Anyone started their own buiness?

[divine]

Like I say, just make sure you do the research. It may be a completely untapped market you can exploit or a completely unsustainable one that others have already fallen foul of. 90% of fast food is crappy for a reason - most people don't care, that's why they're eating fast food in the first place.

Once you factor in property leases, wages and so on I can see it being pretty hard to remain competitive and using high quality ingredients too, butchers and the like are a different market where people are prepared to pay a little more for quality. Fast food is something you'd need to give serious thought to, as I know the attitude I have to it and judging by the massive queues for McDonalds and KFC in West Quay at Southampton and the utterly empty 'Fat Jackets' and 'Quiznos' places, most people feel the same way

[Kitten]

Originally Posted by divine

Healthy/quality fast food will always be an odd one because people dead set on living healthily don't often go out for a kebab or a takeaway pizza, quality or not. Those who do attend takeaway places a lot likely don't care about how healthy or high quality it is.

That's very true here, completely different in the States. Obviously your burger places make a fortune but the healthy people eat take-out a lot too. Its an experience not just convenience. Wish it was like that here, then there might be more call for opening such places and keeping them going. I'd certainly be prepared to pay more for good quality convenience food - we don't really eat take away stuff like burgers and kebabs and stuff because you just know the quality is going to be crap in 95% of places. Just because I don't want to cook one night doesn't mean I don't want to eat well.

[divine]

Originally Posted by Kitten

That's very true here, completely different in the States. Obviously your burger places make a fortune but the healthy people eat take-out a lot too. Its an experience not just convenience. Wish it was like that here, then there might be more call for opening such places and keeping them going. I'd certainly be prepared to pay more for good quality convenience food - we don't really eat take away stuff like burgers and kebabs and stuff because you just know the quality is going to be crap in 95% of places. Just because I don't want to cook one night doesn't mean I don't want to eat well.

Very true but what needs to be considered is the volume of people who will be like that. Many takeaways thrive on business from drunk people at weekends for example. It'd be harder to make ends meet on a customer base of people popping in once or twice a month in comparison.

(I'm not trying to piss on your chips or anything AH, just trying to emphasise that in a market like fast food I think the most careful consideration needs to go into the viability of the idea rather than how to run the business to start with. You have to ask why no one else has done it already? Who would be the target market? Would they be big enough? Enough regular business? Could you really provide good quality produce at even remotely competitive prices?)

[Kitten]

Oh absolutely. Like you say, research is key!

[Glaucus]

I understand divine as I said this wouldn't be something I would do without research I would want every single thing researched before even going to a bank or registering.

I think people over estimate cost of home made stuff from wholesale. Probably talking 40-50p per burger using wholesale price charts.

[kaiowas]

I guess this is also dependant on the type of takeaway you're looking at. A highstreet place reliant on passing trade would be more dependant on location rather than the quality of the food. If most of your trade is home delivery then quality/price become the dominant factors.

[lostkat]

Originally Posted by AcidHell2

I understand divine as I said this wouldn't be something I would do without research I would want every single thing researched before even going to a bank or registering.

I think people over estimate cost of home made stuff from wholesale. Probably talking 40-50p per burger using wholesale price charts.

Don't forget to factor in labour to make it too. You couldn't roll up at 5pm, sling the burgers on the grill from the freezer and open shop. Your staff would need to do some extra hours for prep.

Just making sure you've considered it, that's all. Sounds like a great idea and could be a very fulfilling little business if it works

[divine]

I think actual food costs would be one of, if not the smallest component of per item cost unless you were shifting a LOT of food.

[Glaucus]

Originally Posted by divine

I think actual food costs would be one of, if not the smallest component of per item cost unless you were shifting a LOT of food.

compared to buildings and rates yep, but those costs are the same as other places.

Originally Posted by lostkat

Don't forget to factor in labour to make it too. You couldn't roll up at 5pm, sling the burgers on the grill from the freezer and open shop. Your staff would need to do some extra hours for prep.

yep already thought of that. and I think most prep could be done at quite times and more importantly I would do the extra hours in the mourning. Big batches could be made and refrigerated or frozen.

[Desmo]

Originally Posted by lostkat

Your staff would need to do some extra hours for prep.

He's running his own small business....that's the sort of stuff you have to do yourself

Unless it really picks up and you do really well.....kiss goodbye to holidays