starting a restaurant with no prior experience

[5abi]

Hi all

I'd like to start a small restaurant but I have no prior experience. I have never worked in one either. Is the learning curve going to be a problem?

I would like to learn ops, finance, employment, sourcing equipment, how to get a loan etc.

Can someone please guide me or point me in the right direction?

Much appreciated.

 

[kulture]

Go work in a restaurant for a couple of years. Then come back.

 

[JackOME]

It depends - do you have people working with you who have experience, or do you have experience of a similar job which might overlap? (Such as hospitality etc)

Even someone who has worked in a restaurant their whole life could be rubbish at running their own, it hugely depends on what type of person you are, your support and finances, how motivated you are and so on.

It's not impossible, just unadvisable in most cases.

Good luck!

 

[joeptsearle]

As you as the research is done, anyone can set up a business in anything, you just have to see every failure as a chance to learn, some of the best business owners came from being in debt to earning serious dough. As it has been pointed out, a good way to start is masterminding with people in the industry, maybe try to get a JV going with another business owner.

Buy a business start up book and read through it, take the time to note down everything you feel is important, that will be your reference when questions arise. Don't think about what you don't have, think about what you are good at and can bring to the table, do you have ANY knowledge about the industry, food, drinks, or does anyone in your close network have any good ideas?
Think as well about your niche, do you have a particular market you can exploit?
and does that market have a demand for what you want to provide?
All good questions to ask when your'e starting out.

Joe

 

[neoseal]

There is difference between cooking at home for few friends now and then; and opening a restaurant. Working 12 hours or more, late nights, staffing problems especially chefs if you are not yourself.

I would say, get some experience for few months, gather info on rules and regulations, write a business plan, research finance options, recruitment, place (most important).
Do you have some support from close friends or family or business partner with experience?
If you can tick the boxes, it can be profitable business.

 

[The Byre]

Where do I start?

To come in from the outside with no knowledge of the business, is like imagining that you could start a taxi company, by tying two bicycles together!

I am guessing here, but you are a keen cook - am I right?

There are several good reasons why hobbies seldom make good start-up businesses -

The biggest problem for all start-up businesses is all the other start-up businesses. At the budget end of the market, there is a great crush of other, similar enterprises, all competing for the same small market.

The hobbyist seldom has enough knowledge of the practicalities of the business and the market in general. Someone coming from inside the business will know a great deal more about how to make a fist of things as a business, than a keen amateur. For example, a professional cook knows where to buy his food, which equipment gives the best results and how to organise a restaurant in a way that no housewife preparing the Sunday roast ever could. He will have all kinds of inside information about where to buy equipment and as a jobbing cook, will already have learnt from his or her mistakes and from the mistakes of others, lessons that the hobbyist still has to learn.

There is also the simple fact that the hobbyist is very often seriously underfunded and therefore does not have the ability to survive the start up period, which may run into several years of low turnover and does not have the funds to get the business off to a good start, with better equipment, advertising, good location, or whatever it is that the chosen industry requires, for a new-boy to succeed.

This under funding is often born of the lack of industry knowledge. For example, hi-fi speakers are unacceptable in the recording studio, 'prosumer' cameras are unacceptable in a television studio and DIY tools are unacceptable in an auto repair shop.

In your case, knowing where to buy food (and it is never the local supermarket!) will be just one of many crippling stumbling blocks.

There is book that might help you, called 'Confessions of a Consultant - why some businesses really fail' by Andrew Graeme. There is a whole chapter on turning your hobby into another failed business! I cannot post a link to Amazon, as I do not have the necessary 30 posts to my credit to post a link here.

But the short form of my advice would be the same as 'Kulture's' advice above - you need to work in a good restaurant first.

 

[Chris Ashdown]

Can you prepare say five different starters in 20 min whilst you also cook5 different main courses for a total time of about 40 min and thats just one table now multiply by say 3 or 4 others all starting within the 40 min

So much to learn and thats just the basics

Go work in a pub or restaurant as a kitchen hand for 12 months and you may stand a chance

Money to start normally you put up 50% and the bank will lend the same with you also putting up a guarantee for the bank loan

 

[businessfunding]

As has been said - go work in a restaurant and keep a keen eye on what is going on.

The failure rate in this industry is very high - mostly because the people going in don't actually understand their business.

Speak to a chef about his job - being able to cook is important but it isn't the top priority.

Loans - without rock solid security I'm afraid you have no chance..

