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I have what I believe is GREAT Idea for a restaurant. I know that's one of the toughest businesses to make work, but I've never seen anything like my idea before and the way the US is headed I believe it to be a great idea.
The few people I have actually told my idea to thought it was actually a great idea and said if there was a place like that around here they'd eat there, BUT, I have no funds to start this business.
So does that mean my GREAT idea will never happen? And with my situation and age now, I'd probably never be able to do it.
Or do I find someone to listen to me and believe in my idea, that has the money to finance it and I take a smaller percentage?
And if that is what I do, how do you go about something like that? Do I go to banks, or just try and find rich people? lol. I honestly don't know how to go about it.
The first thing you should do is go to your state's Small Business Administration and ask for more information about how to start up a restaurant business (licensing, codes, business plan help, etc.). Here's the national website The U.S. Small Business Administration | SBA.gov (http://www.sba.gov/ - broken link)
Do you have a degree in Business? Some loan officers take that into consideration, or at least they did when my dad wanted to run his own restaurant. If you don't want to deal with loans, you could look for angel investors/venture capitalists. You will probably have to make a business plan, but if it looks promising then they might give you the capital to invest in it. Also, the SBA should be able to give you contact information of organizations which give people low-interest loans to start up a small business.
I currently live in a state which claims to be one of the best states for small businesses b/c they have a lot of access to information about funding, starting a business, etc. There are some states that are a bit harder for businesses. However, you can always contact your local SBA for some advice. Get a business plan together and start looking into options for funding. Starting a business can be a hassle, but if you truly believe in it then you will hopefully find a way.
Thank you much kattwoman.
I will look into that. I have my Bachelors in EE (which I still owe quite a bit on), so unfortunately no real business experience. I know I learned about business taking my Bachelors, but that wasn't my strong suit, I'm just good with electronics.
I'm just the man with ideas, and honesty I have tons of them for all sorts of things. I'm just not real business oriented so nothing ever comes of them. But this idea I feel I need to make happen, I feel it's just to good to ignore.
I was also wondering, if I did talk to someone willing to invest and tell them my idea. How do I make it to where they can't tell me they're not interested and then go and take my idea and build it anyways?
And still owing quite a bit on my school loan and not having good credit, I figured I would be declined for a SBL.
Oh yeah I should mention, I have a really hard time talking to people I don't know or asking for something. I almost passed out in Bachelors class when I had to stand up in front and give a speech.
Like I said I'm the quiet thinker that comes up with the ideas. So that right there probably hurts me the most trying to do this. But I'll try and do what I have to, to make this work.
Last edited by TravelingSilvers; 02-10-2011 at 07:40 PM..
Thank you much kattwoman.
I will look into that. I have my Bachelors in EE (which I still owe quite a bit on), so unfortunately no real business experience. I know I learned about business taking my Bachelors, but that wasn't my strong suit, I'm just good with electronics.
I'm just the man with ideas, and honesty I have tons of them for all sorts of things. I'm just not real business oriented so nothing ever comes of them. But this idea I feel I need to make happen, I feel it's just to good to ignore.
I was also wondering, if I did talk to someone willing to invest and tell them my idea. How do I make it to where they can't tell me they're not interested and then go and take my idea and build it anyways?
And still owing quite a bit on my school loan and not having good credit, I figured I would be declined for a SBL.
Oh yeah I should mention, I have a really hard time talking to people I don't know or asking for something. I almost passed out in Bachelors class when I had to stand up in front and give a speech.
Like I said I'm the quiet thinker that comes up with the ideas. So that right there probably hurts me the most trying to do this. But I'll try and do what I have to, to make this work.
I have a few friends like what you described: tons of ideas but they become nervous when it involves speaking to people they don't know. Do you have any friends who have a degree in business, marketing, etc? If so, you could team up with them and form a partnership. It has to be someone you trust, but it could help you in the long run.
As far as protecting your idea, I think you should talk to your local SBA about that. The SBA will probably know more about protecting your business idea (unless you know someone who is an intellectual property lawyer). Getting investors to invest in your company is always risky, but sometimes it's worth the reward.
Yeah I don't really have any friends like that. I barely have friends at all, I'm a very devoted family man that just doesn't hang out with people.
