Digital tools that bring guests back: Catering for the hybrid workplace

While many operators have already optimised and streamlined their kitchens with recipe engineering, stock control, and menu management, the front-of-house has often been left behind.

Pej exists to change that.

If recipe management helps the kitchen reduce waste, control cost, and build the perfect menu, Pej helps you increase sales in workplace restaurants by understanding who picks up the plate, and why.

Not just how food is made, but how it’s experienced. Not just how much is sold, but who comes to eat.

Let’s walk through how.

The real growth opportunity? More frequent visitors

Since COVID, office traffic has dropped and so have canteen volumes. The reality for many operators is that 700 meals a day pre-pandemic now looks more like 300.

And yet, expectations haven’t gone down. Clients still want vibrant, busy restaurants. Operators still need to hit numbers.

Here’s the problem: most teams are looking at sales data, but the real challenge isn’t how many meals are sold. It’s how many people show up.

You can’t fix footfall if you can’t track it. And that’s exactly where Pej comes in.

Enter Pej’s guest management platform

Pej integrates into your existing POS or kiosk setup and brings so much more to the table: personalised food benefits in contract catering, loyalty programs, expense accounts, flexible payments, and guest-level data.

When a guest taps to pay, Pej links that transaction to a profile. Over time, this builds a picture of who your guests are, how often they come, what they like, and when they tend to eat.

You’ll start to see:

• Frequent vs. infrequent visitors
  
  

• Early-week vs. late-week patterns
  
  

• Meal preferences and dietary choices

In one customer case, Pej data revealed that an entire department hadn’t visited the canteen in weeks. A quick conversation with the client and a targeted subsidy later, and they were back.

Knowing your guests is step one. Nudging them is step two.

Turning insight into action

Pej doesn’t just tell you what’s happening. It helps you do something about it.

Let’s say your data shows a loyal group of guests never comes in on Thursdays. You can set up a Thursday-only deal just for them.

Or you’ve improved your dessert options and want to increase visibility. Send a push notification and add a dessert stamp card to their wallet.

These aren’t just nice-to-haves. They’re smart tools for increasing sales in workplace restaurants by nudging guests and shaping behaviour.

Why the Pej Guest App changes everything

Most loyalty programs and food apps are designed around orders or transactions. Pej’s guest app is different. It’s built around people.

The app becomes your direct line to the guest, and a platform to:

• Manage and communicate food benefits in contract catering
  
  

• Launch loyalty programs for staff restaurants based on real guest behaviour
  
  

• Send personalised push notifications about menu updates, leftover sales, or events
  
  

• Build community by sharing stories, chef intros, and seasonal menus
  
  

• Collect meaningful feedback, both before and after meals

This is the heart of a strong digital guest experience in contract catering, not blasting one message to everyone, but saying the right thing to the right person at the right time.

Example: Turning regulars into high-value guests

Let’s say you have a group of regulars. They show up almost every day, eat the same dish, and rarely explore anything else. You’ve just launched healthy takeaway desserts, but they’re not noticing.

With Pej, you can:

• Send a message just to that group
  
  

• Offer a dessert punch card: “Thanks for being a regular! Enjoy a free dessert this Thursday!”

  
  

Example: Winning over a lost guest segment

You’ve struggled to attract vegetarians, despite a strong offering. Feedback gathered through Pej reveals why, and what to improve.

You make the changes, loop in the client, and add a subsidy on green dishes. Six months later, guest visits are up, and the client is thrilled with a lower CO2 report.

That’s the kind of data-backed action that defines modern workplace food service trends.

From insight to loyalty, all in one platform

Whether you run a free-flow canteen, kiosk setup, or staffed restaurant, Pej adapts to your world.

It’s not just another app. It’s a way to:

• Connect food benefits and loyalty programs for staff restaurants
  
  

• Turn transactions into patterns
  
  

• Turn patterns into strategy
  
  

• And turn strategy into visits, engagement, and sales

The back-of-house is already digital. Now it’s time for the guest side to catch up.

In today’s world of hybrid workplace dining, the ability to personalise, predict, and connect with your guests is what sets leading operators apart.

With Pej, you don’t just manage benefits, expense accounts, loyalty, payments, and self-service. You understand the people who use them. And that changes everything.

Ready to see how it all fits into your contract catering operation?