It would be possible to do that, yes. But we didn't want it to turn into a set of options/plugins for varying industries. It's also an issue of resources. We're a 3 person team and we need to focus our efforts accordingly. Deciding to do just restaurants has made it easier to prioritize and delegate tasks.
I understand it could rub you the wrong way to abandon other industries. Trust me, all of us shared the same feelings.
In short, the approach we decided on was to first dominate one industry, the restaurant industry. If we become successful at one, maybe then there is a possibility to look at others. But focusing on several industries will always leave us being the 3rd or 4th best at scheduling for that industry. It's hard and nearly impossible (given our size) to be the best for every industry, and we want to be the best.
Exactly. Letting users dictate how you design/implement something is more often than not, a bad idea. When a client starts to do this, you need to draw them back to the original problem by asking questions around it. This forces them to elaborate on it, rather than getting caught up in their idea of a "solution".