When the business starts growing, every restaurant owner might want to expand their business. However, there are both challenges and opportunities involved while expanding your restaurant business. While you have to maintain your existing credibility and trust on one hand, it can bring you more profits on the other hand. Even though the task can be challenging, you can overcome it through detailed planning. Here are some steps you have to consider while expanding your current restaurant business.
● Evaluate Your Existing Business Model
While trying to expand your restaurant, check if the current model you follow is successful enough to be continued. Analyze if your current restaurant is fetching your profits. To get a better understanding of your existing model you may rely on a SWOT analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats). You must also consider the scalability and sustainability of your restaurant. You may not be able to physically manage all your outlets. Therefore, make sure that all your restaurants are capable enough to operate without your presence.
● Do Your Market Research And Plan Well
Before expanding your business, careful market research and planning are very important. You have to carry out a demographic survey and a market study to find out more about your customer base. Ensure that you are focussing on the right audience for your restaurant. Find the existing competitors in the location you opt for expansion. Target customers and location are two crucial factors that determine the success of a restaurant.
● Financial Planning
Finance is also a very important factor to consider. It is extremely risky to take business loans or to find capital on your own. Therefore, you have to be very careful while taking such steps. Most restaurant owners try to build partnerships for affordable investments. As startup restaurants are gaining wide attention, many angel investors and VCs are showing their interest in the restaurant business. They look for quality, standardization, and scalability while joining hands with a restaurant in their expansion.
● Strong Central Management
Every long-chain restaurant must have a strong central management system, without which no profit will be generated from the chain. It will be extremely difficult to manually manage every restaurant operation. Therefore, try to use management software to oversee the business and operation of every branch. Good kitchen management and quick services are inevitable for a restaurant business. This software helps you manage every operation of your restaurants including their needs, recipes, services, etc.
● Hire The Right People
Employees are considered to be the backbone of all businesses, including the restaurant business. Therefore, hire enough people and train them well before opening your second restaurant. The unique dishes and exceptional services are the two main factors that attract customers to the restaurants. They try to invest in staff that will contribute to the growth of your restaurant. Hire people who can maintain the legacy of your current restaurant.
● Quality And Consistency
If you already have a successful restaurant, it will be easy for you to bring customers to your new restaurant. However, the quality of the food and the service offered decides if they would stay. Therefore, if you have a chain of restaurants, ensure consistency and quality in each of your outlets.