The modern lifestyle is rapidly becoming increasingly fast-paced and hectic. With things as they are, very few people have enough time to spend hours in the kitchen preparing quality food on the table. All the economic factors that would otherwise burry other sectors are only playing to the strengths of the local food businesses.
Therefore, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that, despite the massive difficulties we have experienced over the last couple of years, the food industry soared to a record-breaking $8.7 trillion and is expected to keep growing at a steady pace of 4.8% in the coming years.
So, we can safely say the circumstances for starting a local food business are probably more favorable than ever. Let us take a look now at a couple of steps that should help you use these foundations and build your own food business empire.
Pend down a solid business plan
This is an absolute must if you want your future venture to have any sense of form or purpose. It serves both as a blueprint and as a tool you can use to measure how successfully your plans are being implemented. Here are a couple of the most important topics this critical document should address:
- Executive summary: You can look at it as a five-minute elevator pitch.
- Market research: Who are your core customers? What types of meals do they prefer? How much are they willing to pay?, etc.
- Restaurant style and structure: Here, you need to define the type of your business (coffee shop, restaurant, bakery, etc.), and ownership structure (sole proprietorship, partnership, etc.).
- Business objectives: Long-term and short-term goals that you will later break down into concrete business strategies.
- Unique selling proposition: Added value that sets your restaurant apart from the competition
- Menu offering: Pricing model based on the financial and market analysis.
- Branding guidelines: Broad branding ideas that you will use to create more specific branding elements like the logo, uniforms, and so on.
Secure sufficient financing
Now that you’ve finished up your business plant, it’s time to start using this blueprint to pitch your ideas to other parties and secure the financing for your venture. This can be accomplished in numerous ways, but some of the most common channels you have at your disposal are as follows:
- Traditional business loans
- Government funds
- Partners or angelic investors
- Crowdfunding
Keep in mind, though, that no matter which one of these approaches you eventually pick, you will need to secure at least six months’ worth of fixed expenses to be able to run your company efficiently.
Nail down the location
When it comes to the food industry and restaurant businesses, a good location can make or break the prospects of a company. So, try to situate your small enterprise in an area that sees a lot of foot traffic, is close to main public transport lines, targets your intended core customers, has access to parking spots, and allows the free flow of staff and visitors. As for the competition, as long as your menus are not competing, they may prove to be a welcome presence since they indicate a developed market. So, if your competitors sell quality ready-made meals, you can actually increase the number of walk-ins by offering complementary desserts.
Create a comprehensive marketing strategy
In other words, when the time comes for your company to take off, you should already know which channels you are going to use, have established KPIs, and have an idea of the results you want to accomplish. As for the selection of the tools you are going to use, we suggest that you resort to content marketing, which is capable of producing very strong results in this sector. If we take Australia as an example of a developed country, we will see that a growing number of businesses are successfully using professional SEO in Sydney and other competitive restaurant markets, so feel free to take some cues.
Get in touch with the suppliers
This may prove to be harder than it seems since the modern business world is constantly under the pressure of different outside detriments. That is why you should do your best to keep your supply chain as localized and self-reliant as possible. Start your search by paying a visit to local F&B conventions, farmer’s markets, and nearby wholesale retailers. While you are doing that, try to score a couple of goodwill points by offering long-term deals, joint marketing options, and similar perks even if they don’t align with your immediate financial goals. Trustworthy suppliers able to deliver quality products are simply invaluable.
Start hiring top-tier employees
Your future employees will have a critical role in the development of your company, so don’t waste any time or resources to get the best talent available at the moment. Also, keep in mind that experienced professionals can offer valuable feedback regarding the interior design, workplace procedures, menus, and countless other aspects of your future. Be sure then to handle this responsibility as soon as possible so the employees can take an active part in the development of the company. To save time and resources, you should, at this stage, consider outsourcing non-critical positions like HR and accounting.
In Conclusion
So, there you have it – the top six steps you should follow to set your future food business on healthy foundations and set it up for sustainable growth. Once you cover these basics, all you need to do is to acquire the necessary permits, ensure legal compliance, and start making preparations for the launch. If you have closely followed the instructions we gave you above, however, all these tasks will be made much easier.
