Starting up a Hookah Bar

[Deus]

That's the beautiful thing about college towns. There is a constant flow of newcomers. Plus, hookah is very popular among the college aged crowd.

[aki]

hey guyz....!
can anyone tell me if i need to get any license to startup a sheesha lounge in a country like india....?

[aki]

hi...
hey guyz....can any1 tell me if i need to get a license to atart up a sheesha lounge in a country like india?

[The Idea Man]

Does anyone have any good sites for lists of licenses and regulations that would be involved in a hookah restaurant?

[Deus]

It varies from state to state. All I know is that in Illinois, there is a smoking ban indoors and you need a tobacco license to smoke indoors. But you cannot get a food, restaurant, or liquor license if you get a tobacco license.

[jcasny23]

hey deuce, looks like you are pretty knowledgeable in smoking hookah...

Currently i am in the process of opening a hookah bar in NY and i was wondering if we could contact each other. I would love to have you as part of my network as i begin this business. Most likely we will be able to help each other out.

email is jcasny@yahoo

[DBox]

Hey guys, I'm currently attending the University of Arkansas in fayetteville. If anyone is in the area and interested in working together to open a lounge PLEASE get in touch with me. I have the knowledge, skills, and passion to make this a success. If interested please reply here....i dont have ten posts yet so I cant post my email address lol.

[saran]

so what kind of licensing would you need?

Also would 7 in the state considered alot?

can u help me how to get licence to keep hooka centre?

[saran]

csn u help me how to get licence to keep hooka centre?

[aki]

sumone pls list up the licences needed to open up a hookah bar in india...rajasthan ( city of students )

[bennihan]

The hookah bar in my area is BYOB and makes some money just off of a cover fee. Think about that

[Ellery]

I too am interested in doing this. Where are you others located...perhaps if close we could do a joint thing. As long as it makes good money and has the right market (college towns are perfect) I think one will do great. Seeing that I'm a college student as well only helps with getting the word around! please help w/more comments...thanks!

just do it...

[johnmanniv]

Here is an idea that I have not seen on here yet. There seems to be a lot of people with the passion and drive to start a hookah bar but are lacking the startup funds to do so. Here is a way to start a hookah bar and keep you cost WAY down.

Find a local restaurant and approach them about starting a hookah bar inside their restaurant. It could be someone you know or just your favorite place to eat. Pitch it as a way to increase traffic through their restaurant with no risk for them. When I did it I set it up so that the restaurant owner kept the profits from the food and drink sold to the people that came in for hookah and I kept all of the profit made from selling the hookah. If you think about it no one goes to smoke hookah and doesn't at least order a drink. Because you are starting it in an already established business there is a little bit more safety and built in group of regulars that are already coming to eat. Also because of starting it in a restaurant you don't have to worry about buying kitchen equipment or seating. This keeps your start up cost down. Depending on the size of the restaurant I would recommend between 10 - 20 Hookahs to start off. Nice ones are about $100 each. You will have to choose which companies to buy your shisha from as well as how many of their flavors you would like to offer. This is one area that you can not cut costs in. You have t buy the best if you want any chance of making it. Starbuzz is a great company to buy. They have a large selection of flavors and are among the highest quality shisha companies out there. Other things to think about that you will need. Hoses (they wear out over time), Foil, extra Bowls, Mouthpieces, Hookah cleaning products (BLING works great), and Tongs. IF you take care of your Hookah pipes they will last longer and make you more money.
As previously stared in this thread the feel or Vibe of a hookah bar plays a big part in getting people to come back on a regular basis. A few things that I've noticed that help are low light levels, Some sort of music going either live or just over speakers, and interesting decor. It does not have to be middle eastern but it can not be boring.
A few way to help promote your business.... Either put on shows with live bands at your location or if that's not an option sponsor a local show in another venue. Usually a band or a venue will allow you to sponsor a show simply by covering the cost of printing flyers. Become a private club and have membership cards. If customers feel like they are a part of some they are more likely to come back. This also work as a loophole to get around smoking bans in many areas. Host a Hookah sampling event. For these you can charge a cover charge and have several hookahs going allowing people to try out different flavors.
Other ways to drive sales. Some foods or drinks go great with certain flavors or shisha. You can either put that information on your menu or make sure that whomever is serving your customer knows about it. My location is walking distance from a college campus. I offer a discount for people that bring their school IDs with them. There are countless things that you can do to drive your sales be bold and find out what works for you in your area.

Good luck

[knifely]

There are no hookah bars in Texas. Anyone out there thinking the same way i'm thinking?

Theres no hookha bars in ALL of TEXAS?? I doubt that

On the other hand, those conservatives probly would have more of a problem with the whole arabic tradition and it wouldn't sell well... Just my though

[LSnyder]

Ok, now I realize that I am not one of you young, budding entrepreneur's (I'm turning 40 this month but still very immature!) but I do know what a hookah is.
Maybe I'm outdated but i know that tobacco was not the original intent for a hookah yet I am not understanding the concept of paying to go somewhere to smoke.
Will someone please enlighten me on this subject?