Opening a Fast Casual or Retail Food Business

If you have an idea for the next Chipotle, Shake Shack, or even Dean & DeLuca, this course will help you evaluate and develop your idea into a real business! From concept and niche marketing to controlling costs and making money, food marketing and management experts Stephen Zagor and Tara Berman will teach you exactly how to navigate all the pitfalls of opening your own business, including: - Developing an overall business plan - Understanding the self-serve/fast casual model - Finding a location and understanding the lease - Designing the business - Figuring out money and budgeting: Financial benchmarks - Controlling revenue and inventory - Finding investors - Hiring the best and training for service - Advertising and promotion - Selling psychology - Knowing the cycle of service for repeat business. Stephen Zagor is the Director of ICE’s Culinary Management program, and a founder and managing director of Hospitality & Culinary Resources, a New York City-based consulting firm. Previously, he developed and owned a multi-concept restaurant/retail group; was the general manager of a $10 million New York City restaurant; and owned and operated an award-winning limited-service restaurant and marketplace. For 10 years, Zagor, who holds a master’s degree from the Cornell School of Hotel Administration, was manager of hospitality consulting services for the hospitality group of Laventhol & Horwath, and later for Coopers & Lybrand. Tara Berman is the founder and managing partner of TaraPaige Group, a full-service management hospitality firm that specializes in operational strategy, and acts as an outsourced CFO for early-stage and expanding enterprises. Tara has a CPA license, earned an MBA from NYU Stern business school, is a graduate of ICE, and started her tenure in the hospitality industry with the Thomas Keller Restaurant Group at The French Laundry.