How to find the perfect location for your restaurant?

Whether you are starting a restaurant business or simply want to move to a new location to practice your profession, choosing a location marks the realization of your project. Congratulations to you! 

This is a crucial step that has a direct impact on the number of visitors to your establishment and on the profitability of your business, so it's best to be well informed beforehand. It seems that this article is just in time since it details all the parameters to find the perfect location for your restaurant. 

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Find the perfect location for your space 

The choice of location is an important decision. It plays a determining role in the success and profitability of your establishment. Here are 3 criteria, the "3 C's", that we recommend you pay attention to. 

The catchment area 

What is a catchment area? This refers to the geographical area from which a restaurant attracts its customers. This is generally divided into 3 zones. You should study the primary zone, where 80% of your customers come from, the secondary zone, where your attractiveness is not maximal, but where you continue to attract customers and the tertiary zone, to a lesser extent. Analyzing the catchment area of each of your location hypotheses will allow you to evaluate the best place to set up shop.

The basic rule is to set up in a place with sufficient traffic, near centers of interest such as a cinema, a shopping mall, a tourist site and within an attractive and dynamic city or district.

The clientele 

You are starting to look for a location or are actively interested in it, so everything suggests that the business plan stage and the identification of your target audience are behind you. Phew, that's a good thing!Socio-economic profile, age and consumer habits are valuable information. The choice of your location will not be the same whether you are targeting low-income households, executives on their lunch break or students. In the first case, you will be more inclined towards suburban areas, in the second towards business districts and in the third towards an area located near high schools and universities. The objective is to open your restaurant in the place most frequented by your target clientele .

The competition 

Before you start looking for your future location, take the time to study the competition in the area. On a map of the area, make a list of restaurants, then mark with a different color the establishments that may be in direct competition with yours: those targeting the same clientele, those serving a similar type of cuisine, those offering a similar price range. 

This will allow you to assess whether the competition is low, moderate or high and to make a decision on the location. 

During this research phase, never lose sight of your budget. There is no point in targeting extraordinary areas if your finances do not allow it or if it jeopardizes the viability of your project.  

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Select a space adapted to your needs

You have now identified the location in which you want to set up your business, all that remains is to find the rare pearl, the premises perfectly suited to your project. 

The layout of the place

‍Thelayout of the space also deserves some thought. With the enthusiasm of any restaurateur about to launch or just move, you've probably already imagined the plans for your future establishment. "The kitchen will be open to the reception area", "the tables will be this size", "I want the space to be bathed in light" or on the contrary "I want to have a hushed and intimate atmosphere", these thoughts probably haunt you day and night. Don't keep them to yourself, they will be very useful and will guide you towards the ideal space. During your research and visits, think about the distribution of the rooms. Kitchen, dining room, storage rooms, checkroom, administration and business management, can you find all these spaces in the location you have identified? 

If not, is it possible to make the necessary adjustments and, if so, at what cost? 

👉 To go further: how to arrange and design your restaurant?

The front

You have found the perfect premises, but you are worried about the front of your restaurant, which is the window that will make a customer decide whether or not to push the door of your establishment. What to do in this case? Start by putting a price tag on the facade, changing the window frames and adding a few decorative touches, then ask yourself if this investment is enough to make the facade attractive and to ensure that passers-by enter your restaurant.

The exteriors 

Consider the exterior of the space as well. Do you absolutely need a deck? If so, be sure to select properties with this type of facility or with the opportunity to build one. Also, make sure your customers have plenty of parking, especially if the space has little or no public transportation. 

Inspect the surroundings. Is the environment quiet and set back from traffic or, on the contrary, lively and close to a bus or subway stop? Are other businesses, a bike path, or a streetcar line on the agenda?

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Define the ideal size of your restaurant

Defining the ideal size of your restaurant will help you refine your search by eliminating small spaces that limit your capacity and places that are too big and not adapted to your objectives and, perhaps, out of budget. 

A surface adapted to your activity

The area of your future facility must be large enough to contain :

• a reception area that can accommodate the desired number of guests,
• a fully equipped kitchen,
• a cold room and a food storage area,
• toilets for the staff and others for the customers, mandatory if the number of places exceeds 50,
• a reception area for customers. 

In addition to this, there are of course all the specific needs you may have. We think, for example, of a terrace, a bar to make customers wait, order terminals, an area for the delivery of orders online, to take away or in click and collect. We also think of a space for an AI tray scanning solution, a special parking for a food truck animation, a space to install a piano or a stage, and you what will be the small detail that differentiates you from your competitors?

Calculation of the minimum area 

In the restaurant industry, the following ratios are frequently used to calculate the minimum area of a space:  

• 1 m2 to 2 m2 per place setting in the restaurant; 
• 1 m2 to 1.5 m2 per seat in the kitchen; 
• 0.50 m2 per space for annexes (sanitary facilities, changing rooms, customer reception area, administrative area, storage areas, etc.).

👉 To go further: supplies for your restaurant: the complete list

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Rent or buy your establishment

There are 4 options to get started in the restaurant business and find the location of your dreams. 

Renting a commercial space

Leasing a commercial space is the most common option for restaurateurs, as it is more flexible and accessible than buying. You're convinced it will be this space and no other. Location, budget, layout, area, it's a perfect match! The next step is to sign the commercial lease. This lease contract between you, the lessor, and the owner is for an average of 9 years. However, you will have the possibility to terminate it after 3 or 6 years.

This must include the following information:

• the rent,
• the amount of the indemnity, no door (right of entry into the premises if it was empty),
• the security deposit,
• the terms and conditions of termination,
• the assumption of responsibility for the work and improvements.

It's up to you to negotiate!

You can perfectly well take over a premises that was occupied for another activity during the course of a lease. In this case, you will have to buy a "right to the lease" from the tenant you are replacing.

Buying a commercial space

The purchase of a commercial space is more relevant for restaurant owners who have been in business for several years and have confirmed the viability and profitability of their restaurant project. These people, and you may be one of them, have a substantial budget and experience proving that they will be able to repay their loan, which will allow them to launch the acquisition of their future establishment with confidence. 

Buy a business for your restaurant

You can also take over an existing restaurant. In this case, you will have to buy the business from the operator. If the operator was a tenant, then you will have to acquire the "right to the lease" in order to be able to rent the premises yourself. This implies paying rents and an indemnity to the former operator. The advantage is that the clientele already exists and that you will have less work to do, the premises being already arranged for a restaurant or a bar.

👉 To go further: How to take over a restaurant in 7 steps?

Lease management for your restaurant

Lease management is the last of these 4 options. In exchange for a fee paid to the owner, the latter transfers the operation of his restaurant to you on a temporary basis. 

This solution will certainly appeal to beginners wishing to test their project and validate its relevance before committing to the rental or purchase of a premises or a business.

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Carrying out work in your future premises 

During the research phase or when visiting properties, the question of work will certainly arise. Are you planning to do any work or do you simply want to put down your tables, chairs and kitchen supplies instead of your suitcases as you would in an apartment? 

If you are open to the work, you will need to ensure that it meets the regulatory constraints applied to establishments open to the public (ERP). You will also have to comply with accessibility standards. 

In some cases, such as the installation of a terrace, the modification of the restaurant's frontage or the installation of a video surveillance system, it will be necessary to obtain an authorization from the local authorities.

👉 To go further: Everything you need to know about regulatory standards and constraints in the restaurant industry

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