Question:
I'm putting together a business
plan for a small sports bar. I was
wondering if anyone had any advice
for a small pub start-up? I will
be offering pub fare but the main
draw will be beer of course. Are
there any good sites or books out
there for small sports pub start-ups??
Answer:
- the cost of vents required for
deep fryers and grills is very very
high - some places don't invest
those $$ or select a location that
already has the required equipment.
Bite the bullet, people want wings
and french fries and decent burgers.
- be on-premises virtually all the
time. Your employees will rip you
off if you aren't.
- take the food seriously. Too many
places don't, and they tend to be
the ones that close. This is particularly
important if you want to be busy
anytime other than Super Bowl Sunday.
- listen to your customers. If they
want blue cheese for the wings but
you think its too expensive, you
still need to get blue cheese.
- don't try to be a sports bar if
you're not willing to make sure
every seat in the house has a great
view of a tv, and most of the bar
should be watching a tv that's bigger
and better than what they have at
home.
- Sponsoring adult softball teams/leagues
is the best way to stay busy through
the spring/summer. Open a patio
if at all possible.
- Get barstools that have backs
no backs=discomfort=going home earlier
and spending less than otherwise.
- be constantly on the lookout for
good new staff. Your opening night
team will be good because you'll
have the most time to find them
and they'll be excited to be part
of a new bar. It will go downhill
after that, especially if you're
in a small population center without
a lot of turnover
- Don't be too dark and dingy let
in some light and have some spots
where people can read the paper.
And supply those newspapers.
- organize things for customers
- a golf tournament, roadtrips
to sporting events, shuttles to
local sports events, whatever -
they all help build community and
keep people coming back.
I'm putting together a business
plan for a small sports bar. I was
wondering if anyone had any advice
for a small pub start-up?
I will be offering pubfare but the
main draw will be beer of course.
Are there any good sites or books
out there for small sports pub start-ups??
As you've
been told, FOOD is far more important
then most startups think. PAY
CLOSE attention to the quality and
variety of your menu. While burgers
and wings are fine, they quickly
become boring to anyone who visits
your establishment more then twice.
MIX IT UP,
do daily specials, repeat customer
promotions, etc. QUALITY QUALITY
QUALITY.
You didn't tell us where (regionally)
you were planning on opening, this
may get you more detailed suggestions
for your startup. Also, what
kind of floor plan are you planning
? (Stand Alone facility, strip
mall, Inside Mall, etc.) and what
kind of space are you considering
(3000 sq. ft small, 6000 sq.
ft Medium, 12 to 25K large ?).
I've opened 8 sports themed facilities
all over Arizona, each one had individual
nuances that made them successful.
A few general pieces of advice I
could offer would be as follows..:
1.) Make it a place that you
would enjoy visiting, but DON'T
make it your personal Living room.
(Example, place TV's where
they're comfortable to watch from
any seat in the house, but don't
INSIST that every TV show only the
games that you prefer, stock a healthy
inventory of libations, but don't
just promote Jaeger because it's
YOUR favorite). Remember, it's your
business,
but it's not your house. Accept
feedback, suggestions, and criticism
from your customers, for without
them you are closed.
2.) Promote teams other then
your locals.
In Arizona you have the SUNS, Cardinals,
Coyotes, and Diamond Backs. People
generally tend to quasi root for
the local teams (even if they won't
publicly admit it lol), so there
is very little need to promote them.
Try to additionally identify
your establishment as a fan base
for a non local team (or 2 if your
sq. ft is big enough), like the
Packers, Vikings, Raiders, Knicks,
Celtics, Yankees, Red Sox, Braves,
Wild, Islanders, Bruins, etc.
you get the idea). That
way you make your place a destination
for a fan base that may be neglected
in your market, since most will
always be promoting the local clubs.
My best luck out here has
been promoting the Packers, Vikings,
Celtics, Knicks, Wild, Islanders,
Braves, & A's. (Packer
fans are incredible, 75K people
in GreenBay, yet it seems like 1
Million Fans nation wide. lol)
3.) Subscribe to ALL the sporting
venues. A big
mistake I've seen others make is
to underestimate the value of a
complete sports programming subscription.
EVERYONE has FOOTBALL, MOST
have BASKETBALL & Hockey, SOME
have baseball, FEW HAVE GOLF, TENNIS,
etc. Make yourself standout,
if you position yourself in the
market as the ONE place that has
EVERY game, EVERY night in EVERY
sport imaginable (black out rules
apply), then you'll tend to get
the true sports enthusiasts into
your place. While you don't
have to show WORLD SOCCER on the
big screens every night, you may
find yourself in the unique position
to offer it, and there on out the
folks who requested it will always
think of your place as the place
to go. So subscribe to all
the sports packages you can to get
the out of venue games, and oddity
sports.
4.) BATHROOMS BATHROOMS BATHROOMS.
A H U
G E mistake that some startups make
is to ignore or skimp on the bathrooms
in general. Make them BIG,
CLEAN, and Interesting. Use the
BEST quality fixtures you can afford,
lots of sinks, matching decor to
the rest of the facility. While
this may seem kind of silly, bathrooms
tend to leave a LASTING impression
on your patrons (Especially the
women). If your rest rooms
are dirty, that will be the impression
of the entire facility regardless
of how clean and bright the rest
is.
Ok. I could go on and on, but along
with the other suggestions that
I've seen other folks make you should
have a pretty good capsule of information
to start putting together your business
plan. If you haven't already done
so, you may want to invest in a
business plan creation software
package to help you. I've
had the best luck with business
plan pro (2003 is the latest
that I've used).
If you have any specific questions
regarding your startup please don't
hesitate to email me directly (or
better yet post it here so that
others may benefit as well).
The Very Best of Luck to you on
your venture (You'll NEED
IT, it's a great biz, but not for
the feint of heart lol)