We about to move (hopefully) to a new area, so I'll have to wait and look into the SBA of the area we move to. Thanks again for that advice.
Yeah I don't really have any friends like that. I barely have friends at all, I'm a very devoted family man that just doesn't hang out with people.
We about to move (hopefully) to a new area, so I'll have to wait and look into the SBA of the area we move to. Thanks again for that advice.
Ah, okay. Well, once you move to the new area then I recommend contacting the SBA. They might be able to give you some more tips about angel investors, venture capitalists, etc. If you cannot locate the local SBA, then you can also try locating a business incubator. Sometimes business incubators will offer access to free programs or seminars for potential business owners. I went to one last year that discussed the basics of creating a business plan, types of funding, and the use of social media marketing (facebook, twitter, etc.).
I'm sorry, but you're in no better position to do something with this idea than anybody's name you could simply pull out of the phone book of a major city.
By your own posts, you've got:
1) Poor/no credit
2) Heavy debt
3) Trying to relocate to another state, which will already put you at a financial disadvantage to start a new business
4) No business experience
5) No restaurant experience
6) No working capital
7) No supervisory experience, staffing experience, inventory control, etc.
8) A personality not able to deal with speaking to strangers; ie, you aren't comfortable with "selling" yourself, which is half the process of selling your business idea (to potential backers) or your product to others (your retail customers).
9) From what you've presented, you haven't even done your basic due diligence regarding your idea/concept ... do you have any realistic idea what it would cost to implement this, to get your doors open, how much operating capital you'd need, what marketing/advertising it would require (cost?), etc.
10) Absent a cost analysis, have you projected what type of ROI and cash flow such a business could generate? Do you honestly think that the SBA or a bank is going to just lend you money/guarantee a loan because you're such a nice guy with a great idea? Do you think they'll loan you money for your concept where you aren't also investing capital in to the business?
11) Do you even have food handler's training or HAACP training, or any idea what the applicable practices are for safe food handling in general in a restaurant kitchen/food service? How about more advanced restaurant training for safe food practices which are typically required for managers/owners?
I'm not trying to offend you. I'm simply pointing out that you've got just about every possible new business disadvantage lined up on your side, and you're seeking investors without putting anything of yours at risk.
Try taking your business idea and looking at it from a potential investor's side, as if you're listening to you making a presentation about wanting to open this restaurant up ... What do you think their reaction is going to be? You're seeking 100% financing and operating capital from your investor(s), and if you're going to be working this business full time, what will you do for an income while the business is going together before it ever has a chance to make a profit? Are you going to be working full time somewhere else to support your family? How will that affect your ability to make this business work?
Sorry, but I've been presented hundreds of similar proposals through the years by people who had done a lot more to put together a presentation and a rationale to justify my investment ... and the first thing I look for is to see just how much they're willing to put in to the business. FWIW, I am a seasoned business owner/investor, and I've come up with some business ideas, too, that looked great as a concept to fulfil a demonstrated need in the marketplace, but when I asked myself the necessary questions and did a cost analysis, consulted with my account and lawyer and suppliers, researched my costs of retail (or productions) space, my labor/staffing costs, the business didn't look like it would make a reasonable ROI, let alone pay me for my time and effort ... I was literally setting myself up to invest a lot of money for the pleasure of having the business time committment and cash flow but nothing else. That's an easy decision to make, nope ... I'm not going to do it.
Try looking at your proposal through your EE's eyes/training. If I came to you with an idea for a new amplifier that was going to set the audio industry on it's ear, breathe new life into the entertainment music business ... would you be investing 100% of the capital needed to put my idea into production and marketing (if you had the money to invest)? You'd have a lot of questions that needed to be answered, wouldn't you? Do you have those answers for the business you propose now? Our concepts are similar in their impact ....
Again, you'll hear from folks on this forum who will tell you to "follow your dream" and "don't let the naysayers get your down". Few, if any, of them have ever put together a successful business from a new idea or concept. It takes hard work, time, and capital to get a product to market ... and your dream won't pay overhead or raw goods or labor or consumables or taxes in this, or any other, business. Not for one minute will your wonderful concept pay a rent payment unless it's turned into a viable business, I don't care how good it is. Another area I'll disagree with here is the function of the SBA ... they don't make loans, they guarantee loans made by others. Those others will not be lending you 100% of the money it will take to get your business up and running and operating capital, they expect you to make an investment in the business, too.
