Opening a small restaurant?
I am starting to plan opening a small business, a burrito shop. I’ve planned out the menu, logo, look and feel. I’ve found food suppliers. I want to open in March 2009. When should I secure a lease? Where can I find used restaurant equipment? When should I apply for my food service license (PA)? It’s hard to plan everything out when I do not have a location set yet so I’m at the confusing point of what to do next. I am going to be using my own funds, no loans, no employees at first (family helping out instead til things are off the ground)
Thanks but the target market, competitors, numbers, etc. is already figured out and wasn’t what I was asking.
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look for your market. who will be buying your product? then look for the location where your market is. test your product see if your market likes your recipe.
when hunting for the lease; negotiate if you could get the lease on a trial basis for about six (6) months. your lease should be one of the last things you should do. because when you lease you should be ready to open. with the minimum time spent on renovation. otherwise, you will be paying rental without operating. it would be beneficial if you could negotiate that rental would start when you begin to operate and not upon signing of the lease agreement.
in buying your equipment look in the classified ads in the ‘for sale’ sections. or hunt for restaurants which have closed or moved and are selling their equipment. list equipment into necessary-must have and those which you could get later. visit garage sales. you might not get all your equipment in one purchase. hunt for the bargains.
go to the business permits section of cityhall to inquire about the procedure in getting your food service license. also inquire about restaurants which have surrendered or retired their license because of closure. maybe you could ask the owners about the equipment and buy it cheap. keep it up.
There are a lot of things to consider. First and for most, why would you like to start a restaurant business? Have you segmented your market? Have you done research about your target market? How profitable will this business be? Who are your competitors? etc. etc. etc.
But luckily, my company works with small to medium business in North America and we are going global. We are here to build relationships for the long run, therefore, if you are interested you can go to anewpath.com and see what we can do for you. Or you can call (954) 446-8200, ask to speak with a BEC (Business Enhancement Consultant).
First tip would be, who do you know that owns a restaurant. Talk to them, ask them questions. Let them know you are interested in the business and that you would like to understand better what is involved in creating a business in the restaurant industry.
But remember, always do your numbers first! If the numbers do not make sense, do NOT go for it. You are in business to be profitable and not to lose money….
Have a good one and feel free to call us (954) 446-8200