The business of selling food, in our time, is profitable and promising. Therefore, many entrepreneurs are so eager to develop in this direction. In our previous publication, we discussed in detail,. Let's continue such a topical topic and talk about how much it costs to open a catering establishment, and what documents are needed to start a business.

Is it profitable to open a cafe?

The profitability of a cafe depends specifically on the chosen direction, place of residence and competition in the region, the possibilities of financial investments in the development of your business.

It is worth noting that in the metropolis it is significantly different. For example, in a big city, it will be much more difficult for a new cafe to compete with existing establishments of a similar format. We will have to carefully study the niche, look for low-competitive and at the same time, profitable areas in the field of public catering. It is best to stay at a themed establishment, for example, or a coffee shop.

As for a small town, it is easier here, on the one hand, and more difficult, on the other. Better because there is little competition, and worse because there is a limited number of residents. As a rule, in a small village, local residents have already chosen good establishments and go there all the time. It will be difficult for a new cafe to attract regular visitors at first, but with a well-constructed concept and pricing policy, your cafe may soon become one of the best places. In a small town, there are more opportunities in terms of creativity, there are real chances to interest visitors by just opening a themed institution, for example, a sushi restaurant.

In terms of profit, opening a cafe or restaurant is quite a promising business. With a competent approach, the availability of relevant knowledge and experience in this field of activity, there are real chances to recoup all costs in a short time, to achieve good profits and a stable income.

Opening a cafe: business plan

The process of organizing a business requires adherence to a certain plan, so to speak, a step-by-step guide. Therefore, despite the chosen field of activity, first of all, you need to draw up a detailed business plan with calculations.

Stages of a business plan for opening a cafe:

1. Choice of direction. The first thing to decide is the format of the institution (children's cafe, sports bar, tea shop, pizzeria);
2. Business registration. Collection and execution of relevant documents and permits for activities;
3. Finding premises, signing a lease agreement, repair;
4. Purchase of equipment;
5. Finding and hiring employees;
6. Menu formation;
7. Advertising campaign to attract customers to the institution.

During the implementation of the idea, of course, other organizational issues may arise, all of which should be clearly indicated in the business plan.

Premises for rent

First of all, you should decide on the future location of the catering establishment. Having picked up a suitable room and decided on the concept, you can sign a lease agreement.

When choosing a room, it is worth considering its location and condition, that is, repair. There are two scenarios. You can rent an area originally adapted for opening a cafe (a former restaurant, a barbecue house) or a premise without renovation, where you need to create all the conditions for working from scratch.

In the first case, you will save a lot of time and money, because the room is almost ready for use. But the fact is that it is not always possible to find such profitable offers, or the place is not crowded and not suitable for a cafe, or you cannot afford the cost of rent.

In general, act according to the situation. When it is possible to rent a ready-made premises for a cafe, then choose this option, if there is no suitable place, you will have to make repairs so that the premises meet all the requirements of the sanitary and fire services.

What documents are needed to open a cafe?

Well, we have smoothly approached the most important moment of opening a cafe - registering a business.

Business Registration: Sole Proprietorship or LLC?

The first thing to do is to register your type of activity with the tax service. To do this, it is necessary to determine the substantive form of activity. There are two options - registration as an individual entrepreneur or a legal entity (LLC). The first option is relevant if you are planning to open a coffee shop or a children's cafe. In the case of the sale of alcoholic beverages in public catering establishments, for example, a sports bar, it is necessary to register as an LLC in order to obtain permission to distribute alcohol (it is issued only to legal entities).

List of documents for opening a cafe:

• Obtaining permission from Rospotrebnadzor to place a cafe in the premises you rented;
• Obtaining permission from the fire service on the compliance of the premises with all technical requirements;
• Permits for activity from SES. It is issued if the building complies with sanitary standards and the staff has supporting documents on passing a medical examination (sanitary book), a certificate of state registration, as well as an opinion on commercial products and raw materials;
• Obtaining a license for retail trade;
• Obtaining a license for the right to sell alcoholic beverages and cigarettes;
• Trade patent;

How much money do you need to open a cafe?

The question of the cost of opening a cafe worries every entrepreneur who wants to be realized in this field of activity.

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It should be understood that we cannot give you exact numbers. After all, much depends on a number of specific points that significantly affect the cost of opening a catering establishment.

• Registration of documents. The cost of obtaining all permits for detail will depend on the concept of the institution. For example, opening a children's cafe will cost you less than opening a bar, because in this case, you will have to pay extra for obtaining a license to sell alcoholic beverages. In addition, you can collect documents yourself or entrust their execution to an experienced lawyer. Thus, in the first case, you will spend time, but save money.
• Room rental. It must be clearly understood that the rental price directly depends on the location, condition of the premises, its area. For example, renting a place in the center of the capital will, of course, be much more expensive than in a suburb or a small town.
• Purchase of equipment for cafes. The cost of equipment can also be different depending on the manufacturer and condition. You also have the opportunity to choose: to purchase new or used equipment. Thus, in the first and in the second case, the costs will differ significantly.
• Paying staff. Do not forget that you will have to pay for the services of cafe workers every month. It is necessary to immediately decide on the staff, because you cannot manage the cafe on your own. It should be understood that the price for similar work in each region of the country is significantly different. Therefore, first, you need to study how much cafe employees in your city receive and only after that form a salary framework.

