How Swoon Gelato tracks stock across multiple sites with our cafe EPOS
“The reporting tools help us build a more accurate picture of how each site is using their stock. It helps us to identify issues like overportioning and wastage. ”
Swoon Gelato is a multi-site group using Tabology’s cafe EPOS to track stock, recipe costing and sales across their estates. It is, in the words of Operations Manager Josh Margarson, “the closest you can get to authentic gelato outside of Italy.” They source their pistachios from the slopes of Mount Etna, and are often named one of the best places for ice cream in the UK.
The maestros create their award-winning gelato at a central production site and send it out to their cafes in Bath, Oxford, London’s Selfridges Food Hall, and two sites in Bristol (where their flagship store celebrates its 10th anniversary this year).
“Ripe for implementing new systems”
Josh has spent his whole career in hospitality, starting as a student in Bristol in 2000, and joined Swoon in 2024. He says, “Swoon was established in the Bristol/Bath area before Covid. It kind of had the wind taken out of its sails through no fault of its own. The business was ripe for implementing new systems, and I was keen to progress my career. It was a great opportunity for me to come on board and try to change things for the better and drive a period of growth.”
Though not one of Swoon's founders, Josh has brought a founder's energy to the role – and a clear-eyed focus on the tools needed to take the business forward.
The challenge: tracking recipe costs precisely
A huge part of Josh’s role is knowing the numbers and tracking recipe costing precisely across the business (“I love a spreadsheet”).
But the cafe POS system they were using at Swoon didn’t offer what he needed. “Our previous system was not user-friendly at all. We weren’t able to utilise it effectively; we were literally just using it to press buttons on the till. The reporting was ineffective because it wouldn’t let you set the products up properly.”
Towards the end of 2024, Josh began researching a range of providers. He needed a platform that had all the facets essential to running a hospitality business – particularly in-depth stock tracking and recipe management. It also needed to be easy to understand and train staff across all the sites.
The solution: a start-to-finish stock control system, built into the cafe EPOS
In Josh’s last role as a General Manager at Roxy Ballroom, he had used Tabology’s EPOS and management suite and understood its capabilities. “The most important thing was that it had to be easy to add new products and recipes, and this needed to be easy to maintain, because once it starts to fall apart you lose track of costs and it can be a nightmare.”
Using Tabology’s
multi-site EPOS tools, Josh can precisely track recipe costs at their production centre and accurately track sales and stock at each individual site, all within one platform. “The reporting tools help us build a more accurate picture of how each site is using their stock. It helps us to identify issues like overportioning and wastage due to equipment breakdown and so on.”
Tabology’s cafe POS has also enabled Josh to help make his teams’ lives easier. “I want site managers to be able to place their own orders more easily, so it really helps to have all the products on the Tabology system, rather than them having to trawl through supplier websites, which would take longer and lead to more mistakes. The system makes it easy for the managers to train their supervisors too.”
Josh is also training staff on Tabology’s
stocktaking system. “It’s easy to set up the count sheets and understand the stock reports. It’s about helping to tidy things up and remove inefficiencies.”
And when questions arise during that training process? Josh says, “The Tabology support is great. The Telegram chat is very proactive. It’s easy to get hold of people and it’s a simple process to get issues sorted out.”
Beyond stock – optimising across the business
While stock control was the immediate priority, Swoon also uses several other tools built into Tabology’s cafe EPOS to manage the wider operation.
Tailored loyalty and promotions
“Another factor in choosing Tabology was that it had loyalty built in. There’s a lot of functionality around discounts and promotions. You can come up with some really bespoke offers, and we tailor them to our different segments, such as the students and the NHS workers.”
A further benefit of the multi-site loyalty tools is the ability to combine estate-wide promotions with individual site promotions. “We’ve got offices near certain sites, so we set up promotions for their staff, and we do promotions tied in with local media outlets.”
Seamless staff-scheduling
Swoon’s managers also use the staff scheduling tools. “It’s really simple for managers to do the forecasting, write their rotas and do the monthly payroll, and staff can book time off easily through the system as well.” The central staffing reports make it easy for Josh to see everything he needs at the end of the month.
Celebrating ten years, laying the foundations for ten more
It’s a big year for Swoon as they celebrate a decade in business, with a big refurb of their flagship Bristol store followed by a host of special events in April. While Tabology, along with Josh, have only been part of the story for a short while, the business is already seeing the benefits of an increased focus on stock management and cost control, and a system that makes it easier.
This will only increase in the coming years as Swoon are due to open a new site in Winchester, as well as expanding their wholesale presence, growing their reputation among retail and restaurant groups.
For Josh, it’s not just about implementing systems, but supporting a business that can thrive for the next ten years. “There’s a whole sea of different EPOS providers out there. Tabology stands out as a UK company with a great product that does everything you need. The support and the training are there as well.”
If you're managing multiple sites and need precise recipe costing, stock control and loyalty tools all in one place, we'd love to show you what Tabology can do for your business.
Book a demo today or
drop our team a line to find out more, and we’ll be in touch.
