Lazrowp

I just got back from L&I (License and Inspection) where I obtained a Philly Tax ID number (different than the federal tax number) and a Business License. If anyone plans to open any business these are essential. This is my 2nd time at L&I going for these licenses. The 1st time the wait was too great. The advice I received from the people behind the counter is to wake up early and arrive at 7:30 am so that you can join the line. I arrived today at 9:30am and waited just over 3hrs. When I left the lines were still increasing. It is easy to blame L&I for being slow, but in reality, their staff has been cut tremendously which is the main cause of the loooonnnnggggg wait. I'm meeting with my architect today to discuss the look and feel and next week I will get back to choosing a name. Of course I have an LLC name, but that will be different from the trade name. Paul

Research: The #1 source of capital for all startups is not a bank, nor venture capitalists, nor angel investors. The #1 source of small business capital is F.F.R. (family, friends and relatives). Most banks won’t even take a serious meeting with you unless you can show at least 20% of your own money invested. My F.F.R.s insisted I work for 1-2 years in restaurants before I proceed. This was my best research as I was able to not only “see it and do it,” but I also was able to make the personal commitment, as well as secure the support of the most important person in my life – my wife. During that time I also started to buy too many restaurant books, all with similar titles: “How to open/run a restaurant” or “Restaurant Management.” Books are good, but I found that trade publications are better. My favorite is a weekly publication call National Restaurant News, which is put out by the National Restaurant Association. I also love Slammed and Restaurant Hospitality. I am sure there are many other great trade publications but one can easily reach information overload once the publications start being delivered. Apart from the Internet and magazines, my other good source of information has been distributors and suppliers. Unlike the fast food industry, or pizza industry, there is not a lot of information out there regarding the sushi industry and even less data on the conveyor belt sushi (C.B.S.)industry (at least in English). Through my research, I segmented the sushi industry as follows: Sushi Market Segmentation 1. Traditional High-End sushi restaurants ($51-and up/p) 2. Traditional Medium class sushi restaurants ($21-50/p) 3. Traditional Inexpensive class sushi restaurants ($10-20/p) 4. Supermarkets that also serve sushi ($5-10/p) 5. All-you-can-eat Sushi ($15 – 30/p) 6. Sushi Fast Food ($5-15/p) 7. Chinese / Korean restaurants that also serve sushi ($6-15/p) 8. High end American fish restaurants that also serve sushi ($15-34/p) Conveyor belt sushi represents the 9th segment. In America, where C.B.S. is so new, consumers will probably not recognize C.B.S. as a distinct market segment, and this distinction is one of my marketing hurdles. Did any of this research bring me to any definitive answers as to whether I should proceed and risk almost everything and open a restaurant? NO!!! But…by doing research I believe I have reduced my risk slightly by learning about industry issues and learning how experts address those issues. Paul

Thanks Mike! Paul

Lawyer Interactions: Can’t live with them, can’t get zoning without them, and only naive people try to sign a lease without them! As I mentioned earlier, I was fortunate to hook up the UPenn Small Business Law Clinic and they helped out tons. Even with their help, I used a lawyer for my lease review and a separate zoning lawyer for…zoning issues. Having just moved to back to Philly, I didn’t any lawyer buddies, so my initial action was to contact the PA State Bar hotline (I saw their billboard off of I-95) for an introduction. I wasn’t too keen on this type of connection so I started to talk with different real estate brokers for their recommendations. I asked my brokers for someone not associated with a big law firm who was just starting out like me. (Just starting out means $100-150/hour and big firm means $200 plus/hr) Am I done with lawyers? I hope so. I might have to deal with a party making a legal appeal against my zoning, and I know I will do some more work with a lawyer for my liquor license. Of course the two lawyers who I have worked with don’t specialize in liquor licenses. Every $ I have spent with lawyers was worth it and I would do it again. Of course, I will keep my chit-chatting to a minimum as every phone call is $$$. Paul

I will be working on the décor for the first time today with my architect/designer. Allow me a couple of days to respond the “name” issue and I will also describe how our name will hopefully fit with our look/feel. Briefly though, our main goal is to not “Asian-ize” the restaurant space. Instead of something sleek and modern, I am hoping for a warm casual atmosphere, which should help balance out the modern equipment that we will be using. Paul

