In today’s world, celebrities are not just limited to the profession, but a substantial number have become successful entrepreneurs in diverse fields, starting from having their own clothing line to owning a restaurant.
Let us elaborate on five celebrity turned-entrepreneurs, who own food joints.
- Robert De Niro has been a part of the food industry for quite some time now. He is an entrepreneur who owns two food franchises that have a global presence. Nobu, a luxurious sushi restaurant estimated to be worth $250 million spread across 24 locations across the world. Robert takes away 30% of the profits. He also owns Ago, an Italian cafe with a presence in different states in America.
- Sandra Bullock is one of the highest paid Hollywood celebrities and surprisingly has inclinations towards business and entrepreneurship. She currently owns a restaurant and a bakery in Austin, Texas. The restaurant called Bess Bistro serves regular high-quality food at a reasonable price. She also owns Walton’s Fancy and Staple, a bakery which also doubles up like a flower shop.
- Grammy Award winner, Ludacris, is the founder and owner of Chicken-n-Beer. The restaurant provides customized cuisines and is present in the Hartfield-Jackson International Airport in South Atlanta.
- Hugh Jackman is an active philanthropist and his jump into the food industry is purely based on inspiration he received from the story of a poor farmer in Ethiopia back in 1999. Laughing Man Coffee is based in New York acquires its coffee and other essentials from farmers belonging from poverty-struck countries to help them afford a decent standard of living. The profits from the coffee shop go into the Laughing Man Coffee Foundation which is based on assisting with education, social development, and grants to social entrepreneurs globally.
- Hollywood action-movie hero, Mark Wahlberg, along with his brother, came up with Wahlbergers, a family-run restaurant which has been prospering since 2015. The burger store serves customized burgers depending on the customer and also their signature burgers. The duo launched the Walhburger Reality Show that skyrocketed their popularity. Currently, they are present in 150 locations across the globe. Mark believes it is a great opportunity to spend time with family and pass on this business to children.
In any good restaurant, there will be beverages to sample as well. Some people have a hard time swallowing liquids and it is important to mention SimplyThick that focuses on manufacturing the best quality liquid thickeners. The founder, John Holahan, came up with this business plan while he was pursuing his MBA from Washington Univerisity. The focus is on consumers who have swallowing problems. There is a lot of food and drink out there to sample, and everyone should be able to have the chance to savor it in their favorite restaurant.
Planning for a restaurant can be a hectic job considering the risk involved. There are innumerous factors that come into play while establishing a restaurant. Some important parameters to be kept in mind are as follow:
- The first important thing before starting out with the genre of the restaurant is to find the perfect place of the restaurant and an in-depth knowledge of the people residing in the vicinity. Finding a strategic point in the city for establishing the restaurant can be tricky as there needs to be a compromise between the cost and the prime location.
- Next, come the cuisine and the theme of the restaurant. These are purely based on the preferences of the people living around. The theme should be based on the target audience. It can be very specific if the restaurant focuses on particular cuisines or have a limited target audience and can also be a general themed restaurant providing regular food for people from all walks of life.
- It is important to maintain high standards of excellence at all times from the chefs, hence they should be handpicked depending on the genre of food they specialize in. It is equally important to hire staff with experience and extensive knowledge of dealing with any type of customer and making it a mission to make everyone who comes in feel better irrespective of the scenario.
- Cost overheads are issues that fall into place with time in case the food joint is a hit and helps you reap profits from the initial investment.
If you live in or near a city, you have no problems finding places to eat. Choose a few you haven’t tried yet and they just might become your favorites. Bon appétit.