by Deagon Williams
What an exciting and wonderful idea to think of opening your own restaurant. Congratulations! And welcome. The hospitality world is an amazing and exciting one. I’ve spent my whole life in it for a reason- it’s a ton of fun, deeply gratifying and … a lot of work. In fact, I didn’t realize how much work it was until I was in my mid-30s and had my first job outside of the restaurant/hospitality world.
So, let’s get down to brass tacks for a moment about opening your own restaurant. Generally speaking a well-run, busy restaurant will yield a 15% profit margin. That’s right. Not a big margin, generally speaking. But that margin accumulates over time, and one can earn a respectable living in the restaurant industry.
Also, you need to know that it is nearly impossible to get a bank loan. Assume that you simply cannot. So it’s either about private investor or your own money. Plan ahead when thinking of opening your own restaurant to handle the financing, and be savvy about how you spend your start up dollars to make them go as far as you possibly can.
Next, if I had to say that there was one single most important skill needed it would be restaurant experience. Plain and simple. Time spent learning the ropes in someone else’s restaurant will save you immeasurable headaches in your own business. While you’re planning your business and saving for your investment, do your research by working in the field, it will pay off in a million ways.
Finally, if I had to name the key to success I would say that quality and consistency are paramount. Nothing else even comes close in priorities, as without these two there isn’t a business. Once you have those two components down then you’ll need to focus on managing your business. It’s a living that is earned with an eagle eye to detail. This is a topic that I could go on forever about but for now I’ll leave it at two words: quality and consistency.
Like this post? Get more where that came from- join us on Facebook, or sign up for our RSS feed. Plus, we love comments, so leave us your thoughts! Thanks for reading.