NASCAR Sushi huh!?! My head sushi chef, who is also my partner and friend, comes from Suzuka Japan, which is home to famous Grad Prix racetrack. His dream was/is to create a conveyor belt design that mirrors the race course. Of course, when you have a conveyor belt constructed, every curve and turn costs serious additional amounts of money so this design was not possible. Our final conveyor belt design is not so interesting, as we were unable to incorporate any cool curves. Paul

-------------------------------------- You can probably answer this question but I always wonder why Philadelphia lags behind other cities in sushi quality. I lived in SF and NYC and despite a great food city, Philly sushi aint where its at. It's not meant to open a can of worms - there are some OK places but nothing sensational by and large. As a matter of fact, I think my sushi palate has dulled here to the point where mediocre stuff tastes very good to me now. I remember lamenting my move back from SF after having the local fare. Do we not have access to the fish distributors that, say, NY has? Half this stuff is jet flown in anyway I assume - perhaps incorrectly. Evan ---------------------------------------------- Evan, my response, which is only an opinion, revolves around the Japanese migration presence in America. NYC, SF, and LA are all cities where a large Japanese population has settled. In these cities, sushi has the largest presence. Likewise, you will find get amazing sushi in Sao Paulo Brazil as this city has the largest Japanese population outside of Japan. Some areas of Hawaii also are heavily populated by Japanese and you can find wonderful restaurants there as well. I have spent a significant time on chowhound.com and some other food websites and there is a consensus that the best sushi in Philly is over the bridge at Sagami and Fuji in NJ. I find that such a shame that people feel that way as there are good Japanese restaurants in Philly like: Morimoto, Shiroi Hana, and Genji. Philly does have the same access to the same distributors as NYC. Philly also gets fish from the Baltimore distributors. Just recently one of the largest distributors, True World Foods, opened a warehouse just outside Philly so we should see better distribution soon. Paul

Naming: Stephenc, I have been trying to come up with a name for sooo long. Names I considered: Satellite Sushi (was my #1 choice for a while), Global Sushi, Polar Bear Sushi, Village Sushi, Sushi Daily, Sushi Chalet, Sushi Tribe, Tribe Sushi, Tribal Sushi, Nation Sushi, Sushi Village, Daily Sushi, Lucky Sushi, Liberty Sushi, City Sushi, Oishii Sushi, Sumo Sushi, Sushi Sumo, Maido Sushi, Sushi Legacy, "A" Sushi, Sushi Whirl, Sushi Sashay, Sushi Shuffle, Sushi Spin, Sushi Flux, Sushi Tide, Sushi Ebb, Gliding Sushi, Sushi Brim, Sushi Serendipity, Cycle Sushi, Sushi Cycle, Sushi Sphere, Sushi Gossamer, Savory Sushi, Scrumptious Sushi, Cosmic Sushi, Destination Sushi, Carousel Sushi, Sushi Carousel, Round About Sushi, Sushi Stop, Feng Sushi, Orbit Sushi, Spin Sushi, Sushi Spin, Surf Sushi, Sushi Beach, Sushi Harmony, Harmony Sushi, Heron Sushi, Revolver Sushi, Rolling Hills Sushi, Rolling Sushi Restaurant Names I like but are taken: Ace Sushi, Café Sushi, Cajun Sushi, Circle Sushi (my favorite name for a conveyor belt sushi restaurant as it is so descriptive), Club Sushi, Genki Sushi, Monster Sushi, Simply Sushi, Sushi Circle, Sushi Den, Sushi Express, Sushi Go-Around, Sushi House, Sushi Inn, Sushi Island, Sushi Jones, Sushi Land, Sushi Maru, Sushi Samba, Sushi Shop, Sushi Station, Sushi Town, Sushi Village, Sushi Zen, Sushiville, Tengu Sushi Bar, Yo! Sushi As of today, which is still three months from opening, I am going with the name “Sushi Nation.” What do you think of the name? I have friends who love it and friends who hate the name. Paul

