Guides can help restaurant entrepreneurs find success

Nation's Restaurant News, Oct 3, 2005 by Michael Schrader

Foodservice attracts many business newcomers, and it has been growing at an average annual rate of 7.2 percent since 1970. However, hospitality researchers' studies indicate that about one-fourth of all new restaurants fail in their first year of operation, and about 60 percent go out of business in their first three years. We therefore are recommending the following books for novices who want to open or run a restaurant.

THE NEW RESTAURANT ENTREPRENEUR, Kep Sweeney, 213 pages, Chicago: Dearborn Trade Publishing, $22.95.

Kep Sweeney has worked as an investment banking analyst, a restaurateur and a chef. He has an MBA from the University of North Carolina and owns a restaurant advisory company.

In this book, which is his first, he addresses those who want to open a restaurant and need guidance. There are five sections: crafting a concept, forming a team, deciding on a location, raising capital and joining the industry.

This is a well-written and highly useful guide. The author makes his points clearly and succinctly and never condescends to the reader. The reader is told what he should know before he embarks on the complicated path of entrepreneurship, not overwhelmed by information but simply sent in the right direction.

What results is an introduction to the reality of owning a restaurant, seen with all its negative aspects. Sweeney candidly tells us that the landlord is not the entrepreneur's friend, nor are all potential investors amicably disposed toward him. The pros and cons of selecting investors, we are told, must be weighed carefully.

This book tells readers what every entrepreneur should know. It is a must read for first-timers and others who want to increase their chances of success.

BREWING UP A BUSINESS, Sam Calagione, 256 pages, Hoboken, N.J.: John Wiley and Sons Inc., $24.95.

The author is the founder and owner of Dogfish Head, a craft brewery in Milton, Del., and Dogfish Head Brewings and Eats, a brewpub in Rehoboth Beach, Del. The U.S. Small Business Association named Calagione Businessman of the Year.

His first venture as an author tells how to become an entrepreneur. However, the approach and writing style are indirect and at times wordy. The verbiage can get in the way of his points.

However, lovers of beer will enjoy this read.

LIGHT THEIR FIRE, Susan M. Drake, Michelle Gulman and Sara M. Roberts, 252 pages, Chicago: Dearborn Trade Publishing, $24.95.

The co-authors, who are internal-marketing experts, teamed up to write this well-researched book. Here you will find case studies of internal-marketing successes and failures. When your employees are enthusiastic, your company will enjoy enhanced productivity, the authors inform us. Managers will learn much here.