 2 to 3 recent photos (room, dishes, current menu)
➜ publish a little "back to school" post to indicate that everything is ready

➜ add your back-to-school menu in PDF or link to the digital map

Want to optimize your Google Business page? See our complete guide ➜ How to create an attractive Google My Business page for your restaurant?

Customer reviews: use post-summer feedback to improve your e-reputation

Summer often generates a spike in opinions... and not always the most flattering ones. Back to school is the time to regain control and show that you're listening.

Start by responding to the latest comments, both positive and negative. Then make it easy to collecting opinions from the start of the school year. The simpler it is for the customer, the more likely you are to get returns.

Even better: if you use a collection tool, you can automatically trigger a SMS or email notificationwith no need for the team to intervene.

What it does for you :

✔ collect regular reviews effortlessly
✔ boost satisfied customers on Google or Tripadvisor
✔ identify friction points behind the scenes to improve the experience

It's a lever that's often overlooked, but an argument that weighs heavily in the choice of new customers who discover you on Google.

Measure and adjust: monitor results and prepare for what comes next

Back to school goes by fast. Each action might as well be used twice: to relaunch in September, and to prepare for December. The aim is not to start from scratch at every peak in activity.

5 weekly KPIs to track in September

Stay on course without drowning in numbers. Here are the indicators to watch every week:

➜ CA per day, to spot dips and adjust your schedules
➜ average ticket, especially if you are testing offers or Click & Collect
➜ table rotation, especially if you have set up the payment at table
➜ customer return rate, if you use a loyalty program
➜ volume and rating of customer reviews, to track the impact of your efforts

There's no need for a complex dashboard, just clear monitoring to decide whether to keep, adjust or stop an action.

Capitalize on Christmas & the end of the year

The best practices tested and approved are reusable throughout the year.

Have you set up an effective lunchtime offer? You can make a "party formula" version.
Has your customer base been reactivated? You can segment it to send a Christmas offer.
Has your team got used to paying at the table? It will be ready for heavy-duty days.

Remember to document what worked (and what didn't):

➜ campaigns that performed well
➜ schedules or formulas that boost sales
➜ customer feedback or outstanding reviews

All this work isn't just for September. It already prepares you for a more profitable and controlled end to the year.

Take action: request a demo of ordering and payment at the table

Do you have just-in-time service? Are you looking to streamline service without recruiting? Ordering and paying at the table can save you time this autumn, without weighing down your organization.

With Obypay, you're in control: you choose the level of autonomy, the integration with your cash register, and the way it's installed in your home. We'll take care of the rest.

Not yet equipped? What if now was the right time to test the solution at home? Request a demoWe'll show you what it looks like in real-life conditions.

Already an Obypay customer? Take advantage of the back-to-school period to have a little check-up with your account manager!

The future belongs to those who back-to-school success (especially at our side)

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