The material covers the issues of choosing a concept, registration, taxation, obtaining permits and the necessary documents and necessary equipment, also contains an approximate calculation of how much it costs to open a cafe.

Catering business(cafes, restaurants, eateries, bars, etc.), provided it is properly organized, has always been and remains profitable. However, if the creation of a restaurant is a large-scale, extremely costly and complex project (and sometimes unprofitable), then opening a small cafe will require much less investment, time and effort, and is also characterized by fewer risks.

How to open a cafe, where to start

What is a cafe, how does it differ from other catering establishments? The answer to this question is given by GOST R 50762-2007.

This is an enterprise that organizes catering and recreation for visitors and provides them with a limited range of products, as well as selling specialties, soft drinks and alcoholic drinks.

Thus, the purchase of basic equipment for a small cafe will cost about 200 thousand rubles. In addition, you will need air conditioning, kitchen utensils, dishes, textiles, furniture, office equipment, the purchase costs of which will be ~ 100 thousand rubles.

Total investment in equipment ~ 300,000 rubles.

Staff

The choice of personnel is a very responsible task for opening a successful cafe. Taking into account shift work, a small establishment will need a chef, 2 cooks, 4 waiters, an administrator, a dishwasher, and a cleaner. The number of employees depends on the concept and size of the cafe, but at first, too much staff can be detrimental to the business. All staff must have medical books.

About the franchise

A cafe franchise is a variant of opening a catering business owned by well-known chain brands. Such a business has both its pros and cons. Today you can buy a franchise of companies such as Subway, Chocolate Girl, 33 Penguin, Baskin Robbins etc.

On the one hand, a franchise allows you to purchase a perfectly calculated model of a ready-made cafe; in this case, the business will be guaranteed to be successful. On the other hand, these are additional cash costs in the form of one-time contributions, regular royalties, deductions to funds, etc., as well as the lack of opportunities to make changes to the business to your liking and discretion. Therefore, before you open your franchise cafe, you should carefully evaluate all the possible consequences.

December 2015 update:

We suggest that you familiarize yourself with the terms of the Pizza Time franchise, an interesting option for opening a catering business in 2016.

There is a crisis in the country, business is in a fever. Over the past year, thousands of entrepreneurs have gone bankrupt. This is especially true in the catering industry. Today we will talk about which catering establishments are not threatened with ruin even in the most difficult times with almost a 100% guarantee.

How to open a profitable cafe - where to start?

Cozy cafe

Let's start with brainstorming. Imagine that you can predict the flow of visitors to your cafe with high accuracy. You can predict revenue for tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, a week, a month, and even a year. Isn't this the dream of a manager, a business owner? In this situation, all you need to do is maintain the quality of the food served and control costs. Surprisingly, achieving such business predictability is quite simple. You just need to know the places, like in a joke...

Of course, the most passable places are in close proximity to the metro and major transport hubs. But, firstly, everything is busy there, and secondly, there, as they say, horse rental, which most start-up entrepreneurs simply cannot afford. Where should a young entrepreneur who wants to invest money in opening a catering point go, but who does not want to get involved with high risks of ruin? If you are looking for a simple cafe business plan with little investment, then you have come to the right place!

Remember catering success rule #1 . This rule three L— location, location, location! So, where, besides the metro, is there consistently high traffic? To answer this question, you need to ask yourself other questions:

• Where are all these crowds of people from the subway going?
• Where are they concentrated?
• Where do they eat?

And the answer to them will be obvious: all these people go in the morning to work in the business center closest to the metro, and eat there in the canteen. Since the canteen there can be, to put it mildly, not very good, and it takes half an hour to stomp to the nearest alternative near the metro, and the prices there are high, a great opportunity for business opens up here. As you already understood, we are talking about a cafe at a business center (as well as at a market, a city-forming enterprise - in general, about any place where many people work at the same time).

Such a catering enterprise, in fact, is a cafeteria, characterized by affordable prices, the ability to have a quick and cheap meal, and a simple set of dishes similar to those from the canteen. It is called more correctly rather than a cafe, but cafeteria or diner, if in the American manner.

Typical cafeteria in a business center at lunchtime

Cafeteria in a business center - the main advantages of such a business

Firstly, a local canteen can maintain low (compared to chains like Sbarro and KFS) prices due to cheap rent. This means that you can also get an inexpensive place, usually business centers - only "for". It is beneficial for them to have a variety of services offered on the territory, this is a plus in the eyes of tenants. According to our small study of the territories of business centers, as a rule, one large canteen, 1-2 small cafes and sometimes several outlets selling pastries and other takeaways coexist peacefully there.

Secondly, you can very accurately predict the flow of customers and calculate everything “on the bank”, before the first investment.

Third, no one expects a rich interior from a cafe at a business center, market or factory. People will simply be afraid of high prices and will not even look there if you invest millions in furnishings and decorations. Therefore, a small investment in the dining room is enough to keep it clean and comfortable.