I miss soup dumplings! Paul

Obtaining Free Help/Advice: I knew a long time ago that I would be on a tight budget. With this in mind I wanted to use all the free resources possible: SCORE: (http://www.score.org) I found this service while I was at the Business Library in NYC, which is a resource partner with the U.S. Small Business Administration. I took a meeting but unfortunately was unable to benefit due to the lack of restaurant experience of the volunteer working at SCORE at that time. I know each location is different as they are staffed by retirees who all have different strengths. I do recommend people to try this avenue for advise. MBAT: (http://www.phila.gov/mbat/index.html) This should be your first stop! Almost all cities offer this type of governmental assistance. Philly’s is called the “Mayor’s Business Action Team.” I have been in contact with this branch of the government for almost 1.5 years now. They will be able to spell out exactly what you must do and provide you with many contacts and advise. I am still in close contact with this group and once I open (knock on wood) I know I will keep my line of communication open with them. UPenn S.B.D.C.: (http://whartonsbdc.wharton.upenn.edu) The UPenn Small Business clinic is staffed 2nd year M.B.A. candidates. I received their contact information from the MBAT. I arranged a meeting by calling up and submitting my business plan with a short cover letter asking for assistance. I have 2-3 meetings with one student who spent some time in the industry. These were extremely helpful meetings early on. I stopped contacting them as the person I was working with graduated, although I feel like I could communicate with them again if I wanted. Temple S.B.D.C.: (http://www.sbm.temple.edu/sbdc/mission.html) I originally called both UPenn and Temple to check out their SBDC program. UPenn responded 1st so I went to them first (I also like the Ivy League / top Business School mystique) Months after I finished with UPenn, out of the blue Temple contacted me for a meeting. Of course I went as my experience was so good at UPenn. Let me tell you, Temple’s program was much better!! At Penn I was working with a student, OK…“Ivy League Student,” but at Temple I began working with a woman who has been a professional consultant for decades and also taught classes. The level was significantly higher!!! UPenn Law Clinic: (http://www.law.upenn.edu/clinic/sbc/faculty.html) The Penn Law Small Business Clinic saved me huge $$. (Temple University also offers the exact program) I had two 3rd year law students working with me and we worked together for almost 2 months. They helped with my lease review contract and other issues. These law students perform all their work under a register attorney who is also their professor. I can not recommend this Clinic enough. I mean, now my “very expensive lawyer” charges me $50 when I pick up the phone to call him. What you must accept when you work with a law clinic or a S.B.D.C. is that you can not work at your own pace and you can not expect immediate timely advise. But of course…..all the above are free services. Paul

Cath, here is a list of items that I try to consider: Marketing Advertising Public Relations Promotions Branding Community Relations Environmental Stewardship Accounting Purchasing Receiving Staffing Training Financing Insurances Payroll Designing Employee Morale Repairs & Maintenance Financial Reporting Employee Manuals Job Descriptions Health Department Storage Conveyor Belt Strategy Uniforms Policies & Procedures Lunch Menu Dinner Menu Kids Menu Takeout Menu Security Internet Presence Trash Removal Exterminator

You are not alone!

Early September if all goes as planned. Paul

Architect Interaction I wanted my best friend’s brother to be my architect but early on he told me he wouldn’t do it as he felt I needed someone local – which made sense both then and now. I wasn’t too keen on needing an architect, but that was because I was too naïve about building a restaurant in the beginning. I thought that since the conveyor belt that I would use would represent almost 100% of the seating capacity, that I would basically just be painting the walls, adding some lights and opening the doors. I didn’t realize that the architect would be doing everything from inspecting the sites, hand-holding, to helping shape the conveyor belt, to helping with the lease negotiation, to designing the restaurant, to creating the documentation necessary to submit for every meeting and license, to attending zoning meetings…. I learned that the architect does not do a couple of key things I thought they would do: - Kitchen design: there are specialists out there who make their living designing kitchens. Even architects who have done several restaurants always say they don’t specialize in the BOH. Luckily the companies who sell restaurant equipment all claim that they can provide kitchen drawings and certainly their advice is valuable. - MEP (mechanical, electrical, plumbing) drawings are done by engineering firms, not architects and are often necessary. - Construction. I didn’t realize that the architect does not necessarily become involved with this step. Project management is not always included in their fees. (my construction has not yet begun so I am sure to have some interesting learning experiences) Paul

