Why Hive Catering Co. made the switch to MarginEdge from Restaurant365

When Hive Catering Co. first opened its doors, it was a small catering operation with big ambitions. Fast-forward a few years, and Hive has transformed into a multifaceted business with an off-site catering wing, a restaurant called The Hive Social, and a vibrant bar aptly named The Hardware Store. But as the business grew, so did the complexity of its operations, and that's when the cracks in their restaurant management system, Restaurant365 (R365), really started to show.

“I hired a 'R365 certified' bookkeeper, at the cost of tens of thousands of dollars, to help us make sure all of our financial data was correctly entered into the system. In the end, we couldn’t get an accurate balance sheet (year end wouldn’t line up with the start of the next year) and there were errors in the system that the software should never have allowed, such as multiple reconciliations of the same period.”

If you’re a restaurant owner juggling menus, staff, invoices, and logistics, you already know the struggle of finding a management system that truly works. When Ashley Hunt, co-founder and president of Hive Catering, made the switch to MarginEdge, the results were game-changing. Read on to find out why Ashley made the switch and how it revolutionized their operations.

Hive Catering’s experience with Restaurant365

When they first started looking for a back-of-house restaurant management system, R365 offered all the tools they were looking for under one roof. Ashley tells us, “I know that I decided to use it because it appealed to me that it contained multiple functions in a single software.” At the time, it felt like the ultimate, one-and-done solution. 

Now, Ashley admits, “I incorrectly assumed that this was better than using multiple software with API integrations.” What seemed like a simpler solution quickly became complicated in just the first few weeks with onboarding.

Onboarding obstacles

Getting started with R365 wasn’t just complicated; it was expensive. In order to get started, Hive shelled out additional money for onboarding specialists to train their team on how to use the software. Ashley notes, “It was particularly necessary because of how complicated the system is. The first step in the process was to add our purchased items, which was time-consuming and overly complicated.” 

Even so, the system was so complex that the learning curve dragged on for months. Adding purchased items alone was a cumbersome, manual process riddled with errors, and progress felt painfully slow.

Accounting accidents

On top of that, Ashley’s team was most concerned with getting the accounting side of the platform in order first so that her team would have an accurate snapshot of their financials at any time. To do this, they took advantage of R365’s certified bookkeeper network by working with an accounting professional who specialized in the system in addition to their in-house bookkeeping team.

Ashley tells us, “I hired a 'R365 certified' bookkeeper, at the cost of tens of thousands of dollars, to help us make sure all of our financial data was correctly entered into the system. In the end, we couldn’t get an accurate balance sheet (year end wouldn’t line up with the start of the next year) and there were errors in the system that the software should never have allowed, such as multiple reconciliations of the same period.”

Operational oh-nos!

On the operations side, R365’s clunky interface turned basic tasks into a grind for her team. Adding new purchase items or vendors required clicking through multiple pages, and the lack of standardized naming conventions left plenty of room for mistakes. 

Even after five years of being on the system, Hive still struggled to set up foundational elements like inventory management and waste tracking. 

The lack of integration and standardization impacted their day-to-day operations. Recipe management was a mess, and staff relied on paper logs for inventory and waste tracking. Notebooks filled with “maybe-up-to-date” recipes cluttered their spaces, leaving operations disorganized and managerial staff buried in manual data entry.

The final straw? Hive knew they couldn’t sustain this inefficiency, so they began searching for a solution that prioritized simplicity, functionality, and accuracy. 

Ashley says, “After years of struggling to code and correct all of the accounting and after all of the expenses for ‘Certified Professionals', we couldn’t get our balance sheets to line up from one year to the next. We have to assume it's due to poor design in the system because, for example, R365 lets you reconcile the same month more than once, which kind of defeats the purpose of reconciling.”

Switching to MarginEdge

After years of frustration, Hive Catering decided to switch to MarginEdge. Why? Two words: simplicity and integration. With seamless compatibility with QuickBooks Online (QBO), MarginEdge offered the intuitive, user-friendly setup that Hive desperately needed.