Fourth, one of the main problems is that the owner is always “sewn up”, he has no days off, he works 12 hours every day. There is no such thing here. You can serve visitors from 11 to 17 on weekdays, for example, and do not miss 90% of the flow of customers. Thus, you can have your own business and live according to a normal human schedule, spend time with your family. This is underestimated, but it is very important.

Fifth, as a consequence of the previous paragraph, we have the opportunity to work independently at first. Though, though the cashier. You do not need to hire too many staff, which is important at the initial stage of starting a business in catering.

Cafe business plan - an example with calculations

Magazine I.Q. Review always adheres to the good old principle: if a business plan cannot be explained “on fingers” and written down on a napkin, then it is no good. In the case of the cafeteria, the business plan will fit perfectly on one of the napkins that you will have to purchase.

It would be reckless to even talk about the approximate cost of rent in our case, because it will be different everywhere. You can focus on the maximum amount of up to 80 thousand rubles per month for a small room in Moscow. Here is an example of what can be found in 1 minute on CYAN, but it is better, of course, to call business centers using the directory and compare options.

Renting a retail space in a business center

Real cross- about 15-20 people per hour, less in the first and last hours, and from 12 to 15 usually visitors in such establishments are to the eyeballs, so on average this figure is obtained. As part of the preparation of this material, we carried out cursory measurements in two mini-cafes at different business centers, such a number of visitors per hour is quite realistic, in fact there are more people.

Take the pessimistic option: during peak hours, 15 people come to our cafeteria, and then we are almost empty.

We multiply 4 hours of active work by 15 visitors and by 200 rubles of the average bill. Such an institution makes at least 12 thousand rubles of revenue per day. In a realistic version - 2 times more. Thus, with an average pessimistic forecast, you can count on about 400 thousand rubles of revenue per month, working only on weekdays.

An expert we interviewed said that with such a low average bill, the cost of products can be offhand about 50% of revenue. Thus, we have 200 thousand per month, of which about 80 thousand will go to rent and utility bills, 5 thousand - to taxes (for example, work on UTII), 10 - to write off expired products, 5 thousand - for petty expenses and somewhere a hundred thousand rubles will be a net profit (with independent work of the owner). In practice, the owners of cafeterias at business centers do not engage in such nonsense, because the real revenue of catering establishments in business centers allows you to freely hire 3-4 staff members and have a profit more than this. As a rule, mostly non-Russians work in such establishments, and payroll taxes are not paid, but if the place is very good, then everything can even be “whitewashed” and with normal salaries for employees.

* Calculations use average data for Russia

The catering market today is fierce competition. But in this segment there is always a place for a beginner. Finding a niche is not the main problem. It is much more difficult to stay in it and succeed.

The catering industry today is characterized by high competition. According to 2GIS, the number of catering establishments in 2019 in cities with a population of over one million increased by 15% compared to last year. And even if the growth is mainly due to the addition of mini-coffee shops, coffee shops, fresh bars, pizzerias and other things, even the most “heavy” segment of restaurants added 7%. A year earlier, the growth in the number of restaurants was recorded at 3%.

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On the one hand, such figures indicate the popularity of catering among entrepreneurs and the growth of a culture of eating out among Russians. But by themselves, these numbers do not promise anything. Restaurants remain leaders in the number of bankruptcies, and most establishments close in the first year of operation. Therefore, the first step in preparing a restaurant project is market research. It is not necessary to be a marketer or order an expensive market analysis. You will have enough general assessment.

Questions to be answered by marketing research:

Who are the main market players? Where are they located? Based on this information, you should choose a suitable location for your establishment;

What is the demand and level of competition in your segment? By answering this question, you will evaluate the success of the business idea itself and understand whether it is worth implementing it at all;

What is the situation with competitors (menu, quality of service, interior, chips)? Visit the establishments of your potential competitors to take into account their experience, advantages and disadvantages;

Who is your client (budget, interests, preferences, age)? This will help determine the target audience. It is important to understand the desires of your customers in order to create a popular establishment;

What about abroad and in large cities? Almost all innovations in the catering market come to us from abroad, and from there they penetrate to Moscow, St. Petersburg and other large cities. Therefore, new ideas and concepts can be peeped there.

The more practical information you collect, the easier it will be for you to navigate the market and avoid mistakes in the early stages. Market analysis, which includes an assessment of competitors, demand, and current trends, is the backbone of your business. This is where the real work on the project begins: business plan, concept and format of the establishment, menu development, restaurant design, and so on.

Market research should be the foundation upon which you build your business.

Choosing a restaurant concept

In a highly competitive environment, you need to stand out. Your task is to offer visitors something that no one else has offered. And here we are not necessarily talking about an exotic menu or spectacular decorations. You can hook a client with a convenient service, advantageous offers, and additional services.

How to choose a concept? Three key questions need to be answered

Who is the visitor of your establishment?

Where is the restaurant located?

What can attract your target audience?

