Love me some spiketv bar rescue. As for dogs, there is a place in Fort Worth next to tcu that allows dogs on the patio. Buffalo bro's. It's a great atmosphere and one of my favorite places to catch a game.
please scrap the dogpark idea, it has fail written all over it.... I like the craft beer scene, so that is a must.... some late night muchies is always nice as well
No dogs mate, dont belong near food. Jon taffer was the first thing i thought of as well. Dont over imagine. Start simple and when you can venture out
I'm down if I can bring my dog physically into the bar and make her sit on a bar stool next to me. Also serve more than one type of cider please.
Lots of people still b****ing about the dogs and food. Aside from a mention of picnic tables I never saw any mention of a plan to serve food. Maybe I missed it? The 2 dog bars in Houston that do offer food - Cotton Wood & Boneyard (food trucks) seem like some of the most popular bars in Houston. Always packed. Are you guys out in the suburbs out something? Y'all sound like Katy folk.
I live in Cinco but still go hard in the paint. I've seen dogs at the Creeks and Dogwood (excuse the pun). I thought it was pretty cool actually.
See, the Katy folk come in all dressed up ready to go hard because they've got 4 hours and a $72 cab ride. Us normal Houston folk know how to go out and have 2 beers and an elk hot dog on a Sunday at 1 without having to plan for it on Facebook for 6 weeks.
Sunday is usually a 9-12 hour thing. LOL I have friends that live in the city so crashing if needed is not a big deal.
I don't see a dog park/bar working in Midtown or Washington. The heights would be best for that. If you want to be a dog bar you are not shooting for the nightlife crowd, happy hour/brunch/weekend days is your best bet. It seems you are concentrated on the inside when your potential as a dog bar should be all about the outside.
Do you have enough money that you can take a loss in the first year? Because that is what most likely will happen. Every time somebody wants to start their own business, they always think the bar route. Everyone likes to drink, can't go wrong right? Very wrong. Bars dont have a high success rate. It can be a hit and miss. You could do very well or very bad. If its your first time opening up a business, you will most likely fail. If you can break even your first year, consider that a success. Another thing most people dont understand is that when you open a business, especially if its a bar or restaurant, it becoms your life. In fact, those first years, you won't have much of a life outside of your business. Don't think you can just be hands on for a couple months, and then hire folks to run things for you while you sit back and chill. That's a recipe for a big pie of fail.
I've always said, if I can start a bar with some friends and take a 3k loss every year and drink for about half price I'd be down. I'd pay as much as 3k for as little as 10% membership in a bar. Definitely. I'm not sure the 30k buffer is enough to minimize the risk though. In fact I'm certain it isn't. I think a loophole to look into might be finding a way to buy the property you use instead of leasing it. The only bar idea I've ever seen that I liked are those frozen drink stands in New Orleans. You hire 1-2 people per shift max and the machines do all the work. Just maintain the machines. Gotsta be mad margin on those $12 jesters.
On the dog idea: you'll be paying rent on the space dedicated to attract these dogs (and owners). Do a little financial analysis on whether the incremental benefit is worth the capital and the ongoing expense. I'm guessing the incremental benefit won't pay for the added expense (especially in high rent in-town areas). You can apply the same logic to billiards, foozball, etc. -- are they worth the space they take up? It's great to think about the perfect atmosphere you want -- and atmosphere is important to a bar -- but you also have to think carefully about all the financial implications of what you do. Since I've started my own business, here's my warning: construction will cost more than you think (especially within City of Houston), taxes and compliance costs will be higher than you expected, and it's very hard to predict how much revenue you can generate. Make sure the math still works with very modest traffic expectations. Your best chance of success is to have scads of money you don't mind flushing down the toilet because it's a big gamble. And, if you invest a half million dollars and fail, then what?
Basically what he is saying in regards to dogs: THEY DONT HAVE CREDIT CARDS! same with kids, most business' that are start ups that are geared at kids fail because..... THEY DONT HAVE CREDIT CARDS
I think there would be sanitary and food laws that would prohibit animals to be near an establishment that would serve food. (that's if you will be serving food) Do your research. I know in groceries, pet food cannot be shipped or stocked near regular human food. I would assume the same would be applied to a restaurant. Check the laws and regulations.
