Not sure how to start your food business? Find out what to consider, and how to make it happen with our practical 8-step guide. Are you an aspiring restaurateur with a fresh new business idea, but not sure where to start? Well, it turns out that now might actually be a great time to take the plunge. Research shows that the food service industry is booming, and is set to reach $4.2 trillion with an annual CAGR of 3.6% by 2024. But the idea of starting up your own F&B business may seem daunting, especially when the outlook for start-ups is bleak. Research shows that as many as 90% of new restaurants fail. The silver lining is that 10% don’t. So to help you get started, we’ve pulled together an 8-step beginner’s guide, with insider tips to give you every chance at success. The first thing you’ll want to do before making any investment is do your research, diligently. Spend a few weeks (or even months) getting a deeper understanding of the broader foodservice landscape, your customer target, latest trends and competitors, and start writing a business plan for your investors. Think of it as exploring your 4C’s: customer, consumer, channel and context. For this, you’ll want to: Once you have your business plan in place, go out into the world – and test it. Find some of your target customers and ask them for their thoughts and impressions. This could be as simple as polling a handful of people off the street to a full-blown market research study. Now it’s time to sort your finances. But not everyone who wants to start a restaurant has the personal funding to do so. In fact, most don’t. Thankfully, there are lots of other ways that you can find funding for your new venture: Just remember that it’s likely to take years before you turn your first profit, and money will be tight at first. So think about starting small (you can always scale up) and choose your business partners wisely, because they’ll be around for a good while. You know what they say: “location, location, location”. Well, as it turns out, that’s not always the case. The location you choose for your establishment will depend on the a number of factors, and unless you’re relying heavily on foot-traffic, you don’t necessarily need to be in the hottest new retail location. Here are a few factors you’ll want to consider: Once you have the a venue, it’s time to start working on the layout and design your space. Of course, this will depend on the type of establishment you’re running, but typically restaurants dedicate about 45-60% of their space to the dining area, about 35% to the kitchen area and the remainder to storage and office space. Think carefully about the layout of your kitchen and dining areas, and make sure there’s a smooth flow between the two. Prep space is also critical, so make sure your chefs have enough room to plate, garnish and decorate their dishes. And most importantly: don’t cut corners in your dining area. This is the stage of the show – literally where all of the magic happens – so finding the right ambiance and decor to make your customers feel welcome is critical to success. As a restaurateur, you’ll be working with a number of different suppliers – from furnishings to POS systems, bar equipment, kitchen appliances and of course, food. Make your wish list, scope out your short and long-term budget, and go on the hunt for your partners. But remember that while you don’t want to cut corners when it comes to quality, over-priced suppliers can minimize your margins and run your business into the ground. So make sure to negotiate, hard. But where do you start looking? Try going to wholesale retailers, local farmer’s markets, F&B conventions, ask for recommendations from fellow restaurateurs or just do a simple Google search. You’ll be looking for a trustworthy supplier, who has a good track record of providing quality products and rota of successful partnerships. For food suppliers, be sure to about their delivery schedules and food safety management practices. And go local – they usually offer fresher ingredients. When it comes to regulations, every country, county and city is different. But make sure that you check in with your local regulatory office, and consider getting legal counsel to make sure you adhere to all of your local health & safety codes and food regulations. Just know that some licenses can take months to acquire, so make sure to get started on this process well before opening day. First, think about what staff you need to hire for your restaurant type. Based on the scale of your restaurant, this may include: HR managers, purchasing experts, accountants, marketing & sales managers, chefs and sommeliers, waiters, hosts, bartenders and cleaning and dish-washing staff. Make sure to hire enough staff for each job, and anticipate shift planning and back-ups in case of illnesses and vacations. Look for candidates with sufficient experience and a successful track-record, who are quick on their feet, can multi-task and are efficient. All of your employees should work well under pressure, and customer-facing staff should have exceptional social skills. And when it comes to hiring staff, you can never be too careful – so do your due diligence. Make sure to do background checks, conduct several face-to-face interviews and call their references. Before opening your restaurant, you’ll want to do a fair amount of advertising to alert your local community that there’s a new eatery on the block. And while word of mouth is still the best form of publicity, here are a few other ways you might like to consider announcing your new venture: And with that, we leave you with one last tip for success: work hard, don’t give up, and be prepared to risk it all. Starting any new venture will be a challenge and most likely an uphill battle, but in the end, nothing tastes sweeter than victory.1. Make a solid Business Plan
2. Secure your financing
3. Choose your location
4. Design the layout of your space
5. Choose your suppliers
6. Get your licences and permits
7. Start hiring your employees
8. Advertise your business
Tags :
Culinary Arts
Written by
EHL Insights