The concept of an establishment is just as important as the food in it. It includes not only the choice of direction (pizzeria, Chinese restaurant, youth cafe, coffee house), but also such characteristics as: corporate identity, design project, institution philosophy, atmosphere, visitor portrait, features that will distinguish your restaurant from many others.

By the way, you can entrust this stage to specialists. Today, the service of developing the concept of an institution has been developed in the restaurant business. Specialists will help you not only to develop a corporate identity and design, but also to solve organizational work on the design, repair and equipment of the restaurant. Such services will greatly simplify the preparation process, but will “eat up” a considerable chunk of your budget. On average, a turnkey restaurant service for an establishment with an area of ​​100 sq.m. will cost 400-500 thousand rubles.

We draw up a business plan for a restaurant

After you have decided on the idea and concept, you need to draw up a business plan. It will allow you to avoid unnecessary expenses and mistakes at the start, estimate the amount of work, determine the time and financial scope of the project. The business plan should answer the following questions:

What items will be on the menu?

How much money does it take to open a restaurant?

What equipment should be purchased?

How many employees will you need to hire?

Thus, a business plan is a kind of model of your institution, which will allow you to determine the algorithm of actions for the implementation of the project and the resources that will be required for this. You will calculate key business indicators:

initial investment;

• Monthly expenses;

  Net profit;

  Payback period.

When writing a business plan, one of the most common questions is how to plan for profit. Calculating expenses is a little easier. Practice helps. But the income has to be calculated in advance. And here it is important to get real amounts.

The catering market is a specific business where it is not so easy to calculate the level of income. This figure depends on many factors. Therefore, the assessment of restaurant income is quite subjective and relies on the performance of other establishments. But for you, these amounts will be a guideline, and not a guarantee of earnings. Since profit planning is akin to guessing on coffee grounds, it is usually customary to draw up three scenarios for the development of events - negative, positive and most expected.

Profit calculations can be made based on the number of seats, average check, occupancy rate and average length of stay of a person in a restaurant, but the results can be very inaccurate. The smart thing to do is to visit several competitors in a similar price range and count their customers on weekdays, weekends and holidays, afternoons and evenings, and then average them out. Of course, for calculations it is not necessary to be present inside the restaurant, and even around the clock. Calculations can be carried out, for example, from a car with a calculator in hand and with a multiplication table in your head. This study will help you get rid of unnecessary illusions and predict real numbers.

In the first months, you still won’t be able to earn a lot, so when planning your budget, be sure to lay down a financial cushion to cover current expenses in the initial stages. An active and competent advertising campaign will speed up the process of finding customers. Try to launch the promotion in advance in order to attract the first visitors by the time of opening.

We collect permits

Opening a restaurant is one of the most difficult types of business in terms of collecting documents. Therefore, you need to stock up on patience, strength and money. Put in the budget 15-20 thousand rubles for the preparation of all documentation.

First you need to register a business with government agencies. The most convenient and common form for restaurants is the “LLC” form. Type of activity according to OKVED-2 classification:

56.10 Restaurant activities and food delivery services

56.10.1 "Activities of restaurants and cafes with a full restaurant service, cafeterias, fast food and self-service restaurants."

All permits must be completed. It is necessary to collect the following package of documents:

OGRN certificate;

safety magazine;

TIN certificate;

certificates for finishing with the necessary requirements of SES;

sanitary and epidemiological conclusion issued by Rospotrebnadzor;

documents for checking instrumentation and measuring utensils;

contracts with SES and fire service;

conclusion of the tax inspectorate on the registration of cash registers

an agreement with the energy saving service and the sewerage service;

an agreement with the housing complex for garbage collection;

agreement with the tenant and contracts with employees

assortment list approved in SEN

license to sell alcohol, if it is supposed to be in the establishment

Pay attention to the requirements that are specified in these documents. This information will be useful when choosing a room and organizing a workflow. It is better to immediately take into account all the requirements so that you do not have to correct inconsistencies in the future and spend money on it.

Ready-made ideas for your business

An important nuance! If the restaurant intends to include alcoholic products in the menu, then a license is required. The license is issued for a period of 1 year, subject to the following requirements:

a room larger than 50 sq.m.;

availability of necessary communications - plumbing, electrical wiring, heating;

distance of at least 100 meters from educational, medical and sports facilities.

According to the amendments to Federal Law No. 261-FZ of July 3, 2016, from March 31, 2017, catering establishments selling alcoholic products must obtain a license for each type of activity: for the retail sale of alcohol and the sale of alcohol when providing catering services. The total cost of the license will be 130,000 rubles. You can read more about obtaining permits for a restaurant.

Search for premises for a restaurant

Finding suitable premises for a restaurant is not so easy - the complexity is created by many requirements, norms and restrictions that apply to them. Therefore, the search must begin in advance. Try to find the premises where the catering establishment used to be located. In this case, you will save on bringing the premises in line with the standards. And you will save not only in money, but also in time. In addition, such premises are sometimes rented with a part of the equipment: exhaust, ventilation, air conditioning.

When choosing, you should pay attention to two parameters: the location and the condition of the room itself.

