Start a Restaurant

What were the last three things you did to increase your restaurant profitability? Unless profit protection is constantly on your mind, you will get hurt. Eroding margins, fickle markets, escalating food prices, rising utility rates, outrageous credit card fees, and a host of other factors eat into your margins daily, thereby reducing your ability to pay the bills, let alone yourself.

I recently consulted with a client that has not paid himself for 17 months. He called me out of sheer desperation saying, “I just can’t go on working for free”. The sorry fact is that there are many restaurateurs working hard for very little income, and I for one think it should stop.

In my profession as a restaurant consultant, people rarely call me when things are going well. The kinds of calls that I receive daily are along the lines of, “Why can’t I make any money” or, “My food cost is through the roof” and this is the most painful one, “I can’t afford to stay open anymore, what can I do?”

Why don’t you invest a few minutes into yourself right now and read over the tips below. In fact, print out a copy and share it with your friends that run an operation as well. Yes, some tips may seem obvious, but are you using every tool at your disposal to solidify and enhance your profits? Your restaurant owes you for risking your neck to get it open, so I’d like to suggest that you start holding it accountable. (more…)