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INDUSTRY DAY BY LARGE BACKYARD
THE 2026 HOLIDAY KIT
OWN
DECEMBER.
Sell more gift cards. Book more holiday parties. Fill January. A done-for-you holiday campaign for independent restaurants, bars and cafés, set up in one afternoon.
Founding price through Sunday, Oct 11. Then $27.
Instant download: PDF, Excel, Word and PowerPoint · Works in Google Sheets and Docs
December is a launch, not a busy month.
Most operators treat December as the month they're too slammed to think. That's exactly why it gets wasted. The money is already moving. You just have to be standing where it goes.
December cash comes in the door, and it walks back in during the two slowest months of your year. Own December makes that happen on purpose.
Sources: Paytronix holiday gift card data; Toast Holiday Trends Report; Toast guest survey on restaurant gift cards.
Three plays. One calendar. Every word written.
WHAT YOU GET
Your AI co-pilot
One prompt for ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini that plans with your numbers and rewrites any piece of the kit in your voice.
RUN THE NUMBERS
BEFORE YOU PRINT
ANYTHING
The workbook turns your check average, food cost and goals into three answers. Here's the example it ships with: a neighborhood full-service spot with a $45 check.
$19,000
cash in the door in November and December, from gift cards and parties
132
guest visits brought back in January and February
$456
what every bonus and January card cost in product
The honest note: Gift card cash is a prepaid meal, not profit. Its value is cash in hand when you need it, a guest in your slowest months, and the share that never gets redeemed. Your numbers will be different. That's what the workbook is for.
ONE AFTERNOON OF SET UP. THEN YOU RUN THE CALENDAR.
1
Read the guide
15 minutes
2
Put your numbers in the workbook and pick your offer.
20 minutes
3
Work through the setup checklist with a manager.
About 2 hours
4
Fill in the offer sheet and schedule your first three emails.
30 minutes
After that: most weeks it's three or four tasks, each with the words already written.
Groups book holiday parties in November. The sooner you set up, the more of the calendar you get to use.
BUILT FOR INDEPENDENTS.
IT'S FOR YOU IF
You run an independent restaurant, bar, café, brewery or food truck, with one location or a few.
You want a plan you can hand to a manager, not a course to sit through.
You'll send the email, post the post and brief your staff when the calendar says to.
IT'S NOT FOR YOU IF
You're a franchise with a corporate marketing calendar.
You're looking for theory. This is the words, the dates and the spreadsheet.
You don't sell gift cards and don't host groups, and don't plan to start.
BUILT BY OPERATORS, NOT MARKETERS.
We are Dylan and Mikey, we run Large Backyard: 2 bars, 4 food concessions and 2 golf properties on public land in New York City, plus the 10–15 vendors they sublease to. We've spent 10+ years on the operating side of food and beverage.
Industry Day is our most recent venture: a weekly newsletter breaking down how independent operators actually grow. We are learning from operators who have experience in other areas we haven't yet ventured. We are learning and implementing as we go, and sharing it with the community.
Own December is the holiday playbook we'd want if we were starting from scratch: the dates, the offers, the words and the math, in one place.
We want every independent operator to succeed and keep the culture of main street alive before every storefront is a private-equity-owned chain. And to get there we all need to share ideas without the thousands of dollars consultants will charge for the same information.
If you buy it and get stuck, reply to your receipt. We read every one.
WILL THIS WORK FOR ME?
This bundle is designed for anyone in charge of a food & bev business.
Frequently asked questions
The 14-day refund, fix first.
If a file is missing or something isn't working, email us and we'll fix it. If you've tried it and still don't think it was worth it, email within 14 days of purchase for a full refund.
DECEMBER BOOKS UP
IN NOVEMBER
The founding price is $17 through Sunday, October 11. After that it's $27.
Instant download · Questions? dylan@largebackyard.com
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