The place for the future restaurant is chosen taking into account the concept. For example, it is better to place a youth cafe near educational institutions, and a family cafe in a residential neighborhood. The wrong location can leave the restaurant without visitors.

Ready-made ideas for your business

Estimate the location using services such as Yandex.Maps, Google Maps, 2GIS. This way you will find out if there are your direct competitors nearby, whether it is possible to meet your target audience there, how convenient the transport interchange is so that the visitor can drive up to the institution.

Evaluate the premises: does it meet regulatory requirements, is there a possibility of redevelopment, is it in need of repair, are there all the necessary communications ... Also pay attention to the power of electricity, since food equipment consumes a lot of electricity.

Basic requirements for the restaurant premises:

area around 100 sq. m.;

availability of artificial and natural ventilation;

the presence of sewerage;

availability of additional rooms (storage room, bathroom, staff room).

More detailed requirements for the premises are set out in SanPiN.

One of the most important issues at this stage is the cost of rent. A restaurant will require a considerable area, and not every entrepreneur has the opportunity to acquire a property. The rental rate depends on various factors: in which city or district the premises are located, pedestrian traffic, and advantageous proximity to other public institutions. On average, renting a room will cost 80-150 thousand rubles a month. Experienced entrepreneurs recommend paying immediately for six months - then by the time the second payment is made, you will already have time to unwind.

Purchase of equipment and furniture

The quality of kitchen equipment and tools determines its production capacity and even influences the taste of food. Therefore, you should make a responsible choice. Study in advance the offers on the restaurant equipment market, reviews on equipment and the experience of other entrepreneurs. You can also use the services of companies that organize the restaurant business.

The list of necessary equipment may be different, because it depends on the menu. For example, high-quality ovens are important for a pizzeria, a special rice cooker for a sushi bar, and deep fryers for a fast food establishment.

But you can highlight the main categories of equipment that will be required in every kitchen:

oven and other equipment for heat treatment: ovens, fryers, stoves, etc.;

refrigerators, freezers, refrigerated table and vacuum sealers for food storage. The model of refrigeration equipment must be selected depending on the layout of the kitchen and the list of stored products;

dishwasher for process automation and disinfection of dishes;

beverage preparation equipment: juicer, coffee machine;

electrical appliances: mixers, blenders, combines;

kitchen utensils and other small equipment (knives, food containers, coasters, containers, etc.);

dough equipment: kneaders, spreaders, molds, etc.

Equipment costs can also vary. On average, the basic equipment of an ordinary restaurant will cost 300 thousand rubles. To reduce this list and save money, you can shorten the cycle of manufactured products and purchase ready-made semi-finished products. For example, bakery products can be purchased from a bakery, and cakes from a pastry shop.

In addition, it will be necessary to purchase furniture and other equipment, including a bar counter, tables and chairs, a cash register and a cashless payment terminal, and decor items. And this is about another 350 thousand rubles. This amount will increase if it is necessary to install an alarm system, air conditioning and ventilation systems.

It is very important to find qualified employees, because the reputation of your institution depends on their work. Careful selection should be applied not only to the chef, but also to the rest of the staff. Restaurant employees should create a coherent system in which each participant has clear duties and responsibilities.

Ready-made ideas for your business

The search begins with the choice of a chef. Finding a good cook is quite difficult, because qualified specialists are usually busy. Advertising on the site and just waiting for a good specialist to call you is wrong. You need to search for a chef purposefully: in other establishments, at master classes or through a restaurant recruitment agency. If you do not have experience in catering, the chef can also become a key adviser on kitchen equipment. Often the very idea of ​​opening a restaurant starts with a chef. It happens that entrepreneurs “import” this person from afar, inspired by his cooking on a trip abroad. In this case, you should always keep in mind the native realities: will this chef also be successful without the supply of the freshest seafood and exotic fruits and vegetables.

Just as important are the waiters. It is better to educate good employees yourself, conduct regular trainings for them, send them to master classes, form a team and motivate them for results. Lack of motivation reduces the quality of service, and this will lead to an outflow of visitors. So savings on employee salaries can lead to a significant loss in revenue.

On average, the salary of cooks is 40-50 thousand rubles. Waiters - about 20-25 thousand rubles. Please note that you will have to organize two work shifts in order not to violate labor laws. In a new and not yet promoted institution, it will be enough to hire two cooks, four waiters-cashiers, a manager and 2 dishwashers and a cleaner. With such a staff, the payroll will be about 250 thousand rubles (including social contributions).

Restaurant menu

Menu development is a very important stage when opening a restaurant. The menu should correspond to the concept not only in terms of content, originality, but also in terms of price. If you position yourself as a democratic cafe, then the prices should be appropriate.

When compiling the menu, consider the following nuances:

provide consumers with variety. Add new items to the menu or special seasonal offers. This will help keep regular customers;

look at prices in other establishments. This is perhaps the most important factor in pricing policy. The vast majority of customers do not care about the cost of dishes. Today they use the formula “all the best - for reasonable money”.

make a flow chart for each dish. Be sure to indicate the consumption of products per serving and its volume. These data are needed for SES and calculation of the required raw materials;

observe the principle of full and variable use of products. This will reduce the risk of food spoilage if a particular dish is unpopular;

be sure to consider consumer preferences. Track your order history to identify the most popular and unpopular dishes. For the most popular positions, over time, you can slightly increase the price. Unpopular dishes are best excluded or replaced with an analogue. Also remember that it is desirable to supplement the computer analysis of the demand for many dishes with a visual one - at least occasionally look at the sink to find out what is most often left on the plates.

