The initial stages of your new business venture can feel daunting, with so many things to remember and big decisions to make. Whether you’re opening up a neighbourhood café with handmade sandwiches and cakes in your local area or are opening a new takeaway joint specialising in juicy burgers and loaded fries, start as you mean to go on by preparing in advance. From the corporate decisions all the way to takeaway food packaging supplies, we’ve pulled together a list of necessities to consider.

Create a brand identity

With so many different food businesses around us, standing out from the crowd is harder than ever. Establish what makes you different and focus your business plan around this selling point, enticing locals to give your new business a try. The style of your restaurant will determine your target market so base your decisions around this audience to achieve the most success when it comes to launch day.

Make the best use of your space

With a limited area to work with, maximise the space to get the most from your building. With dining space, kitchen area and storage space needing to be considered, decide on the best layout to create a natural flow throughout the place. In areas with a large footfall such as city centres or commuter routes, a larger dining space will be needed whereas businesses who primarily offer a takeaway service can utilise more preparation areas.

Comply with regulations

When selling food, additional health and safety measures are required due to the nature of the business. The regulations in every area differ slightly so check in with your local council to reduce the risk of any compliancy issues. Sorting these procedures early on is highly advised as the process can take a few months to complete and could potentially hold up the opening.

Build up a customer base

If you are new to an area, it can be tricky to reach the locals as they will already have their favourite food spots nearby. Advertising is a great way to let people know of your new offering and adding an incentive to pop by can go a long way, whether this be a discount code or special offer you are running. Utilise the power of the web by creating active social media accounts and a new website filled with imagery of your delicious foods, making time to interact with followers to build up those all important customer relationships.

Stock up on the essentials

Whether you need crockery and glasses for your dining space, a ninja foodi for cooking gammon, or just the takeaway packaging supplies for home deliveries or takeout’s, have all of the necessities on hand so you don’t find yourself caught short. For takeaways, we recommend looking into personalised packaging complete with your brand logo and name as this is great for enhancing your brand image. With consumers nowadays loving snapping pictures of their food to share on social media, get your brand name seen and become recognised in your local area.