My mom wants to open a chicken cafe (long)

[xxThe_Lebowskixx]

sounds horrible

[daryn]

why can't the name be mentioned?

[___SK___]

He doesnt want anyone to steal his idea?

[kylephilly]

Restaurants fail, they're lousy investments. Unless you have some unique angle and a passion for the business I don't see how it could be successful.

On the upside, people in NY spend tons of money on food (in NYC), so who knows.

[daryn]

[ QUOTE ]
He doesnt want anyone to steal his idea?

[/ QUOTE ]

the idea of opening a franchise? loooool

i was thinking of opening up a subway, OH [censored], FORGET I SAID THAT.

[ozdg3nr8]

i have been in the food retail industry for 10 years. my family has owned dozens of fast food stores and it is getting harder every single year to do business. although i am in australia i would think it is much the same as usa.
DO NOT BE A FRANCHISEE! DO NOT BE A FRANCHISEE!
the absolute best you can hope for is to buy yourself a job when buying into a franchise system. you will not get rich and at worst you will go broke and it seems like from your post this will probably happen.
everyone in the 9-5 business world looks at us small business operators and says to themselves, [censored] theyre doing alright, [censored] how hard can it be to do that, i have a degree, im smarter than them i can do it better. well no, you do not understand how hard it is to operate a small business. our family works 7 days a week, 70+ hours a week every year and sure we do very well out of it, but its [censored] hard and you are doomed to fail if you do not realise how hard it is.
i have said this to many people who think they can do it, most have failed.

[daryn]

i don't think it's really a newsflash that most small business owners fail

[4_2_it]

Good luck adapting to poverty.

[donkeylove]

I am not a New Yorker and know nothing of the restaurant business but just happened to do a google search for a good restaurant in the theater district yesterday since I am coming into town. I stumbled upon a NY city guide where NY'ers rated their favorite places in the theater district.The rankings were for 2004. I found some nice sounding choices and then went to look for their websites. Over half of the places were no longer in business despite being local favorites. I know NY restaurants change names a lot, and that could account for some of what appeared to be closed establishments, but I came away with the impression that must be one tough business in NY when your a favorite and still can't make it in the long run.

[solids]

This sounds like a really bad idea. First off, how does she know there's a market for this chain? Has she done any market analysis or research, or is she just going on a hunch?

Investing your life saving in a restaurant is crazy, especially for someone who knows next to nothing about the industry. 70% fail within their first two years of business. Tell her to invest in something that is much less risky.