Supply and suppliers

Before you open a restaurant, you must decide on suppliers and arrange supplies. The main requirement for suppliers is the timely delivery of high-quality and fresh products. Please note that all products must comply with the requirements of GOSTs and have quality certificates.

To calculate how many products you need to purchase, you will need a technological map and a sales forecast. Of course, you cannot derive an exact indicator, but in the process of work, determine the optimal volume of purchases yourself.

Do not rush to conclude a contract and arrange the delivery of products. To get started, carefully study the various cooking technologies, the offers of different suppliers, etc.

The list of necessary products for purchase is individual for each institution. But there are categories of suppliers with which each restaurateur cooperates:

fresh meat suppliers;

supplier of fresh vegetables;

suppliers of dairy products (sour cream, cream, cheese, etc.);

suppliers of various sauces, spices, etc.;

tea/coffee/beverage vendors.

Of course, it's easier to work with a comprehensive set of suppliers who can supply you with all the products you need. Such suppliers offer a flexible system of discounts, guarantee fast deliveries and, in general, simplify the restaurateur's life by eliminating unnecessary paperwork. But in Russia it is not so easy to find a reliable integrated supplier. An integrated supplier is less flexible and loyal to its customers. He cannot adapt to the different requirements of all his customers, and in this he loses to small suppliers.

The main advantage of small suppliers who supply certain products is that they are ready to take into account the needs of each client and work with him individually. Usually small companies are more serious about the quality of the product and are well versed in it. And even individual vendors have more choice of products.

Which supplier to choose - complex or several small ones - is up to you. But before you make a final decision on cooperation, analyze the proposals. Make the first purchase small, order small lots from different suppliers in order to compare the quality and choose the most successful option. In the future, make purchases often, but in small batches. This will provide your establishment with fresh products and make them easier to store.

When signing a contract with suppliers, be sure to read all the conditions specified in the documents. For example, shipping costs are usually covered by the customer, that is, you. Therefore, if possible, choose those suppliers that are closer to your establishment. This will cut down on shipping costs. Also, pay attention to what guarantees the supplier provides. Discuss the liability of the parties if the terms of delivery, payment or product quality are violated. You can read more about the practice of relationships with restaurant suppliers in this article.

Restaurant ad launch

First you need to draw a portrait of your target audience. Based on this, and build an advertising campaign. After all, different audiences need different ads. For advertising to be effective, it must fully meet the needs of the audience. It is important to know the interests of your potential consumers not only in order to choose advertising methods, but also for the design of the advertising material itself: text, video, flyers, etc.

Holding a contest (for example, a repost contest, “tag a friend”, etc.) with a drawing of certificates - 3 thousand rubles;

So, on average, the cost of an advertising campaign will amount to 73 thousand rubles. The size of the advertising budget depends on how much money you are willing to spend on it. It is better not to save on promotion, but spending more is not a guarantee of great success. You must have a marketing strategy, according to which you will determine an effective set of advertising tools and optimize your costs. Promotion should be especially active in the first months of the institution’s operation so that you immediately attract the attention of consumers.

But do not forget that the best advertising for a restaurant is word of mouth. It's free, effective, and at the same time not easy. After all, in order for your establishment to be recommended, you must provide a quality product and service. If the consumer appreciates the dishes and service, he will want to come back and recommend the place to his friends. In addition, regularly follow trends and new business ideas in the field of catering. The age of restaurants is not long today, any concept quickly becomes boring.

How much money does it take to open a restaurant from scratch

The table shows the approximate amount of the initial investment. Please note that the “reserve fund” has been added to the expense items. What it is? This is the amount that will serve as a financial pillow for you in the first months of operation, when the restaurant will operate at a loss. After all, in any case, you will have to pay wages to your employees and cover other expenses for uninterrupted work (utilities, food purchases, etc.).

Calculation of initial investments

Thus, about 2 million rubles will be required to open a restaurant.

Restaurant income and expenses

There are no exact figures on the level of profitability of restaurants - there are too many variables. But some guidelines still exist. In most restaurants, more than 55% of the cost of revenue is made up of just three expense items:

Products. Most often, from 25 to 35% of revenue is spent on the purchase of raw materials.

Rent. For small cities it can be about 15%, for large cities - 20-25% of the turnover.

Staff. Employee costs are usually in the range of 20-25%.

The rest comes from a whole range of costs, including utilities, taxes, repair and maintenance of equipment, the purchase of detergents, waste disposal, advertising, software updates and maintenance, and much more. Each of these costs individually does not carry a large financial burden, but together they can eat up the lion's share of income. The task of the entrepreneur is to prevent this.

