Hotel Swexan cut inventory time by 80%

The Michelin Key-awarded hotel cut
inventory time by 80% and improved financial control.

About Hôtel Swexan

Hôtel Swexan is a Michelin Key–recognized destination in the heart of Dallas that blends refined design with a dynamic food and beverage program. Home to multiple bars and restaurants, the hotel delivers a layered hospitality experience shaped by the Harwood Hospitality Group’s commitment to craft, consistency, and guest-first execution.

Named one of TIME Magazine’s World’s Greatest Places of 2025, Hôtel Swexan operates at a level where every detail must live up to its reputation.

The Challenge: Inventory Control & Time Suck

They faced the classic multi-outlet chaos that plagues luxury properties: with five restaurants, a full banquet floor and kitchen, and thousands of SKUs moving across the property, their operations team was drowning in paperwork and manual processes. "Life was much like everywhere  else. It involved Excel spreadsheets and a lot of trust," Kent Bearden, Director of F&B shared.

The finance team struggled with invoice management across multiple outlets, while the culinary team relied on outdated tracking methods. The impact was felt across departments. Most concerning was the month-end inventory process, which dragged on for nearly a week, delaying critical financial insights and preventing timely cost control measures. 

“It was a lot of legwork just keeping everything organized, tight, and easy to sort through, and that’s not even starting the process of tracking the items, the vendors, all the financial information.” 

- Josh Healy, Executive Chef

The Solution: A Unified Back Office Platform

Hôtel Swexan implemented Craftable’s comprehensive platform to manage everything from inventory and recipe costing to invoice processing across its complex operation.

The implementation began with a thorough setup of all products, recipes, and pour sizes, creating a strong foundation for accurate inventory and food cost tracking.

For invoice processing, Craftable transformed a paper-heavy system into a streamlined digital workflow with uploads and automatic GL mapping. As Executive Chef Josh Healy explains:

“Before, some invoices were digitally uploaded from vendors that offer that, and then all the other ones came in on paper. It’s transitioned into a very easy process of upload, auto-map, and sent to the correct outlet.”

Most importantly, the hotel leveraged Craftable’s customization capabilities to match its complex operational structure. As Bearden notes, “even though SKUs are coming into a centralized purchasing position, whether that’s the warehouse or the liquor room, we can specify that a bottle is only visible in a particular outlet.”

The Results: Profitability on Repeat

The impact of Craftable was felt immediately across the operation, especially in inventory. As Bearden explains: “Inventory before Craftable would take days. You’d start counting on the last day of the month and close it around the fifth or sixth. With Craftable, we’re able to close within 24 hours.”

That speed came with flexibility for how teams work. As Executive Chef Josh Healy notes: “You can do inventory on your phone, tablet, or computer. You can print it, type it, and upload it. It works for chefs with different preferences.”  Beyond efficiency, Craftable delivered real-time operational insight. Healy adds:

“Being able to compare theoretical versus actual inventory and see what’s missing has really opened the team’s eyes.”

These insights are available mid-month, giving teams visibility and benchmarks before month-end close.  “Craftable helped my chefs understand the business side of the kitchen, improving both paperwork and execution,” shares Josh Healy.

Unifying Operations & Finance

With Craftable fully implemented, Hôtel Swexan transformed its operations across finance, procurement, and F&B departments. Monthly inventory closure time decreased from 6 days to just 1 day,  an 80% reduction that gives management faster access to critical financial data.

For the F&B team, improved vendor management became a significant advantage to manage food costs.

"We're entering each invoice on Craftable, so as the price goes in, we historically see it from week to week and order to order, so we always see the most current price,” notes Bearden.

“It gives us a lot of leverage with our vendors where we can see volume compared to purchase power, and we can have those conversations about pricing or about availability."

Data access across all outlets created a new level of accountability.  "My favorite part about Craftable is the consistency," says Bearden.

"That recipe that's been entered for a plate of food is the same tomorrow as it was today, and it allows you to track so that if you deviate from that, if you have a variance too high, you have a better idea of where to go to find the problem or the solution."

For hotels considering a similar solution, McElroy offers this advice: "There are many different systems that you'll be able to choose from. Craftable has everything that you would want. What you're getting is a state-of-the-art system that’s easy to implement and user-friendly. And most importantly, you're getting the Craftable team. I've never had the support from the software provider that we get with Craftable.