Making Offers: I know that Conveyor belt sushi (C.B.S.) needs a high-volume area and can coexist with traditional sushi restaurants…as our target audience/price point is different. One of the key factors in the C.B.S. business model is the low price point. Unfortunately, that translates directly into lower profit margins, which means that C.B.S. needs a higher volume of people to compensate for the lower margins. After I determined that Center City East was my 1st choice around Philly I contacted brokers. The brokers who bothered to return my initial call were all glad to meet. I began to see more and more places and over time learned what I liked and what I didn’t like. In fact, one of the initial spaces turned out to be the 1st space I made an offer on. I learned a couple of things from dealing with brokers. Mainly, that if you are not a large existing entity, you will need a lot of luck to find a broker who will really pay attention to your needs. The brokers are usually working more for the landlord which is where they make their money. In my situation, the landlord pays the broker their fee for signing me up so the brokers loyalties are more with the landlord. Also I learned that one broker does not have the same information that another broker might have. I kept in contact with at least 3-4 brokers during my search, and only towards the end of my year plus search did any broker come close to showing me the same spots. I was extremely disappointed in this aspect as I was unable to really on just one broker for anything. My 1st Offer: 1029 Chestnut Street. Uuugggg!!!!! This property is owned by the Philadelphia Parking Authority. It was a great price but it only had 2 out of the three “location location location” that everybody talks about. (At night this block has a ghost town feel). So, their broker agents wooed me for months and finally I made an offer. Once I submitted my offer, I was strung along for 2-3 months waiting for their response. Supposedly the people who made the decisions were out, or they were working on something else big and couldn’t consider my project yet, or they needed to see about another offer. Finally I was given a positive response back from my initial offer. I brought in an architect, a kitchen hood company, a HVAC company, and I even had a builder buddy come down from NYC to check the space out so that we put together a list of concerns that I needed addressed before I went any further. Of course this delayed the P.P.A.’s response again and finally, after a 10 month period from the start, I was told simply that Joe Eagan who heads the P.P.A. and has compete discretionary authority, decided he didn’t want a restaurant in the space. I was shocked. Only recently, months later, have I learned to “let my negative feelings go.” This was a big live and learn experience. My almost 2nd Offer: 7th and Chestnut. Interesting block that has nice retail business. There are 3 or 4 spaces restaurants spaces still available today on this street. The space I was most interested was across from arguably one of the best Japanese restaurants on the East Coast, Morimoto. I love the contrast of a restaurant like Morimoto and a C.B.S. restaurant. I liked the space I was looking at and was excited about being so near to Morimoto as well as the other restaurants on that block, but in the end the build out costs would have been too much. I was also still slightly stunned over the 1029 Chestnut rejection, which I considered almost like a backup spot as I was considering the 9th & South location at the same time. My 2nd Offer: 9th and South Street. I did not like “South Street” for C.B.S. but 9th & South, near the Vespa store and the Whole Foods Supermarket is a different vibe than “South Street.” This spot would have a nice dinner, great weekend business, but lunch would be trouble as there is minimal activity. I made an offer on the property but ultimately was turned down as the owners of the property had a different business in their mind for the space. Fortunately, the same owners liked me for a separate space which turns out to be the space I settled on. My 3rd Offer: 1117 Walnut Street. Soon after I was presented with this opportunity, I made my offer. I knew this location potentially had the “location location location” I was looking for. Right near Thomas Jefferson Hospital and University, in the Washington Square West neighborhood, in an active nightlife bar scene, close to Chinatown as well as other professional offices. The block seemed to have a decent lunch business as well as a decent dinner business. This is a rare combination. Paul

Chestnut St, between 13th: the Goldman's area I was too late to get in there. Also, actually there will be a new sushi restaurant opening up there soon - right accross from El Vez in The Stetson building next to Capogiro. They will have a sushi restaurant on the El Vez side and a deli on the Chestnut Street Side (one large space searated by a communal kitchen... two separate businesses) I heard. I believe they will open within the next 2 months.

