When you are opening a virtual hotel, you must rent a kitchen for preparing the meals and packaging them for delivery. You can choose to give your commercial kitchen shared space with other ghost restaurants. However, if you want to have a storefront for customers to pick their orders, you should rent your space.
Opening a restaurant is a risky endeavour. Statistics show that up to 60% of new hotels close within their first five years. Does that mean you should not open a restaurant? Instead of opening a brick-and-mortar hotel, you can open a virtual restaurant, which is affordable and reduces risks associated with opening the business.
A virtual restaurant focuses on third-party delivery services and online ordering services, reducing the overhead costs related to dining-in and hospitality. With the food delivery sales projected to rise annually by 20%, virtual restaurants have huge potential. Besides, they are becoming a staple in large cities around the world. For weddings, anniversaries, company parties, banquets, or any other type of formal or casual dinner event, adding our patterned table runner over a solid colored or patterned tablecloth really adds to the overall look and style.
Here are a few things to consider before venturing into the virtual restaurant business.
Create a Plan and Business Concept
Online restaurants use mobile apps and websites to post their menus. Customers can place the order, pay for the food and wait for delivery. To ensure the ordering process runs smoothly, virtual restaurant owners need a solid business plan. It will assist in the planning and market analysis. It would be best to determine your business’s viability by analysing your area’s demand and your competitors. You should also determine the delivery service to use and the cost implications.
Pick a Niche
When deciding the type of food to offer in your virtual restaurant, you should consider the market. Is there a market gap for you to exploit to increase your chances of success? You can choose to cook and deliver to students, busy professionals or seniors. You can also prepare speciality dishes for vegans or vegetarians. Picking a niche also involves analysing demand in the area and the competition. For instance, if a popular virtual restaurant delivers pizza, it may be wise to find another location with less competition. Alternatively, you can offer unique cuisine and carve out a market share for your virtual restaurant. You can also pick an ideal market by offering services when other restaurants are closed. If your area lacks a late-night delivery option, you can offer late-night eats for various customers.
Market and Build Your Brand
Without a strong online presence, your virtual restaurant is a non-starter. All your sales depend on your online marketing efforts and social media presence. Therefore, you need to invest in your website and build a solid online presence. Develop an attention-grabbing logo, an attractive menu and create a user-friendly website. You should also link your website to social media platforms and use high-quality content to attract customers to your virtual restaurant. The major challenge of delivery-only hotels is building a clientele. Creating a website and regular social media posts may not achieve much; you need to invest in rigorous marketing to boost visibility. Use adverts, events and social media campaigns to increase your online orders. Engaging your audience and prompt service will also scale your business.
Find a Commercial Kitchen
When choosing a kitchen space, ensure it is close to the delivery areas to ensure the food remains fresh and tasty. If you can find a kitchen space with kitchen equipment, it will save you the additional cost of leasing or buying kitchen items. Occupyd offers a selection of kitchen spaces with flexible terms and favourable conditions for start-up businesses.
Find the Best Service Providers
Virtual restaurants require supplies to deliver ingredients and a food delivery service. When starting, use essential ingredients and simple recipes that you can prepare in minutes. It is also prudent to utilise locally available ingredients. Therefore, you should look for local suppliers for fresh ingredients. Delivery is the cornerstone of your virtual restaurant, and you should find a reliable service provider with favourable rates. If you can optimise the delivery costs, your prices will attract more customers.
Opening a virtual restaurant is the easiest way to own an eatery. Besides, renting a kitchen space reduces expenses on labour and dining space. However, you need to put together all the aspects above to increase your chances of success.