Opening a Bar

The inspiration maybe whatever, but owning and running a bar takes more than what it looks like. A bar is a place that offers, alcohol, music, entertainment, and a romantic ambiance. Catering to all these categories at one single time is not a cake walk. The first thing while setting up a bar is having a plan.

There is nothing in this world that works without a plan. Hence, planning is essential. Planning means chalking what your expectations are and what your resources are. Resources are always limited and expectations are unlimited, reconciling the two, effectively is where the problem arises.

Business Plan: Business plan will lay out what will be the core business and the design of generic business.

Market Research: There is nothing innovative about opening a bar. There are millions of market players. A market research will make you aware of that. Point is not to get discouraged, but to be in high spirits (pun intended). It's to present your idea in a way that appeals to all, and that's innovation!

Budgeting: As mentioned earlier, resources are limited. Hence, draw out your budget well and avoid frivolous expenses. The right way of making a budget is knowing 'exactly what you want'.

Location: While selecting a location pick a place which will generate a lucrative business. For this, understanding the demographics of the city or town will help you greatly.

Finding an Attorney: Selling alcohol requires licenses, so a well experienced attorney will help you out in acquiring them.

Once all these items on the agenda are fixed, proceeding with the theme of the bar will be easier. A theme is essentially a guide to tapping your market. For instance a sports bar will get majority of college crowd and men.

A lounge will get up-market people, usually to relax after business hours and so on. Hence, you also need to consider a thematic approach in 'the plan', so speed up your work.

The chic wine deserves to be treated with royalty, elegance and respect. Older the wine, better the wine and even better is the price it will fetch you. Wine lovers know that wine has to be stored well. There are three things that go into storing wine. First is for short haul, second for long term aging and third for storing opened wines.

Hence, having cellars and temperature control is of high importance. A wine bar will demand an ambiance as uber as the wine. Have a complete wooden décor matched with leather sofas and couches. Indirect lighting will set a mellow mood, encouraging your customers to enjoy the drink even more.

If it is a sports bar it is a 'no-brainer' that the décor has to be sporty, lively and fun. Have game tables and bar stools. Beer is the alcoholic beverage that's must for a sports bar. Store beer, as per the teams that would be playing. For example, if Liverpool is playing, stock up with Carlsberg.

This will attract more customers and keep them there till the match gets over. Decorate your walls with photographs and rare posters of football teams, rugby teams and soccer teams.

A restaurant bar is a family bar, where you are likely to get kids too. Thus, there has to be ample space. Do not clutter up the spaces with unnecessary décor items. The bar area can have bar stools, which will be high for children's height, so that it works well.

The dinnerware and the glassware has to match. You will need to have commercial refrigerators and full-fledged operative kitchens, with ovens, grills, and beverage equipment.

Opening any type of bar, will require attention to details like quality of food that you are serving, and the alcohol too. Every customer, who walks-in through the door is crucial to you. Delivering service with satisfaction will help your bar business to establish a customer base.