The takeout and fast food industry in South Africa is booming, with new and exciting ideas popping up on an almost daily basis (vegan Gatsby, anyone?). This means that starting your own fast food business can become highly lucrative, but you will need the right knowledge, location, and – most importantly – restaurant equipment for the job.
When you are choosing your restaurant equipment be sure to include food display warmers to showcase your delicious wares. This will entice people to choose your fast food restaurant over others. Also, be sure to choose a location that will gain a lot of foot traffic from hungry people needing a quick and tasty snack. Excited to start your own fast food business? Below we give you some top tips.
Don’t Be Afraid To Start Small
While it is exciting to “think big”, you should not aim to start out as a large business. Starting out small, such as having a small sandwich shop or bakery selling goods from food display warmers will allow you to see how popular your offerings are and whether your fast food business will become a success.
You could also start off doing your market research by selling food at markets. Markets are highly popular in today’s times, with more and more people enjoying spending time trying the different foods on offer. By testing the market, you will be able to form a better business plan, helping you to secure your loan or investment.
Perfect Your Plan
The first step to starting any business is to create a business plan. It will help you to map out the specifics of your business and will also show any lenders and investors how you intend to make money in order to repay their investment. You will need to consider the startup and ongoing costs, the types of restaurant equipment you will need, as well as who your target market is.
Some of the ongoing expenses for a fast food restaurant include salaries for your employees, maintenance of equipment, monthly rent, ingredient cost, and utilities. Your target market will likely be younger people and working people who do not have time to cook but who still want something delicious and hearty for their meals.
Look At Location
Location is an important factor keep in mind, especially for a fast food business. You will need to look for a location that has plenty of foot traffic and that is within walking distance of at last one office or office block. Be sure to choose a space that has high visibility, where you can use food display warmers to showcase your food in the windows.
Your location should have plenty of space for your busiest times, and if you would like seating, there should be floor space for this too. However, many people who purchase fast food will be taking it back to their homes or offices to eat, so seating is not essential. Be sure that you can add your branding to the location in order to attract the attention of your customers.
All About Branding
An important part of starting any fast food business is to think carefully about your branding and message. Your branding will tie into who your target market is, so be sure it correlates to this. Your brand should speak to your audience and should encourage people to try out your wares. A logo and carefully chosen colours can go a long way to helping you stand out from the crowd.
Once you have chosen your brand, you can move onto using it on your catering equipment and your packaging. This will help to make you a more memorable establishment and will help to boost your business too. Fast food branding does not need to be as elaborate as an established restaurant, but it should be carefully thought out and eye-catching.
Make A Magnificent Menu
Of course, one of the most important parts of building your fast food business is to create a delicious menu to offer your customers. You might decide to offer freshly baked pies and pastries for quick on-the-go meals, or you might have chafing dishes full of aromatic curry on offer.
Your menu should be quick and easy to make, as your customers will want it to be served quickly and without waiting for too long. If you are interested in opening your own fast food business and need the right restaurant equipment for the job, contact Caterwize today to find out how we can help you.
