It is important that you have a clear idea of restaurant start up costs before you dive in and put your seed capital on the line. You really should have access to more than $100,000 in funding to start up in the restaurant business and maybe more than this depending on what you have in mind.
One of the major reasons for new restaurant failure is lack of money 6 months into the restaurants life. The fact is that for many restaurants income growth will be slower than expected so you must keep cash available to support your restaurant until you are able to become established.
Do not be tempted to over spend when obtaining equipment and furnishings for your restaurant. Look at used options, look for sales by other businesses that are closing down and purchase only what you need.
The important cost associated with starting a restaurant is your location. You will either have to lease a place or pay a mortgage on a building that you own. Decorating expenses for a restaurant can be considerable and you will also have ongoing expenses related to your building such as utilities.
Location is one of the most important factors contributing towards success so you may want to do some thorough research, or hire somebody to do it to be sure that you get the right spot and the right concept for that area.
Your state will have business, health and zoning regulations and you have to have an accurate idea of what these involve so that you can allocate cash for permits and other paperwork.
You might need to hire consultants to advise you during the startup phase and beyond and their substantial charges may be able to be offset by the help and guidance that they can offer.
The list of equipment requirements for a restaurant is extensive and can range from industrial cooking and ventilation equipment, freezers, coolers, refrigerators and other kitchen supplies.
Your kitchen will also need to buy everything that is needed to run a complete dining room, from chairs and table decorations to salt and pepper shakers.
A lot of restaurant owners notice inventory constantly being taken so you must think about implementing systems to track and protect stock. Systems for taking customer orders and passing them on to the kitchen and systems for processing payments are also all part of the restaurant game these days.
You will need to have a brand designed for use on signage and menus. Promotion costs can also quickly add up as you need to begin advertising well in advance of opening day and pretty much continue to testing new approaches until you find a way to bring patrons in on a regular basis and have established your reputation.
Eat at a variety of restaurants and make some observations about all the little things that you see that you may have overlooked.
From toilet paper to staff uniforms, your list of anticipated restaurant startup costs will depend on the extent of your business, your theme, number of tables and your target market.
Calculating set up costs is one thing but you should also think about the monthly operating costs which involve purchases of food and supplies, rent payments, payroll and advertising expenses . These costs will be incurred whether your tables are full or not so you need to have funds set aside to cover them if revenue is worse than anticipated.
Stick with safer funding options at first like loans from relatives or banks. Leave higher interest options like credit cards cash advances as a last resort.
Budget carefully so that you make the best possible use out of every dollar of your startup funds. Those people who fully understand restaurant start up costs and operating expenses will stand the best possibility of reaching their goals.
