NEW YORK, Sept. 04, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Bikky, a customer data platform built exclusively for multi-unit restaurants, today announced a partnership with Marugame Udon USA, the fast-casual Japanese restaurant serving handcrafted Sanuki-style udon and freshly made tempura.
Founded in Japan nearly 25 years ago, Marugame has since grown to more than 1,200 locations globally. More recently, the brand has been focused on bringing their award-winning noodles and selfless hospitality - called omotenashi in Japan - to the U.S.
They have 15 locations now across California, Hawaii, and Texas, with plans for further expansion. As they continue to rapidly scale, it's become critical for their team to make the right marketing, menu, and operational decisions - all backed by data.
“Bikky has honestly saved us hours in figuring out what’s working and what’s not,” says Janna Esguerra, Marketing Analyst at Marugame Udon USA. “We’re excited to better use our customer data in our marketing and menu efforts as we scale.”
This announcement comes at a time when the restaurant industry finds itself at a crossroads. While total sales are expected to rise 10% in 2024 and surpass $1 trillion for the first time, the operating environment continues to get tougher. According to the National Restaurant Association, 45% of restaurant operators expect competition to increase. Additionally, more than 95% say higher food and labor costs will be an issue for their business this year.
Despite the broader cautious outlook for restaurants, Bikky enables Marugame to more easily navigate this environment. With a CDP, Marugame can now access the behavior of the 2.5 million guests they’ve served since 2020 - a 10x increase over their digital guests.
Fully accessing their customer data is critical for Marugame as they continue introducing new menu items to consumers. With Bikky’s guest and menu analytics tools, the brand could easily see how new items affect new guest acquisition, retention, average check, and overall sales. With clear data on how different items contribute to success, Janna and Marketing Director Kristin Yi are now brainstorming new additions to the menu, including their specialty beverages and shareable add-ons.
“Every restaurant - whether they have 15 locations or 1,500 - needs the right data partner to help them navigate this new, more complex operating environment,” says Bikky co-founder and CEO Abhinav Kapur. “We’re proud to partner with a global brand like Marugame Udon, bolstering their U.S. expansion efforts with data to drive higher ROI on every menu, marketing, and operational decision.”
The fastest-growing, most innovative restaurants look to Bikky for unprecedented insight into how their decisions directly impact consumer behavior and top-line sales. Marugame Udon USA is the latest fast-growing brand to adopt its groundbreaking customer data and analytics platform alongside others, including Dave’s Hot Chicken, Robeks, Eggs Up Grill, and Bojangles.
To learn more about Bikky, visit https://www.bikky.com.
About Marugame Udon USA
A Japanese fast-casual brand with over 1,200 locations globally, Marugame Udon has solidified its presence with fifteen locations across the United States. Known for its handcrafted Sanuki-style udon bowls, open kitchen, cafeteria-style line, and freshly made tempura, Marugame Udon makes all its food to order to ensure its guests get the best-tasting Japanese food.
About Bikky
Bikky is the first Customer Data Platform (CDP) built exclusively for large, multi-unit restaurant brands.
By integrating with point-of-sale systems, online ordering providers, payment processors, and loyalty programs, Bikky is the only CDP able to build comprehensive datasets about everything from the performance of menus to the frequency and lifetime value of guests. With the platform, everyone from the C-Suite to the marketing team is empowered to make better decisions about the business and measure if those decisions are contributing positively to the bottom line.
Bikky was founded on the belief that restaurants deserve the same access to data as the largest, most sophisticated businesses in the world, and is proud to serve thousands of restaurant locations across the U.S., including major brands like Bojangles, Dave’s Hot Chicken, and Long John Silver’s.
Bikky is based in New York City and has raised nearly $15 million in funding to date.
Contact:
Abhinav Kapur, Founder & CEO, Bikky
Abhinav@bikky.com
