The face of the high street is changing. Many of the retail units that we now rent out to businesses, here at Boxpod, are being used as cafés and restaurants as we see changes in the way that the general public engages with business. With the rise of online shopping and changes in retail, the public is looking for more experiences on the high street – and this often comes in a café or restaurant.
The increasing number of people working from home – or at least working closer to home – has also seen increases in the number of people looking to work or visit local cafés or restaurants.
Opening your own café or restaurant is possibly not as easy as it might seem to be. It is hard work and takes a great degree of skill and self-control, but an important part of ensuring that it is successful is making sure that your café or restaurant is also in the right location.
According to a survey carried out by Payment Sense, three-quarters of us eat out at least once a month – with an average of 42 times each year. The research also shows that location is an important or very important factor when choosing a restaurant to visit for 66% of those who were questioned – compared to drink prices (51%) and the cuisine type (69%).
With this in mind, we will discuss in this article some of the factors that you should be considering when you are thinking about renting a retail unit to open up a new café or restaurant.
Consider Your Target Demographic
It is important that your restaurant suits the area where you are located in. You will find it very difficult, for example, to open an upmarket, trendy restaurant in an industrial estate and likewise, if you are considering opening a greasy spoon café, for example, you should consider opening it somewhere close to a transport hub or where there are plenty of workers.
You should consider your target demographic and then carry out extensive research into the area before you choose where to locate your restaurant or café. Look at other businesses in the area, the demographic of people that are walking around the area, and nearby attractions, workplaces, and transport hubs.
Check the Access To and Around the Property
You need to ensure that your customers are able to get to your commercial property. If you think that most of them will be driving, ensure that you have parking facilities, or if you are hoping to get people who are using public transport, check that it is close to a station or bus stop. You might want to consider installing somewhere for customers to leave their bikes securely, or if you are looking to attract lots of local business on foot, you might not need to worry about any of this.
You should also consider the unit’s accessibility for people with mobility issues. If you are hoping to attract mainly elderly customers, it would be useful for you to be located on the ground floor, for example, perhaps with a limited number of steps. You should think about how people in wheelchairs would be able to visit or move around as well.
Another thing to consider when it comes to access is that you will probably need to receive deliveries of stock and will need access for the delivery vehicles.
Look at Your Competition in the Area
It is important for anyone who is looking to open a business to check the competition in the area where you are thinking of moving to. If there are no other restaurants in the area, it could be because there is a gap in the market, but it could also mean that it is a terrible place to have a café! Check the area out to decide which one of these it might be.
If, however, there are already other similar businesses in the area, it could be that this is the ideal area for you to set up. You should, however, bear in mind that it might not be a good idea to open a business that is exactly the same as another as this could backfire on you. It can be difficult to win customers and lure them away from another establishment, and creating a local rival is not necessarily the best idea.
You should do some research into the previous owner of the commercial property. Take a look at what they were doing, how well they did – and why they ended up leaving the property.
Be Visible
One of the keys to the success of a café or restaurant is about having visibility. The Payment Sense research has found that 38% of customers choose a restaurant having walked past it, and this shows just how important visibility is.
It is worth spending a little more of your budget on a commercial property that is in a place with good footfall, somewhere that has a buzz, or perhaps that is somewhere popular with tourists.
You should also remember that today, visibility does not only refer to your location, but it also refers to your online presence. Ensuring that you have registered to be on Google Maps, for example, is essential to ensuring that your customers find you.
Final Thoughts
If you are thinking about opening a café or restaurant, you potentially have a very good business in a market that is currently thriving in the UK. It is essential, however, that you open it in the right place. Ensuring that you are in the best location for your particular establishment is the key and researching properly and knowing what you want is the best way to make sure that you are in the right area for you.
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