Restaurant Startup - Part 1: Market Research - What are Potential Competitors Doing?
The first step in starting a restaurant is proper planning. One must lay out a plan complete with goals, priorities, and the tasks that he will need to complete in order to achieve these goals. The biggest mistake first time restaurant owners make is improper planning. Ambition, while absolutely required, is simply not enough to succeed in the highly competitive food service industry.
If you've always wanted to run a Cajun restaurant, and you live in an area that already has five, do you have to relocate to accomplish your dream? Not necessarily! It's now time to engage in a bit of opposition research. Drive by each of the locations during varying parts of the day. Are there many cars in the parking lots? At what times? Are many people standing in the lobbies? If so, then this restaurant is doing something people like, and these patrons are thanking the restaurant owner with their wallets. If you see that a particular restaurant is more popular than others, discover why by visiting their establishment during peak hours. Dine in, have the waiter recommend their best dish. Pay attention to every aspect of the experience.
The food should be an area of concentration of course, but there are several other factors that can turn wonderful food into a wonderful experience. How do the servers present themselves? How spaced out are the tables? What type of centerpiece is on your table? All of these factors are vital, and are what makes or breaks a new restaurant. By no means should you overlook the atmosphere of your dining area while planning your restaurant.
This may seem obvious to most, but while you're there, you should also pay attention to the menu. Do they have something for everyone? People generally don't dine out alone, so if you're only appealing to a one taste, you're going to lose a vast amount of potential customers. Carefully study how the successful restaurants handle this. Of course if you're a Cajun restaurant, you're not going to serve an Italian dish, but you can surely meet everybody's tastes. Look at husband-wife pairs to see what they order. Don't just concentrate on the main dishes, but the entire meal. Sometimes, one of a pair might really enjoy your Chicken Rochambeau, but the other doesn't like Cajun at all. Notice what these people order, as they're just as important as their partners who enjoy Cajun immensely. These items will often blend into the menu quite well as soups or salads, and will most times be a compliment to your main courses. A great fast food example is McDonalds. They realized early on that not everyone wants to eat just hamburgers. They poured massive amounts of money into marketing, and obtaining the best quality potatoes for their fries of any of the fast food chains. Of course today, you can get just about anything at McDonalds, but early on they were first to scream, "We don't just have burgers!" and it has worked out well for them. To summarize, find your niche of course, but also cater to as many people as possible, because your niche diners have friends and they want to eat as well!
Finally, do not lose heart because there are already five successful restaurants in your area. Remember, when the fifth started there were already four, and so on. Find what they don't do well, that you know you can make your specialty, and you are well on your way to a successful restaurant.
Jeremy is a consultant for ACityDiscount, an online restaurant equipment dealer based out of Atlanta, Georgia.
More Resources
Unable to open RSS Feed $XMLfilename with error HTTP ERROR: 404, exitingMore Strategic Planning Information:
Related Articles
When Do I Need To Hire A Business Plan Consultant
Every new business owner knows that a business plan is critical - it is drilled into them by potential investors and every banking officer they meet. So why is something that is so important to the launch of a new venture so difficult to write? Good question! In this article I will try to address when you should go out and hire a business plan writer versus taking on the task yourself.
How to Write a Business Plan Market Analysis
Writing a business plan is an essential part of the initial strategic planning of any company. One thing, which seems to hang up most entrepreneurs, is figuring out what kind of data and information goes into the Market Analysis section.
SWOT Analysis
If you've ever listened to Warren Buffett talk about investing, you've heard him mention the idea of a company's moat. The moat is a simple way of describing a company's competitive advantage.
Getting Started with Succession Planning: Part II
Succession planning requires the owner of a small or medium-sized business to plan for what the company will look like and how it will operate after the transition to new owners is complete. Unless the owners have succession goals in mind, they won't achieve them.
City of Cortez and South Western Colorado Market Survey
We have been spending many hours surveying the market for a potential business location in the South Western Region (region # 9) of Colorado. Pouring through data, seeing the tourist sites, and understanding the market there.
GOT MEME? How to Attract Your Clients and Customers Attention
No "meme" isn't a typo and Got Milk, the more commonly know phrase, is actually a marketing meme. If you've opened up a magazine or watched TV in the last ten years you've seen the fun and memorable Got Milk ad campaign using celebrities with a milk mustache.
Secrets Of Effective Brainstorming
Have you been in a "brainstorming" session where each person just defended their own ideas? Worse is when people don't suggest ideas at all, for fear they'll be attacked. That's no way to brainstorm.
For Business Owners Only - You Can't Be Fired But Neither Can You Quit
The decision to sell, or not to sell your business is a difficult one. There are many questions that need to be answered before an informed decision can be made.
Urban Flight in Ohio
Many of Ohio's downtown areas are in need of upgrading as folks pack up and move to the suburbs. Many downtown revitalization projects are currently going on there.
Consolidation in the Software Industry is Hardly New: Obsess About It or Risk Losing it All
Some analysts credit [Larry] Ellison with anticipating the consolidation in the enterprise software industry and leading the charge. Ellison 'called a major shift in an entire market, which was impressive.
Top Ten Traits of Strategic Thinkers
Want to become more strategic? Add these traits to your collection of skills and watch your success soar!1. Maintain a self-responsible attitude.
ERP Role in Selling Your Mid-size Business - Microsoft Great Plains and CRM Example
If you own the mid-size business and actively work in it as executive manager or lead, say marketing, - you probably know exactly what needs to be done on the daily basis to keep it running. However, in many cases this business critical knowledge exists in your head only.
Planning For The Slow Season Of Your Business To Increase Sales
Every business experiences slower periods. For some, they sell more during the Christmas season while others move at a snail pace.
Succession Planning for Business - 10 Key Points You Must Know
By cranking up others development to meet your business needs, big or small, not just for right now, but for the future, you will find payoffs, big-time. Here are a few ideas to get you started.
Mining Market Data
With a heightened awareness of opportunity, ideas can often be generated by market research. The National Women's Business Center (NWBC) defines market research as "a systematic, objective collection and analysis of data about your target market, competition, and/or environment with the goal being increased understanding.
How to Develop a Successful Board of Advisors (...and Why You Should!)
In today's rapidly changing and highly competitive markets, many privately held companies are creating outside advisory boards to give owners and CEOs fresh, knowledgeable advice. Even for small businesses, setting up an advisory board can give you a significant advantage over competitors that are relying solely on internal talent.
Could You Be Setting Your Business Plan Up For Failure?
David E. Gumpert, author of Burn Your Business Plan, often tells the story about how he and his partner failed to raise money after sending their business plan around to venture capitalists and meeting with several others to make presentations.
Don't Just Talk About the Weather, Use It to Advantage
A well known, national chain of restaurants discovered that certain weather patterns substantially impacts their business. They have studied it and found that more people go out to eat dinner when there is a series of beautiful days.
8 Ways to Earn More Without Working Harder
Conventional wisdom has it that there are only three ways to
grow your business: find new customers, increase the amount
of each sale to existing customers or get customers to buy
more frequently. But I've seen business owners go blank
when presented with those three options.
Business Plan 101 How to Write a Table of Contents
No matter what business you plan to start in your next entrepreneurial endeavor you need to be thinking about writing a business plan. Even if you are not seeking funding for your new business or already have secured funds from family members, angel investor types, personal savings or partners.
Site Selection and Demographic Tips for Establishing Outlets
Many cities have home pages on the Internet. Many of these cities use these sites to promote their town.