Writing a bar business plan is no child's game—you had to have a specific plan for everything from the bar design to your operations and financial statements or capacity. Do you want to open a bar in the future? These few tips will help you achieve that dream:
1. Create Your Vision and Write It Down
First, think about what kind of bar you want to open and its theme. Do you want to launch a pub reminiscent of an '80s version of your hometown where the floors are black and white and old disco lights are hanging by the ceiling? Are you a collector of antiques and want to open a vertically challenged bar where everything you own can be on full display? Do you have a lot of wine connoisseurs as friends and envisioned yourself catering to these people by opening a wine bar? You should have a definite company plan as to how you want to brand your business.
Second, determine the structure of the business whether you are doing this as the sole proprietor or if you are in a partnership. Lastly, know your market size. Is your business going to do well in the future? Do you see potential growth and profit in the next coming years? Being aware of your benefits by taking advantage of the market size will help your business. Which brings us to the next step…
2. Know Your Clientele
Your clientele is the most crucial point of your business. Who are your target customers? College students? Sportsman? Old people? Or high-flying patrons? Make it a point to research your target customers by looking into demography, age, gender, education, status, and income as these factors will help you plan your concept for the bar. Look into their lifestyles and know what you could offer them so that they will come to your bar.
3. Examine the Competition
Look out for all the business competitors that you will vie with when you start your business. How do you get the edge above the rest? You can go visit a bar and experience the service firsthand. Let's say you went to a night club and you see that even though that certain bar has the advantage of having the biggest dancefloor, they are rated badly because their waitresses took a long time to serve their drinks. These things are what you want to avoid when your business is up and running, so seeing how your competitor does will guarantee you that you can do better. But if you do not have the time to do this personally, you can survey by hiring a marketing specialist and let him roam around the nearest establishments to conduct the study.
4. Get the Papers
Before anything else is done, even if you had the location and products ready, if you don't have the necessary papers done to open your business, you are bound to close down even before you officially opened. Don't neglect this part—ever. Acquire simple licenses like the license, food license if you are including food in your menu, safety certificates, contract of the lease if you are renting the place and tax clearances to show that you are doing legitimate business.