The hospitality industry has room for many rewarding careers. If you enjoy making people smile and you want a job with a bit of excitement and diversity, it might just be the right pick for you. However, there are some things you need to be aware of prior to starting.

1 Know What You Need
The biggest mistake anyone can make when breaking out in the hospitality industry is trying to do so without the right supplies and equipment. From commercial kitchen equipment to cast iron cookware, crockery, and glassware - a lot of your opening budget is going to be dedicated to just stocking up your kitchen!

2 Get Familiar With Your Equipment
Commercial equipment operates differently than residential equipment, and it also has different requirements when it comes to use, up keep, and maintenance. If you want to protect your investments, stay up to code, and exceed your clients’ expectations all while keeping your business in proper working order, you need to learn how to clean and maintain things properly.

In this situation, it’s best to find a reputable service tech in the area who’s familiar with the specific equipment that you have stocked your facilities with. This will allow you to have a go to person to answer your questions and give you a service schedule so that things are kept in tip-top shape.

As one example of something many new businesses aren’t aware of, did you know grease builds up quickly in kitchen equipment and needs to be cleaned on a daily basis? Not doing so will lead to dangerous build up that will cause bad odors, effect flavours, and even lead to equipment being damaged, clogged, or even catching on fire!

3 Have A Professional Come In To Help
Nothing beats the help of an experienced professional when you are just starting out in a new industry. For instance, when you go to set up your kitchen, a professional can give you advice on what equipment you need and where it should be placed. This will help make sure that the area is laid out in an efficient manner, and that grease can be properly captured through vents and overhead fans so as not to cause sticky surfaces and floors.

Your local hospitality superstore can probably point you in the direction of a professional who can come in to give you some assistance, and highly trained staff working there may even be able to discuss with you directly about what sort of things you should be looking out for.

Usually, these places have some connections and they can open up their own little directory and point you in the direction of a good cleaner who you can bring in on a regular basis along with service techs and other people who will play a vital role in the success of your business.

4 Start With The Essentials
As a restaurant, commercial catering equipment probably won’t be the number one thing on your list. While you may be looking to expand into catering later on, for now, you need to worry about getting the essentials out of the way before you begin to branch out in your business.

Usually, this means focusing on the everyday items like chef caps and chefs knives before you get into commercial cooking equipment and “extras” like commercial coolers, fridges and benchtops. By having an idea of what you absolutely need and then making a list of the additional things that you’d like to acquire in the future, you can help prioritize things and stretch your budget as far as possible.

5 Prepare Yourself
One thing that most new businesses don’t prepare themselves for is simply how much work it takes to actually run a successful hospitality business. While you most certainly can do it if you put in the work, don’t underestimate just how much work that’s going to take.

You should be prepared for the many hours you are going to be putting in throughout the coming weeks, months, and even years. As the business owner/manager, a lot of those hours will be unpaid. As such, you have to remind yourself that you are ultimately working now so that, one day, you won’t have to be so involved in the business.

Once your business reaches a stable point and you have a strong team of employees, you should be able to pass the torch onto a trusted manager who can do most of the work for you, thus saving you substantial time and effort. But, until you reach that point, you need to focus on putting in all your effort and building a team of friendly, committed staff. Good luck!

If your in need of a cost effective and functional kitchen fitout, cooking equipment, service or equipment finance contact ICE Group Hospitality Warehouse today on 02 4228 0100 or visit www.icegroup.com.au
Providing the Hospitality Industry with VIP prices everyday! Bulk Discounts available.