Sanjeev Sanghera, Co-Founder and Managing Director of Döner Shack, explains why a unique concept is essential to the success of your restaurant franchise.
Creating a restaurant concept is one of the most important steps to opening a restaurant. It is what defines your brand and the unique experience you will offer your customers. There is a lot to think about when starting a new restaurant franchise, but a well-developed concept plan will help you effectively build and manage your business.
As someone who has been in the hospitality industry for more than 25 years, I have had a huge array of experiences that have both shaped and influenced the way I now operate restaurants, from the concept development through to the recruitment of staff and training. My one takeaway for anyone starting a new restaurant is to create a solid concept as this will become your primary tool for branding your restaurant with your ideal customer.
It has been my role as Managing Director to define Döner Shack’s concept and to ensure it is aligned across all aspects of our restaurant. When I refer to concept, I am talking about the foundation of our business which is the products we serve and how they are going to be considered in the new markets. This then allows our franchisees to deliver our brand effectively in every location, while streamlining operations, building brand equity and helping attain and retain customers.
Bringing together all the different aspects of a restaurant is a multifaceted process, so it is essential that you get it right in order to provide a cohesive and consistent experience for your customers. Your restaurant concept reflects your restaurant’s theme and identity, so every detail is important and a number of different factors need to be considered, including your vision, value proposition and points of difference, industry research and innovation, site and menu design, branding and marketing, management and financial modelling to name a few.
Restaurant concept planning takes time and investment and is one of the biggest challenges any restaurateur is faced with. It is therefore important to develop a concept that you are passionate about and one you are happy to put your valuable time, effort and money into. Get your concept right and you will be on your way to rave reviews, recommendations, and loyal customers. Get it wrong, with a menu that does not fit the vibe or is not good value for money, and would-be regulars will feel cheated and at worst never return.
It is not hard to run a restaurant franchise if you have a good creative concept. Everything starts and ends with that – from your location and target audience to the cuisine, vibe, menu, employees, branding, marketing, and customer experience. In a sense, the concept acts as the backbone around which your restaurant business operates and incorporates the vision, value and inspiration you have created. Competition is fierce in the hospitality industry, but if you know your products, the business and locations are equally great, the success factor comes down to how well you deliver that experience for the customer. And if you do that time and time again, you will have a prosperous franchise business.