Here’s how the transition drastically improved Hive’s workflow.

Automatic accounting and daily sales recording

“Recording daily sales in MarginEdge takes a fraction of the time to verify compared to R365,” Ashley notes. By making the switch, the Hive team was finally able to streamline tracking their sales data from their POS into their restaurant management system and onto their QBO accounting system in one fell swoop. No more spending hours correcting issues or accidentally reconciling multiple times. 

You’d think transitioning off of an all-in-one restaurant accounting platform like R365 would be a nightmare, but thanks to MarginEdge’s smooth integration with QBO

, the Hive team easily bid farewell to inaccurate financial reports. “Since our largest concern was with being able to file accurate taxes, we wanted to prioritize our financial software,” Ashley says. The system ensured their balance sheets matched, and invoices flowed correctly into their QBO accounts. 

She also tells us, “For accounting, it’s been a total game changer. We’ve been able to capture invoices and have them flow into QBO, which has been so much faster and simpler. Adding new products has also been way faster.”

Simpler invoice processing

MarginEdge’s unique digitized invoice processing was also a game-changer. Instead of manually entering countless details and constantly having to go back into the system to make edits, Hive’s team now just scans their invoices directly into MarginEdge, which automatically integrates with QBO. This sped up accounting workflows and virtually eliminated human error.

Ashley explains, “The expedited invoice processing and being able to add new products quickly has definitely resulted in more data for us to work with, like having up-to-date accounting as well as waste reports, real-time reports on price variations for purchased items, and inventory data.”

The benefits of MarginEdge’s invoice processing have even impacted parts of their financial management that they never expected. She notes, “Doing our personal property taxes will also be a snap because each product lists the invoice details like dates and purchase amounts, which will come in handy for things like equipment and smallwares.”

Saying hello to inventory and waste management

After just three months of using MarginEdge, Hive had inventory systems up and running across departments. Plus, waste tracking became a breeze with the software’s real-time waste logging feature, accessible via tablets placed in key operational areas. 

“To put it in perspective, after five years of working with R365, we couldn’t even see the horizon on having inventory systems set up and were just getting going on waste tracking,” Ashley says.

Real-time decisions based on real-time pricing

MarginEdge gave Hive access to actionable insights in real time. They could now track price variations and waste data as it happened, empowering them to adjust purchasing decisions and minimize losses.

Happier teams

MarginEdge quickly became a favorite among Hive’s team. “I still have a couple of things to learn about [me], but so far it's been so great that all my team members who use it bring up how much they love it just about every week,” Ashley tells us. Managers and staff alike frequently commented on how much they loved the software’s intuitive features, such as adjustable product details and tablet accessibility. 

She continues that, “During internal discussions, someone almost always says, 'Can you imagine where we’d be if we had just started out with MarginEdge from the beginning?’”

Why MarginEdge Was the Right Choice

When asked whether or not Ashley feels she made the right choice to make such a big switch for her business and her team, Hive’s Co-founder and President summed up her response perfectly, saying, “With all the time and money spent on R365 over five years, including additional expense on top of our cost for in-house bookkeeping, and all the time invested by our team in the operations side, I feel farther along in the first five months I have been with MarginEdge, QuickBooks and 7Shifts.” 

The ability to work past years of operational bottlenecks and organizational frustrations made the switch worth every penny. And if you’re running a business similar to Hive Catering, here’s why you should consider making the same move:

• Save time with easy daily sales and invoice processing.
• Gain confidence in your numbers with accurate financial reports and reconciliations.
• Streamline inventory tracking and eliminate waste.
• Empower your team with tools they’ll actually enjoy using.

Hive Catering’s experience with MarginEdge isn’t just a case study; it’s proof that the right tools can completely transform your business. If you’re tired of dealing with clunky systems, hidden inefficiencies, and financial inaccuracies, it’s time for a better solution.