Are you thinking about starting a new restaurant? You’re not alone with this idea. Lots of people love the idea of owning their own restaurant. If you don’t believe this, just look at how many different celebs are launching or buying restaurants. From Mark Walberg, to Trey Parker and Matt Stone, celebs love to get a piece of this particular action and you should too. But, when you start your new restaurant, it’s important to be aware of some of the mistakes that you can make and that you ideally need to avoid. So, let’s look at the common reasons why new restaurants tend to fail before they have even had the chance to light the embers.
Bad Reviews
If you are hit with bad reviews then this can be a crippling problem. The issue here is that there will always be somewhere else that your customers can eat. There will always be other dining options available for them to try. So, you can’t afford for there to be a black mark against your brand.
Customers will award bad reviews for a variety of reasons. This could be due to a poor level of customer service, bad presentation or maybe just issues with the food in general. If you do start to get negative reviews, then you need to look carefully at your business and try to determine where exactly things are going wrong. Usually, bad reviews won’t be unfounded. There will be a reason you’ve received the,. The question is will you make the changes necessary to alter the perception of your brand before the situation becomes too dire.
You should also be checking for mentions of your restaurant online too.
The Wrong Team
It is possible that a restaurant is in trouble early on due to issues with the team behind it. That’s why you need to make sure that you do speak to a recruitment agency. They will ensure that only the top CVs land on your desk when you are putting together your restaurant team.
As such, that means that you don’t have to panic about issues with the people behind your business damaging your brand. Of course, a recruitment agency will only get you part of the way there. You also need to make sure that you think about your hiring practices too. The right hiring practices will mean that you get exactly who you need for your company. In particular, it’s important to focus on people who are going to want to stay with your business in the long term. This can usually be ascertained by asking the right interview questions.
If you are worried that you have chosen the wrong people for your restaurant then you can’t be afraid of selecting other people for your company instead. Freshening up your team could give you the edge that you need on the market, particularly when facing fierce rivals.
Poor Connections
When you run a business, you always need to make sure that you are making the right connections. For restaurants this is typically about finding the right suppliers. It’s important to make sure that you have a supplier that you can rely on. If there is an issue here, then it could leave your business in a difficult position. For instance, you might be struggling to find a supplier to provide wholesale spices. If you can’t access a supply option like this, then it’s going to impact the quality of your food. This could lead to your reputation getting damaged in both the long and the short term.
Finding the right connections and forming relationships with different business partners will take a lot of time and effort. It’s important to make sure that you do complete the right level of research. If you are struggling to find the right connections, then it’s worth thinking about using brokers. They can help you get acquainted with the businesses that are going to make your restaurant stronger. Do be aware that connections like this must be mutually beneficial. You have to be reliable for them as well.
Outdated
Finally, it’s possible that your restaurant feels and looks outdated. This could turn off customers faster than bad reviews. Customers are always looking for restaurants that feel fresh and exciting. So, how can you ensure that your restaurant fits this description? Well, there are a few options worth considering here. For instance, you might want to get some tech options connected to your restaurant. You need to make sure that it’s as easy as possible for customers to book a table. Don’t leave them in a situation where this feels like a nightmare or isn’t particularly user friendly.
You might also want to think about the design of your restaurant too. If you don’t have the right design, then it’s possible and indeed likely that your customers are going to choose another place to eat at instead. Customers these days are often looking for Instagram-worthy moments and scenes. So, you should think about ensuring that there are options like this available from your restaurant. This means that you need to consider giving your restaurant a complete redesign to ensure that it does fit this type of description. There are specialist designers available online who can help you achieve this goal.
We hope this helps you understand some of the key steps that you can take to guarantee that you do not fall into the traps of previous restaurant owners. Do be aware that it’s quite common for new restaurants to fail on the market. That’s why you need to make sure that you are putting the right strategies in place. You also need to ensure that the quality is there with your business. If there is an issue with quality then your company is always going to be hit with negative reviews and that’s the last thing that you want for your company. The easiest way to avoid this is to make sure that there are quality checks in place for your company from day one.
