You’ve come to the right place to create your fast food business plan.
We have helped over 100,000 entrepreneurs and business owners create business plans and many have used them to start or grow their fast food businesses.
Below are links to each section of a fast food restaurant business plan sample:
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A fast food business plan is a plan to start and/or grow your fast food restaurant. Among other things, it outlines your business concept, identifies your target customers, presents your marketing plan and details your financial projections.
There are many types of fast food businesses. The most common fast food restaurants serve hamburgers, fries, and soft drinks. Other common fast food establishments serve chicken, Chinese food, Mexican food, and pizza. There is a recent trend in fast food restaurants serving healthier options such as smoothies, wraps, sandwiches, and salads. A fast food restaurant can be centered around any food genre that is able to be prepared fast and in large quantities to serve multiple customers daily.
The primary source of revenue for a fast food restaurant are the food and drink items sold at the establishment.
The key expenses are the costs to source the ingredients for the menu items, kitchen equipment and supplies, overhead expenses for the staff and rent, and any marketing costs the restaurant chooses to partake in.
A franchise fast food restaurant is a business that is owned and operated by someone who has a contract with a larger company. That company provides the products, training, and marketing for the smaller business. A non-franchise fast food restaurant is a business that is independently owned and operated.
Franchise fast-food restaurants have a set of guidelines and standards to which they must adhere in order to use the franchise name. Non-franchise fast food restaurants do not have these guidelines and can vary greatly in terms of quality, cleanliness, and customer service.
Fast food businesses are most likely to receive funding from banks. Typically you will find a local bank and present your business plan to them. Another option for a fast food business is to obtain a small business loan. SBA loans are a popular option as they offer longer loan terms with lower interest rates. Outside investors, crowdfunding, and/or friends or family are other typical funding options. This is true for a fast casual restaurant business plan or a takeout restaurant business plan.
Starting a fast food restaurant can be an exciting endeavor. Having a clear roadmap of the steps to start a successful fast food business will help you stay focused on your goals and get started faster.
1. Write A Fast Food Business Plan - The first step in starting a business is to create a detailed fast food business plan that outlines all aspects of the venture. This should include market research on the fast food industry and potential target market size, information on your fast food menu, marketing strategy, pricing strategy and a detailed financial forecast.
2. Choose Your Legal Structure - It's important to select an appropriate legal entity for your fast food business. This could be a limited liability company (LLC), corporation, partnership, or sole proprietorship. Each type has its own benefits and drawbacks so it’s important to do research and choose wisely so that your fast food business is in compliance with local laws.
3. Register Your Fast Food Restaurant - Once you have chosen a legal structure, the next step is to register your fast food business with the government or state where you’re operating from. This includes obtaining licenses and permits as required by federal, state, and local laws.
4. Identify Financing Options - It’s likely that you’ll need some capital to start your fast food business, so take some time to identify what financing options are available such as bank loans, investor funding, grants, or crowdfunding platforms.
5. Choose a Location - Whether you plan on operating out of a physical location or not, you should always have an idea of where you’ll be based should it become necessary in the future as well as what kind of space would be suitable for your operations.
6. Hire Employees - There are several ways to find qualified employees including job boards like LinkedIn or Indeed as well as hiring agencies if needed – depending on what type of employees you need it might also be more effective to reach out directly through networking events.
7. Acquire Necessary Fast Food Equipment & Supplies - In order to start your fast food business, you'll need to purchase all of the necessary equipment and supplies to run a successful operation.
8. Market & Promote Your Business - Once you have all the necessary pieces in place, it’s time to start promoting and marketing your fast food business. Marketing efforts includes creating a website, utilizing social media platforms like Facebook or Twitter, and having an effective Search Engine Optimization (SEO) strategy. You should also consider traditional marketing techniques such as radio or print advertising to reach your target audience.
You can download our free fast food business plan template PDF here. This is a sample fast food business plan template you can use in PDF format.