The coronavirus had a dire effect on many businesses and industries. While it’s hard to calculate the exact cost, financial or otherwise, on a specific niche or market, it’s generally considered that the hospitality industry was one of the worst-hit during the pandemic, which makes sense given that the very concept of the industry requires direct interaction with in-person engagement.
In the United States alone, tens of thousands of restaurants closed during the two years when the coronavirus really hit home, and the residual effects of this are still very much with us.
On any walk down a high street, in any corner of the country, you will no doubt note a high number of shuttered businesses, among these being bars and restaurants that simply couldn’t make it through these dark times, leaving city centers being a shell of their normal selves.
If you are still undeterred and want to start a new restaurant venture in 2022, then there are some aspects you absolutely need to take into account.
Planning the Layout of Your Restaurant
Though we are, to some extent, living in a post-COVID era, there is every chance that regulations and restrictions could come back at any time, and with that in mind, it’s best to err on the side of caution.
A large percentage of the restaurants that managed to stay afloat during the coronavirus pandemic did so because they had an outside option, which should be part of the planning for a new restaurant endeavor. Make sure you have some outdoor space to work with and use solid and stylish commercial furniture so that it doesn’t just feel like an area that is haphazard and an afterthought.
You could look to use up part of any parking areas as a potential overflow area, especially during the summer months, and the key here is you are not only expanding the current capacity of the restaurant you are planning but also offering yourself something of a safety net in case restrictions mean that you can only serve outdoors.
Make Your Takeout Menu Out of This World
Another aspect that aided restaurants during the past two years was their takeout offering; indeed, for many, it was their very lifeblood. Make sure your new restaurant includes a solid and, maybe even bespoke, takeout menu. Back this up with strong promotional and marketing tools so that people know that they can get great food from your restaurant even if they don’t come to visit it in person.
This is not only a precautionary measure in case of further restrictions but also an approach that will help maximize your profits. The amount of takeout consumed by diners is increasing every year, and the coronavirus pandemic merely sped up this niche.
Treat the takeout area of your business as an entirely additional source of income and one that should have a managed process that operates almost exclusively of your in-house service because it’s that important and deserves a great deal of your attention.
Realistic Expectations
Restaurants, like bars, are very fickle businesses. Even before the pandemic, the number of establishments that didn’t make it for more than a year was scarily high, and the level of instability in this market is only going to grow.
That means you’ll need to manage expectations. Don’t expect to turn a profit for a few years, and for that reason, you should look to spread the cost with additional investors. That way, you mitigate risk by spreading the liability across many people and entities.
Be ready to lose money to begin with, and if your restaurant stands the test of time, it will start to pay off in the long term.
Know Your Customers and Your Niche
Before beginning the process, and hard work, that goes into opening a new restaurant, you’ll have to do your research into both the type of establishment you are planning on opening and the area you are opening it in.
This can, of course be outsourced and arguably should be, as it requires a great deal of demographic input. You’ll need to know that your particular restaurant fits the locality and isn’t going to be edged out by similar competitors who are already in your space.
The coronavirus may impact on this also as an area could have seen a big reduction in certain types of eatery and might therefore present you with an opportunity, and you’ll also have to factor in the way we now see the whole eating out experience.
Prior to the pandemic, we were eating out, as a society, very frequently, indeed perhaps more than at any other point in recent times. Now, however, we are likely to greatly reduce the number of times we do so. This is partly due to financial constraints and also down to how we now view the practice of eating out.
What was previously a commonplace act may not be considered, by most of us, as a luxury and one we might be willing to spend more on but do less of. This could, in all likelihood, leave the way open for more upscale high-end restaurants (especially in busy urban areas), and that might be the kind of approach you might need to consider when opening your own restaurant.
Get Great Staff
When we now eat out, because we’ll be doing so far less often, the way we are treated will become an even more integral part of whether we consider coming again. Customer loyalty is key to keeping a restaurant successful, so having the best staff (in every position from the front of house staff to your head chef) is now more crucial than ever.
You’ll need strong HR assistance with the staffing, and again this is something you shouldn’t attempt to do single-handedly.