After well over a year of searching I found the spot 1117 Walnut Street between 11th and 12th. I had made offeres on two other locations but I was rejected basically due to my mom & pop restaurant status. Apart from the spots I made offers on, I saw 2 or 3 dozen other spaces which I rejected due to my own parameters (money, physical traits of the space, location...) Paul

Thanks for your warm welcomes! I would like to share the below experience: Deciding on an area within Philly: Before I decided on Philly, I checked out the vacancy rates in the paper. Philly showed a higher % compared to Boston and NYC so I thought that finding a decent location would be easy. (The joke was on me as the vacancy rates reported in the paper relate to office space, not ground-level retail spaces) Anyway, armed with my “vacancy-rate fact”, I began to look for a location in Philly while I was still living in Brooklyn, NY. I hopped in my car and 2 hrs later I was in Philly looking for locations with my handy digital camera. I started my search by cruising around and taking photos of all the “for lease” signs around town. I considered University City, Old City, South Street, and Center City East and West, Chinatown, Northern Liberties and even Graduate Hospital. It was easy to compile a large list of names and numbers from the many signs and early on I felt my search was going pretty well. After a while I came to the below conclusions: University City: Originally my #1 choice. So difficult to find a space and have an easy setup due to U.Penn’s domination of the property scene as well as their regulations. Additionally, POD has their presence on the campus. Even though my concept is so different I thought that would be bad karma. On the plus side, the University and the UPenn Hospital population was extremely attractive. Negative side - that the population is reduced in the summer. Old City: Great area to open a bar. Not a good lunch. Mon-Wed nights slow. Thurs, Fri, Sat are the $ nights. Difficult to get a liquor license and the rents were high. South Street: Like Old City - nice to open a bar. Not a good lunch. Mon-Wed nights slow. Thurs, Fri, Sat are the $ nights. Many people under 24 years old which is not my target. Center City West: Potentially a great lunch and dinner. Too expensive. Center City East: Potentially a great lunch and dinner. Best value?? (I write “??” as I can’t prove this) This area became my #1 choice after I eliminated University City. Chinatown: Great place to open a Chinese restaurant or a karaoke bar. Least expensive rent?? (I write “??” as I can’t prove this) Northern Liberties: I heard this was the new “SoHo area.” I didn’t think it was all-that and it was not cheap and there was no lunch. Also on the weekends it didn’t have a huge volume of traffic, except around some bars. Graduate Hospital: Too raw now. I knew I needed something more central for a restaurant location. Paul

Hi! I am attempting to document the trials and tribulations faced with opening a restaurant in Philadelphia. Before proceeding, I want to point people to the threads “The Alinea Project” and “Starting a Restaurant in NYC.” These are fabulous, inspiring, and educational to read. I hope this thread that comes close to these other threads while presenting a different perspective. So you all know, I have been dreaming about opening a kaitenzushi (conveyor belt sushi) restaurant in the USA for many years. I lived in Osaka Japan for 5 years and it was during my time in Japan when I first came in contact with this unique restaurant style. Of course I was always discouraged by my family and friends from trying to get into the restaurant business. Finally, after “thinking” about this venture for the last 5-7 years, and working in the industry for the last 2 years in preparation, I am ready now to go for it. I secured my Japanese Sushi Chef/key employee, my nice location in Philadelphia, my architect, my lawyer, “most” of my financing, and I even started my liquor license application. 3 weeks ago, I finally passed all my zoning requirements (I went through 3 different zoning hearings successfully: the Civic Association, the Business Group Association and lastly the city Zoning Board). Within the next 1-2 weeks we will submit our building drawings so that we can receive our building permit. My landlord will be doing some demolition and build out (new HVAC, electric & gas upgrades…) before I begin my own construction. With this in mind, "it seems" like I am on target now for a September opening! (of course so many things can happen to delay the opening) I would like future topics to include: Finding a space, Interactions with architects & lawyers, Lease negotiation, Financials, Marketing, Branding, Menu Creation, Health Department...  Paul

Taco Riendo is a really nice looking family-owned joint. The food is prepared in an open kitchen which always lends itself towards a strong health and safety ethic. Although not as inexpensive as the place on Washington Ave, Taco Riendo is worth the stop if you are in the area. Speaking of the area, make sure you lock your car! Paul

Hi Susan! What is your child's favorite book that has turned them into a "sushi-head?" Paul