The verdict in three sentences
A market POS/PMS suite (Lightspeed, Zelty: 70-180 EUR/month per location) is perfect for one or two restaurants but becomes a drag once you must consolidate several sites. A custom back-office (45,000-95,000 EUR + 600-1,300 EUR/month) consolidates food cost, sales, and central reporting across the whole group. The tipping point sits around 5 to 6 locations, when manual consolidation time exceeds the cost of dedicated development.
SaaS POS vs custom back-office
SaaS POS handles point-of-sale collection very well. What it handles poorly: the consolidated group view, food cost compared across venues, and cross-referencing with payroll and delivery. Here is the gap.
| Criterion | SaaS POS/PMS | Custom back-office |
|---|---|---|
| Cost per location | 70-180 EUR/mo | Included (no per-site cost) |
| Multi-site consolidation | Weak/manual | Native, real time |
| Food cost per site | Basic | Detailed, compared |
| Central group reporting | Manual export | Automatic |
| Payroll/accounting/delivery connectors | Limited | Custom |
| Trade customization | Weak | Full |
| Data ownership | Vendor | Group |
| Time to launch | Immediate | 14-20 weeks |
Cost per location and the tipping point
The decisive question: from how many restaurants does custom beat stacking SaaS subscriptions plus manual consolidation hours?
| Locations | SaaS POS (3 yrs) | Custom (build + support 3 yrs) | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 sites | ~9,000 EUR | ~75,000 EUR | SaaS |
| 4 sites | ~18,000 EUR | ~80,000 EUR | SaaS |
| 6 sites | ~27,000 EUR | ~85,000 EUR | Break-even* |
| 10 sites | ~45,000 EUR | ~90,000 EUR | Closing* |
| 15 sites | ~68,000 EUR | ~95,000 EUR | Custom* |
*Factoring in 8 hours/week of saved manual reporting (~19,000 EUR/year) and 3 food-cost points gained, custom pays off from 6 sites. 2026 order of magnitude.
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Mini case study
Thomas runs a group of 8 restaurants. His finance lead spends 8 hours/week consolidating exports from 8 Zelty POS systems into Excel. He invests 68,000 EUR in a custom back-office (+ 900 EUR/month support). Result: automatic consolidated reporting (8 h/week × 45 EUR/h × 46 weeks = ~16,500 EUR/year saved), and food cost cut by 3 points through per-site comparison. On 2.4M EUR/year in food cost, 3 points equal 72,000 EUR/year — the build repays in under 12 months.
FAQ
Must we drop our current POS? No. The custom back-office connects to your existing POS (Lightspeed, Zelty, Tiller) via API to pull sales, without changing floor hardware.
How is food cost calculated? From sales (POS) cross-referenced with recipe cards and supplier purchases, per site and consolidated. You finally compare material performance across venues.
Which connectors are possible? Payroll (Silae, PayFit), accounting (Cegid, Pennylane), and delivery platforms (Uber Eats, Deliveroo) can be integrated, priced by scope.
Below how many sites is it pointless? Under 4-5 locations, a good SaaS POS is enough. Custom pays off once manual consolidation becomes time-consuming.
What is the delivery time? 14 to 20 weeks for multi-site consolidation + food cost + central reporting. A first consolidated dashboard can ship in 8 weeks.
Let's scope your project. Tell us your number of locations, current POS systems, and annual food cost — we quote the back-office and the tipping point. Detailed quote within 48 h. WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
