Customer Stories

Turning Up the Heat on Growth: Kitchen Works' Sizzling Success with ResQ

Key successes

Company Background

Kitchen Works is a seasoned service provider in the restaurant industry, with a rich history spanning over four decades in New York City. Led by Daniel Fowley, the company has carved out a niche in servicing the hot side of kitchens in restaurants and hotels. This specialization has allowed Kitchen Works to build a robust clientele in one of the world's most competitive restaurant markets.

The company's daily operations are intensive, as Fowley notes, "on a normal day, we do anywhere from 20 to 30 service calls in a day." This high volume of service calls underscores Kitchen Works' significant presence and the trust they've built in the local market over their 40-year tenure.

Challenge

Despite their extensive experience and established presence, Kitchen Works grappled with several operational challenges:

Inconsistent service call management

Kitchen Works had to hop through many steps to communicate with a customer and had a lengthy process before getting a person on site. Fowley describes the pre-ResQ process

"Outside of ResQ, there's many steps that have to be taken and they're not consistently the same steps. So a customer could text in a service call, call on a service call, email a service call. They talk to this person, they talk to that person, then they have to put in the dispatch."

Limited market reach

‍Even with their long-standing presence, Kitchen Works was missing out on potential clients. Fowley felt like he had a good understanding of the market, but there seemed to be more opportunities out there as well.

Payment issues

‍One of the most persistent challenges was getting paid consistently and on time. Fowley explained:

"The reality is our best customers and best payers have always had moments of not paying certain invoices or taking too long, whatever it may be. It could have just been it wasn't processed correctly or that they hit hard times and failed to tell us that and continue to use us."

Lack of clarity in service requests

‍In addition, Fowley mentioned that service calls often lacked crucial details: "They're not specific on what kitchen it is or when we can service the equipment."

Solution

Kitchen Works partnered with ResQ, a platform designed to help them get new jobs and service customers better. ResQ addressed their challenges in several ways:

Easy service call management

ResQ provided an easy platform for service calls. Fowley describes the ease of use:

"I could be out to dinner with my family and it pops up on my phone. that I got a ResQ service call. I look at it. It gives me all the criteria of how long this needs to take to get done, where it is, what the customer is willing to spend, what the problem is."

Expanded client base

ResQ connected Kitchen Works with new customers, particularly larger restaurant groups. Fowley notes:

"It always blows my mind being in this industry for 40 years in this city. You feel like you know every restaurant out there. And when we started using ResQ, we'd see these customers come through and I'm like, Oh, I've never heard of that place. And then I google them and they have 15 locations in Manhattan."

Streamlined and fast payments

ResQ handles all payments, ensuring consistent and timely compensation. Fowley enthusiastically stated "my favorite part of ResQ is that ResQ take care takes care of payments." He expanded:

"I will get paid at the end of next week no matter how large or small that amount of money is. It's consistent, as long as I submit that invoice in a timely fashion, I get paid, the end of the following week."

Detailed service requests with flexibility to accept or deny jobs that fit

The ResQ platform provides comprehensive information for each service call. As Fowley mentions, "There's usually a picture. There's a lot of clarity in ResQ." In addition, his team appreciates the flexibility:

"I can decide if this [job] fits with my company and I can accept it or I can deny it. I'm not forced to do any work, but I can accept work that I believe that I can accomplish."

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Conclusion

The partnership with ResQ has significantly improved Kitchen Works' operations and growth:

Business growth: Fowley confidently states, "Without a doubt, ResQ has helped me grow my business."
Improved efficiency: The streamlined process allows Kitchen Works to manage service calls more effectively, even outside of regular business hours.
Consistent cash flow: Fowley loves the reliable payment system, that keeps consistency in his cash flow and decreases collection times.
Broader market presence: The company now serves a wider range of clients, including restaurant groups they were previously unaware of.

After using ResQ for about a year, Kitchen Works has experienced significant improvements in their business operations and client base. The platform has allowed them to focus on their core mission, which Fowley succinctly puts as "help keep people cooking," while handling the complexities of service management and payment processing.

"ResQ has helped me grow my business. We've built some great relationships with customers through the platform and it's going very well."