Sorry it's negative but you really do need to reconsider this.

 

[OldWelshGuy]

I know loads of restauranteurs and they have ALL said the same thing, and that was that evrey time they opened a new place, they ended up spending 100% or more than their budget, and these guys KNOW what they are doing.

My advice to you is don't do it, open a sandwich shop by all means but a restaurant is (IMO) a complete non starter, it will take your money, drain the life out of you, and spit you out.

 

[Nord20]

I've started and run (and sometimes folded) nearly a dozen retail businesses and hands down the hardest, most time consuming, most demoralising and ultimately most costly was a restaurant.

I'd rather go on benefits than try running a restaurant again (and that's saying something!).

I have enormous respect for anyone running a successful restaurant on any scale, as I know just how hard and relentless it is.

 

[AlexandraS]

How wealthy are your parents?

The reason I ask is that some friends opened their own restaurant about 2 years ago - he "liked cooking".

I have not time nor inclination to list everything "wrong", but needless to say his parents are very rich and give them thousands monthly - so in essence sub a hobby.

 

[neoseal]

5Abi, sorry most of us have been negative here. May I ask what type of food will be served and what will be your speciality. Have you done a menu, if we can know few dishes. May be you have something new, or your restaurant may be unique to your area.

 

[FinestLogos]

If you pick a niche area and then get good initial reviews you could build up a sustainable business in no time. However, it is a big risk as others are saying so do your research.

 

[fuggles]

What about a pop up restaurant ?

Selling only one or two dishes of an in-season food ?

Keeping it as simple as possible.


"In 2009, Pierre Koffmann set up a pop u restaurant, and found that diners ate an entire month's stock of 500 pig's trotters in less than a week.

 

[Nuno]

There is a slight difference between a famous French chef working at the very top end of the market in Britain and a noob.

A serious London foodie would get a Gold Truffle Badge if she knew about Koffmann's pop up, and another if she had actually eaten there.

Very few restaurant goers anywhere will go to a new place without some sort of recommendation, let alone a popup.

The OP really needs experience above all else. If they can't find work in a restaurant they might in a gastro pub.

 

[fuggles]

How would you get funding ? A bank loan ?

How do bank loans work ?

What if the business completely fails and I am in debt and have no way of paying it back ?

I declare bankruptcy ? What then ? Who picks up the bill for my failures, the taxpayer ?

Sorry for all the questions, I am new to this.

 

[fuggles]

Or how about setting up a bakery ?

 

[SpotlightProMedia]

Do some research first. Talk to people who have experience.

I have heard of many restaurants in the US that have been started by people without prior experience and it worked.

Good luck with this!

 

[deniser]

The restaurant business is a real struggle for many independents - even those who have years of experience and really know what they are doing

It is the same as for retail shops; the chains have come to dominate.

This week in our locality we've seen a classy independent restaurant close down and a new up market chain open up - the chain restaurant has been completely packed since it opened.

I think people are just too scared to spend their money somewhere where they don't know what they are getting.

I dined in a two Michelin starred restaurant recently which was very reasonably priced for what it was and we were the only customers in it which I thought was really sad.

I echo what others have said - it's hard enough even if you know what you're doing - without experience it is impossible.

 

[deadgoodundies]

As someone who spent 14 years in the restaurant business (kitchen porter, barman, cocktail barman, waiter, head waiter, assistant manager and then manager) if you have no experience then forget it.

Best advice is go and work in a restaurant for a couple of years, watch and learn as much as you can, even if you are front of house talk to the chefs, watch what they do and when they have finished their shifts buy them a drink chat to them and what they did and how they do it.

Oh and if you have a social life then throw that one out the window, the restaurant and it's patrons will become your social life.

I loved every minute of working in restaurants and thrived on the high pressure but i'm so glad i'm out of it now. No way would of I been able to get married and have a normal life if I had still been doing it (girlfriends couldn't cope with me doing 18hr days 6 days a week).

 

[leaseq]

Leasing offers a lot of benefits especially for start up entrepreneurs. I would personally recommend you check out LeaseQ. I think you will find us worth your time.

 

[businessfunding]

Leasing offers a lot of benefits especially for start up entrepreneurs. I would personally recommend you check out LeaseQ. I think you will find us worth your time.

Perhaps you should learn about marketing?

 

[Nuno]

Perhaps you should learn about marketing?

snorkal, gnarff.
Now, back to committing moneycide with a restaurant virgin.