What should be left of the proceeds? In other words, what is the normal profitability of a restaurant? Today, the usual figures are indicators of 10-20%. This means that, for example, with a restaurant's revenue of 800 thousand rubles, a “good” net profit is 160 thousand rubles, and 300 thousand rubles of revenue is normal with a turnover of 1.5 million rubles. Accordingly, indicators below 10% indicate that the institution is at risk, and more than 20% - a more stable source of income. It is difficult to call the restaurant business super-profitable today.

We analyze risks

It is easier and cheaper to prevent risks than to eliminate their consequences. Restaurants are one of the leaders in the number of bankruptcies. Therefore, be sure to think about what threats are in your business and how you can minimize them.

We list the main risks of the restaurant business and ways to neutralize them:

bad choice of location. For a catering establishment, location is both a method of promotion, and part of the concept, and a factor of business reputation. By choosing the wrong place, you risk getting low revenue. Therefore, responsibly approach the analysis of the outlet and take into account various factors. Separately, get acquainted with the specifics of opening a restaurant in a small town and a cafe near the highway.

rising prices for raw materials, unscrupulous suppliers, low-quality raw materials. This risk can lead to increased costs, disruptions in operation and a decrease in the reputation of the establishment. To reduce the likelihood of risk, you should carefully select suppliers, include in the supply contracts all the necessary conditions that imply the liability of the supplier in case of failure to fulfill them;

competitor reaction. The catering market is quite saturated, so the behavior of competitors can have a strong impact on your business. Some will lower prices, others will launch a profitable promotion, others will copy your idea ... There can be many options, and you are unlikely to be able to protect yourself from all competitive tricks. But in order to reduce this impact, you need to build your customer base, constantly monitor the market, offer loyalty programs to your customers, come up with unique offers and always work to improve your competitive advantages;

staff problems(low qualification, staff turnover, theft among staff, lack of motivation of employees). This risk is dangerous because it entails a decrease in profits, an increase in costs and even the formation of a negative image of the institution. To avoid this, you should install automation of all production processes (control of orders, products in stock, etc.), a control system, piecework payment. It is important to create comfortable, favorable working conditions for staff;

equipment problems, production downtime. Kitchen equipment breaks down. And if this happens, you should troubleshoot promptly. There should be no production downtime in the restaurant business. To reduce the risk, you need to carry out regular maintenance. maintenance and inspection of equipment, cooperate with a process engineer who, in the event of a breakdown of equipment, can quickly solve this problem;

product spoilage due to low demand, storage equipment failure, improper storage, planning errors. Proper planning of the volume of purchases is a very important part of the work. You can lose significant amounts simply due to the fact that you have incorrectly calculated the amount of required production. If you count too much, the food will spoil. If you buy a little, some of the items from the menu will not be available, and you may lose part of the profit. Therefore, it is necessary to carefully plan the volume of necessary products, based on the indicators of past periods, and monitor the condition of refrigeration equipment.

decline in the institution's reputation. Since the restaurant business is very dependent on word of mouth, you must maintain a good reputation at all times. Mistakes in management, poor service and poor quality food can ruin your reputation and result in losses. To reduce the risk, establish constant product quality control and feedback from the institution's customers in order to correct errors in a timely manner.

You can read more about the pitfalls of the restaurant business

In custody

The restaurant business requires a lot of time, attention and money. To succeed in it, you need to understand the specifics of the restaurant business and all the nuances. Little things like that add up to the overall picture that the visitor sees. If everything suits him, he returns to you, recommends your establishment to friends and becomes a regular customer. It is these loyal customers that bring the main share of the restaurant's profits.

Behind the external beautiful picture of the restaurant lies a system of complex processes. With proper allocation of resources and control of all production stages, you can build a profitable business.

Get up-to-date calculations for a business plan

About 2 years ago, a client came to our company. Of course, there is nothing unusual in this situation, they come to us all the time. His request was unusual - "How to open a cafe and where to start?".

We are periodically ordered various analyzes, marketing research and so on. But this is the first time we have encountered such a request. And, to be honest, even a little scared.

And not even because they had not been involved in such projects before, but because in his request there was a note “Do whatever you want, there is money, and even the premises have already been bought.”

Where to begin

Experienced restaurateurs have already realized that the whole failure was in the words “the premises have already been bought”. Because it initially kills the whole strategy of a successful cafe in the bud.

True, at that time we did not yet understand this (now we are not ashamed to admit it) and gladly set to work. Looking ahead, I will say that even despite our inexperience, at that moment the project turned out to be quite successful.

Something will seem simple and obvious to you, something will become a revelation, but, at least for a person who plans to open a cafe, this article will be very, very useful.

Let's figure out what steps you need to take so that after saying the phrase: “How to open a profitable cafe and where to start?” you got it and it was successful.

And since we haven’t had cases for a long time, I’ll tell you how we followed this plan and what we implemented in the cafe.

WE ARE ALREADY MORE THAN 29,000 people
TURN ON

Choice of concept

Yes, the opening of any cafe, coffee shop or restaurant begins with the choice of a concept. And yes, I will buzz your ears once again, but you will have to think about your target audience.

