Start & Run a Restaurant Business. Brian Cooper

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СКАЧАТЬ population of your target area should be reviewed in terms of its historical growth as well as its projected growth through the next ten-year period. The population by age group should be evaluated with respect to the community’s ability to retain its younger segment to further the economic growth and development of the area. This information will also provide you with a sense of where your marketplace is headed and will help you determine whether your restaurant concept fits with the target area’s population base.

      Some other information that can be derived from the census data that will be valuable in establishing a community profile includes:

      • Number of dwelling units by structure type

      • Number of people that own versus rent their dwellings

      • Average level of education of people in your target area, as well as their employment classifications

      • Marital status/families by type

      • Average household income

      • Ethnic origin and percentage of population by languages spoken

      • Percentage of population by age group

      This information can assist you in putting together an accurate profile of your target customer and can be used to determine the fit or level of acceptance with which your concept will be met. Information on the languages spoken will also be valuable in determining the ethnic mix and diversity in your area. You can supplement the raw data gathered from census information and from city or town planning departments by “people watching” at establishments in your target area. Visiting the competition is a very good way of getting a firsthand look at your prospective clientele!

      Information gathered from bartenders, wait staff, and restaurant managers can be invaluable and well worth the effort.

      2.3 Economic profile

      Analysis of the retail and industrial strength of the community will help to determine if your proposed site is viable. “Location, location, location,” more than anything else, is why an operation succeeds or fails. A location-related error is a permanent one, and every effort to analyze and understand site selection is critical. See Chapter 6, “Choosing Your Restaurant’s Location,” for more information on location.

      The economic profile should look at the growth or potential for growth within your target area. Determining the economic profile for the community can help you gauge the appropriateness of your type of restaurant for the area. This information can be gathered from economic development officers and city planners. A description of the mix of commercial, industrial, and retail businesses in the target area should be included in this part of the study. This information, along with the competition analysis, will help determine the positioning of your type of operation within the community.

      Here is a story from co-author Gina McNeill — a story that demonstrates that not doing your demographics homework is a BIG mistake!

      Murphy’s White Horse Café was located in Egg Harbor, New Jersey, on the major route leading to Atlantic City from Philadelphia. The restaurant had been a local “gin mill,” selling beer by the glass for less than 50 cents, and had no atmosphere to speak of — except for a beautiful, 3-feet-deep by 15-feet-long, solid-wood shuffleboard game. The Murphys purchased the tavern with hopes and dreams of turning it into a New York City–style operation. They were not counting on the locals to support the “new and improved” bar and restaurant, but instead were relying on the droves of people driving down the highway to the gambling dens in Atlantic City to stop in. Wrong! The cars headed directly to the blackjack tables at the casinos, and on the return trip their occupants were too broke to stop or had enjoyed the freebies at the casinos. The wooden shuffleboard was made into beautiful bar tables, much to the dismay of the locals, who, despite everything, came to be the backbone of the bar crowd!

      2.4 Competition analysis

      Any feasibility study must include an analysis of the competition in your target area. This may help you determine if there is a niche in the area that your type of restaurant can fill. Some restaurants in the target area may be designed on concepts that are similar to yours, and others maybe quite different. Spend some time in the target area and visit your competition. The town economic and development or business improvement office can provide a listing of local businesses. (You will also want to go to the town or city hall to see if there are any outstanding building permits for new construction of restaurants in the area.) This should be part of your feasibility study, and can be updated from time to time after your restaurant is established.

      If you discover that there are other restaurants already in the area similar to the one you plan to operate, you must consider modifying your concept to better suit a vacant niche or think about opening in another location altogether. However, you may actually benefit from your competition generating a restaurant district (or “restaurant row” as it is known in the industry). People will often travel to a restaurant row knowing that they will have a greater selection of restaurants from which to choose. All the people and activity in a destination such as this generate a “buzz,” which enhances the total entertainment/dining experience. However, the population base must be able to support the number and variety of restaurants, and there must be other demand generators nearby. Often these “rows” spring up close to supporting venues, such as the live-theater district in cities such as New York and Toronto, or near the waterfront, as in San Francisco’s wharf area. Many towns and cities have cultivated a tourist hub centering around a significant feature of that area, and restaurants are part of the draw. If you are thinking of locating your restaurant in a restaurant row, visit your potential competition to find out how busy they are.

      2.5 Industry and tourism profile

      Research and then summarize the local industries in your target marketplace and emphasize their potential to generate business in your area. You can learn about them from the local chamber of commerce, Lions Club, Rotary Club, or other service clubs in the community. Once you have opened your restaurant, you may want to join one of these organizations; with luck, you will be hosting some of their luncheon meetings. Forging good relations and networking with the local business community is a prudent thing to do. Your restaurant may be able to provide lunches for management meetings, as well as dinners and special events sponsored by these companies.

      The positive effects of tourism in your area and how it can benefit your operation should also be summarized in your study. Talking with other operators will give you a handle on how and when the tourist season influences their business. Information can also be gathered from your tourist and convention bureau or local business association. If you are going to focus on attracting the tourists, you should formulate a plan and make contacts with the bus companies or tour companies that do business in your area. Highlight the tourist segment in your marketing strategies, and include this potential revenue in your financial projections.

      2.6 Cultural, recreational, and sporting events

      Cultural, recreational, and sporting events can attract potential customers for your restaurant and should be researched when you prepare your feasibility study. Such events are known as demand generators, as they help increase the demand for food and beverages in the marketplace during specific times. If there is a town or city convention bureau or center for cultural affairs in your target area, you will be able to get information regarding numbers of people who have attended events in the past and will also be able to obtain estimates for future events.

      2.7 The real СКАЧАТЬ