A restaurant is a business model with a high failure rate as an industry. Have you ever looked in to what the mistakes were that others have made to reach that performance? You don't honestly believe that they opened the doors thinking that they were going to be out of business, do you? and yet they failed .... many of them with a lot more knowledge about the restaurant biz then you've got.
I have something those people don't though.
My idea. lol.
I'll get working on a business plan and I bet when someone hears my idea they'll love it. May not be the first person but I guarantee it won't be many.
And I expected to hear from people like you. And yeah I have everything going against me, except my idea.
I'm sure you have been proposed good ideas or thought of them yourself, but you and who you talked to wasn't me.
But that's fine, I do appreciate the work you put into bringing me back down to earth.
But unfortunately it didn't work.
I'm that guy that has that idea that actually would make it.
This has been in the making for the past 2 years with ideas and thoughts always being added or taken away (if they don't work or seem impractical).
And you're right I haven't looked into what it would actually cost to start something like that. But I have everything else figured out about the business (ok well maybe not everything).
Also not sure how moving to a new state will put me at a financial disadvantage to start a new business. Explain that one to me? We will have the exact same income here as there (we work from the internet).
You also say "No supervisory experience, staffing experience, inventory control, etc"
Where did you get that? I never mentioned my work history. I have supervisory experience and inventory control experience and even customer service experience (even though I didn't care for it).
Also I may not be good with talking with people, but I could sell my idea if need be, hell it'd sell itself. I already have my Opening phrase that would seal the deal from the get go.
Like I said up above - I have a notebook that I've been filling full of ideas and concepts of my place for that past 2 years. So not sure where you got that from either.
But I will take your advice and opinion and think about it, and I'll look into what I need to do to figure out expenses of the business before I propose this idea to someone. It's just too good to pass up.
Maybe a few will pass it up, but others will see where the future of restaurants is headed and be the first on the bandwagon. I honestly have no worries about my idea.
Last edited by TravelingSilvers; 02-10-2011 at 09:49 PM..
Don't listen to the others, you don't need experience. What do they honestly expect you to do? Go out and work for a restaurant or something? Seriously. When I started my business I had zero business experience. All I had was my idea and I didn't even know how I was going to make that idea into a reality. However, I was determined to make the idea into a reality because I knew it was a good idea.
So I started doing research figuring out what I needed to learn and how to build the idea. Figured out what I needed to learn and got to work. Spent 6 months working on project, busting my a** spending day and night working on it. I launched the product and got, well, no customers. However, I did get my first customer a few days later and I must admit, its the best feeling ever. Its been all up hill from there. The occasional headaches here and there but you learn to resolve these issues. I got to admit though, when I got an e-mail from a law office asking me some questions I was sweating, but I resolved the issue. Most businesses fail in the first year but from what I've noticed is that people are slow to adopt new products, so you have to stay in the game for a long time to allow consumers to notice your product and try it. These businesses fail, not because their product sucks, but rather because consumers don't know about it!
As far as financing goes, I had no problem. I self financed the entire thing. However my business model has very low startup costs, basically web hosting and a domain name, less than 100 bucks. The rest is sweat equity! Personally I would suggest 100% self financing it. When you self finance it, you own 100% equity which means you make all the decisions and keep all the profit. Its the way to go.
Just pick up a second job and start saving. In the mean time, you can do your research on the food biz. From what I've seen, the success of a restaurant, especially a new one, highly depends on community vibe. In other words, the success depends on if your restaurant is, "the place to go." Its 75% marketing. Some people wonder why companies spend billions on marketing but the true fact is that marketing is EVERYTHING!
I have something those people don't though.
My idea. lol.
I'll get working on a business plan and I bet when someone hears my idea they'll love it. May not be the first person but I guarantee it won't be many.
And I expected to hear from people like you. And yeah I have everything going against me, except my idea.
I'm sure you have been proposed good ideas or thought of them yourself, but you and who you talked to wasn't me.
But that's fine, I do appreciate the work you put into bringing me back down to earth.
But unfortunately it didn't work.
(snip)
I'll look forward to your coming back and posting how your idea became a successful business that gives you a living income and an ROI for your investors. Good luck.
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