Why? Well, at least, because the room will depend on it, where it will be located geographically, what the menu will be and, of course, who will be your visitors.

And in this matter, experienced restaurateurs will support me with both hands. Here everything should be taken into account from the name, location to pricing policy and menu.

How we did it: We came up with the concept of the establishment after hearing a song somewhere, for which we then found suitable images of clothing stores.

As a result, the idea was born what it was: it was supposed to be a youth cafe with trendy music, inexpensive food, coffee to go. Waiters and bartenders in trendy plaid shirts. And completely non-alcoholic.

Design example

Room search

Another important point. Even if not the most important. More than half of the success of the future institution will depend on the place where it will be located.

Availability of parking, whether it is as close as possible to your potential client, is it easy to get to him.

Do you think I'm so picky because I'm so smart? I think you all know McDonald's. Here is a great example of how to approach the search for premises (in their case, land), because the places they choose are not at all random.

Previously, they used helicopters to assess cheap land and the region's development prospects.

And since 1980, they have developed their own Quintillion program, which suggested potential places for restaurants using satellite imagery, demographic data of the region, and a lot of other data for analysis.

No wonder they are the largest fast food chain in the world at the moment. Because they think through everything to the smallest detail and think ahead.

How we did it: Here we are both lucky and unlucky at the same time. The owner already owned the premises, so we came up with the concept, design and interior based on it.

By the way, here is an example of a bar counter that we created jointly with the project designers, based on the concept that we defined above.

bar layout

Opening of pitfalls

You already have a cafe concept. You have found a room. Start ordering a design. Stop! It's time to check if you have taken into account all the pitfalls!

A simple example. You came up with a cafe with hookahs, you have already practically developed a project, you have found a room, and then it turns out that it is impossible to make an exhaust hood in this room, as it is necessary in the project.

Or even more real life example. Cafe with alcohol. You have almost decided to open, it remains only to obtain a license for alcohol.

And then it turns out that no one will give you a licensed medical institution and a license for alcohol next to you, even under pain of death.

Do you think the examples are stupid and an experienced businessman will not do this? I took examples not from my head, but from real life and the experience of my friends. So draw conclusions and analysis 😉

How we did it: We faced the problem that in our kitchen there was less space for cooking than it was necessary according to sanitary and epidemiological standards.

I had to solve this in the most favorite way in Russia, “closing the eyes of the inspection bodies for gratitude.” I hope you don't tell anyone about this ;-)

Menu creation

And in your cafe will be fed? What will be the prices for food? Can your audience afford such expensive food? A huge number of questions and so few answers 😉 Here's what you need to pay attention to when creating a menu and setting up a kitchen:

The kitchen must be designed according to SanPiN 2.3.6.1079-01 (this is, of course, a requirement for the premises, but also an important issue);

If you want your cafe to be distinguished by the fact that you have delicious food, then I will disappoint you - this is not the primary criterion for choosing an institution. Coming to any cafe, I expect that it will be delicious.

Therefore, food should be a priori tasty and boast of it, you don’t need to rely on it. It just doesn't work.

However, do not act like the same McDonald's. In case you didn't already know, my favorite chef, Jamie Oliver, recently won a lawsuit against them by proving that their hamburgers were not to be eaten.

Because it's not food, as they just soak beef tallow in ammonium hydroxide and add a drop of meat to it.

That is, they actually poison a person. McDonald's is actively trying to hush up this trial, but we'll see how it ends.

If you decide to focus mainly on selling food, then let me remind you that the markup for food is 400 percent, and for tea / coffee it reaches 1000%!

Oh! I have just revealed the most important secret of all establishments! Therefore, think about what you will still earn money on.

How we did it: In the cafe, we have focused on takeaway coffee, and we are actively promoting this direction. Over the past 2 months, the number of such checks has increased by 50%

Alcohol! 60-70% of the income of any bar comes from alcohol. Just think about it!

The menu should be colorful, with mouth-watering pictures that induce appetite. So you will increase your sales by simply using your subconscious.

Menu

How we did it: Yes, we had to hire a specially trained photographer, allocate time for the chef and so on, but believe me, it's worth it.

Scientists from the University of Illinois found that a colorful menu (with a photo and a vivid description) increases the sales of an establishment by 27%.

And here comes the next point. Everything that is photographed in the menu must be brought in the same form. Otherwise, the reputation of the institution will be significantly tarnished.

Last thing. Don't forget to analyze the menu. Remove slow-moving positions, slightly raise prices for the most popular dishes and periodically introduce new items. The recommended frequency is once every three months.

Personnel search

The stumbling block. Someone thinks that it is better to hire experienced staff. Someone thinks that it will be cheaper and faster to teach.

It's up to you to decide, but at least you need chefs and bartenders with experience. And remember the concept! You will also select the staff for it. Even their appearance can become a selection criterion.

Marketing and Advertising

The topic of a separate article. Is it true! We have tried so much in food service marketing that we could write an entire article. But here's what exactly works:

1. Flyer. Works, tested;
2. Social networks (in particular Vkontakte and Instagram);
3. Articles on news portals;
4. Website;