Tips on starting a small eatery business?

Answer 1

The best routes to take are to research the process of starting a business as well as the industry you're interested in.

I recommend checking out the SBA, Entrepreneur, The Start Up Journal & Nolo. All 4 are great informational resources for the new/small business owner. I posted links for you in the source box.

Associations may be a good avenue to explore as well. These organizations will address many of the thoughts, questions and concerns you'll inevitably have as well as many you haven't anticipated yet. See the source box for some relevant links.

Research, research, research – this cannot be stressed enough. Read as much as you can about the industry. Here are some book titles that are relevant:

* The Restaurant Business Start-up Guide by Paul Daniels
* Restaurants That Work: Case Studies of the Best in the Industry by Martin E. Dorf
* Restaurant Financial Basics by Raymond S. Schmidgall
* Opening a Restaurant or Other Food Business Starter Kit: How to Prepare a Restaurant Business Plan and Feasibility Study by Sharon Fullen
* Upstart Guide Owning & Managing a Restaurant by Roy S. Alonzo
* The Restaurant Managers Handbook: How to Set Up, Operate, and Manage a Financially Successful Food Service Operation by Douglas Robert Brown

There are plenty of free informational resources out there. Check the source box for links to articles.

Hope that helps! I wish you much success & happiness in all your ventures!

Answer 2

Start small...

Make sure you have a product that is extremely viable for your location.

Plan on taking a loss for your first year of business. Even if you don't it'll keep you in the black.

Be adaptable and take advantage of your intial small size and low overhead. Use it to keep your menu fresh and ensure that you have variety without over-extending yourself.

Absolutely Do Not have more than 20 - 30% of your staff comprised of personal friends. They're lazy and will sponge you to death. Your friends almost never make good employees because they know you well enough to not take you seriously.

Hook up important people and civic leaders. Send some homemade gift certificates to local papers and take a stack to city council meetings. You'll take a marginal loss but you'll sew the seeds to expand and develop a solid customer base. Important people like to prove to other people that they're important by taking them to an exclusive new restaurant where they know the owner.

If you ignore everything else be fully prepared to devote every waking moment of every day to your restaurant. Once you sweat enough you can sell the franchise rights and live the rest of your life spending and being picked apart by gold-digging hotties...You may only get 1 chance so don't blow it...

Answer 3

I will suggest you to plan an advertisement strategy for your business. Today starting a new business is not that big challenge but actual challenge is to advertise that business in a better way. Start a business which has scope in your area. Whenever someone thinks to start new business first he/she should consider area (country, state and target customers) then make a proper strategy for new business.

Answer 4

As a former owner of a rest. I suggest lots of money in the bank and get in all the free time you will ever want! There is no life after ownership!

Answer 5

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