[sdnulty]

Hi,

I would like to open a vegan fast food outlet in my home city to offer an alternative to all the other fast food chains out there. I would love to hear from anyone who has had experience in sourcing funds, equipement, knowledge in general in opneing a fast food outlet. all ideas and comments welcome.

stephen

[Kaizen]

I've not got any experience (aside from being a vegetarian myself), but are you sure there is sufficient demand in your hometown for a specialist vegan resturant?

I'm sure you have but make sure you do lots of market research. Lots.

K

[TheBigIdea]

the vegan (more exact in my case= organic foods ) restaurant i know of sources some of its products from japan (eg - meatballs that're actually made of soy , you get the idea).

the green veggies they got from nearby certified organic based farms

they weren't exceptionally good at managing their day to day operations, but the atmosphere was soooo homey that it made the same people come over and over again. Hell, who doesn't want to eat healthy everyday when they can? drive over to that vegan restaurant and grab yourself a quick fix for a bit extra (that's where the premium pricing comes in, but it's tolerable) during your lunch break.

[sdnulty]

No i haven't done any market research yet. Any ideas how i might manage to do this? I am not exactly cash rich at the moment so anything i can do myself without a cost would be very much appreciated. the idea is not to have a restaurant/cafe, but a fast food outlet like Macdonalds, KFC, ect, but serving only vegan and raw foods. I would like it to serve the people on the move istead of the c'come in and sit down' customers. I feel that way i can keep my costs down and also start with a small commercial property to see if it works.

[Kaizen]

I wouldnt start in property. Get a cart type thing. If your product sells then scale it up - if not then you havent lost a whole lot of money (well not as much as you would have done had you bought/rented a property).

Well theres the old, "Stand with a clip board where you want to sell and ask people?"

And then more innovative things. You could start by posting a poll on this website asking people if they would be interested if a new vegan shop opened up on their street - would they go in or walk past? What are their impressions of vegans?

Ultimately this might not be a great idea. If you're looking for ideas, just remember that anytime anyone complains about a anything, or gets annoyed, there is an opportunity.

I'm not saying you can't make it work. Just that it won't be easy. So long as youre passionate and believe you can and will do it eventually then nothing can stop you.

But for gods sakes research it thoroughly! I wouldnt like to spend my time OR money on something if I wasn't sure it could work.

Good luck!

[fthom]

sounds like an interesting idea! I think you should keep away from calling is Vegan Fast Food or anything that actually implies Vegan...you should just call it something less specific then more people will be likely to try it. hope it works out...

[TylerBakerllc]

I like the idea a lot! To start with some free market research, go to Quantcast.com. If you surf around a little bit, you will get the idea of what they do. Click on the site names and you will get a pretty cool breakdown of that sites users.

Search other vegan sites and get a feel for what they are doing. Write down the names and then look them up on Quantcast. You can see what demographic similarities each site has... By default you will be looking at your target market!

With this info, you can tailor your location layout, website, etc. and develop a powerful marketing campaign. AS far as a location goes, I would stay around office buildings (maybe a space in the lobby of a building or something) for the professional crowd... Or in a trendy suburb were people can afford to eat healthy meals (it simply costs more to eat healthy, in most cases) on a regular basis. It would help insulate you a little bit from economy downturns and such because more affluent people tend to dine out more and are more conscious about what they eat (and can afford that lifestyle regularly).

I hope this helped. -Tyler

[TylerBakerllc]

I would stick to a more broad name as well... But emphasize your vegan offerings.

Some of us non-vegans tend to cringe at anything that says vegan. I would be more likely to try something if it didn't give me a soy patty image (in my head) from the start.

I'm just being honest, please don't take that as an insult! I hope it works out for you, start an updated thread soon and keep us posted on how things are going. I would like to know what happens of it.

-Tyler

[sdnulty]

Thanks for all your support guys. i agree, the name has to have vegan disguised. i was hoping to have a name that would not give away the vegan concept and entice non-vegans to enter knowing it was healthy. The menu would certainly show it as vegan, however the name is important. point taken. yes, market research i think is very important. i will spend some time researching this and taking notes on building up a consensus of demand. I currently live in the unhealthiest country in Europe so changing minds could prove a serious challenge.

I'm checking out Quantcast.com now Tyler. thanks.

[Kaizen]

Perhaps a better idea then would be healthy fast food? Or were you dead set on the vegan idea? By specialising in vegan food you may be limiting your market quite a bit. Just a thought.

You could definately make vegan your core business, but maybe source natural real health meat too - just as you wouldnt expect a meat based retailer like macdonalds to ignore the vegitarian crowd you shouldnt automatically exclude the meat eating one. Especially as they are in the majority!

[sdnulty]

the thing with the meat is that vegans would not eat there. no vegan would eat anywhere where meat was being handled never mind consume. i see your point though, but unfortunately the concept is to target vegans and bring a healthier option to our fast food market. there are many meat alternative that vegans eat and i'm afraid that will be my majority target market. hopefully it will be so tasty that meat eaters will come too. If the meat eater wanted meat, they have a variety of options already available. My niche will be vegans.

[Kaizen]

Fair enough, you seem to have thought a lot about it which is good!

I know Quorn has more protein, less calories, less fat and is cheaper than most meats. (i love the stuff) if you can make these points about your food there shouldnt be any stopping you. so long as it tastes nice!

[TylerBakerllc]

I like the vegan idea as I stated before. You have a chance to really set yourself apart... I would go the extra mile to ride this one out.

I am not even close to being a vegan, but you can't deny the potential. Entrepreneur.com has an article on healthy, organic foods being big in 2009.

If you get this off the ground, buckle your seatbelt... Cause if you have the right approach anything is possible.

[wa_success]

I like the idea. As a vegan myself I find it difficult to grab a quick bit in a hurry. Most of the time my only choices are Subway or Sushi (can't complain too much about sushi).

Good luck!

[brandmantra]

Good idea do hurry your set up.