trying 2 start a pool room/bar

[hardnard9]

Hello i am a young guy living in atlanta i have a little money i saved and now i want too start a business a pool hall /bar the thing is i don t know much about the business side of a bar and how two start it. I just have an ideal of what i want it to look like and where i want too put it. I am trying to figure out where 2 start first can anybody help me

[owneroper]

I suggest you start by getting a job in a bar, be a bar back or something. Do you have any business experience?

[excellentbars]

Hello Nard

"Owneroper Be nice to the young man"

Nard owneroper was making a very good point in that you should look into gaining some experiance OR getting a partner with experiance...
I recommend that you should be careful in your selection of your partner and choose wisely...

As for your timeline if you feel that you need to open quickly then I would start by pounding the pavement and finiding a spot...Good places to start your search are Craigslist, The Sunday Paper, Internet searches and even calling a local broker....

You will need the then figure out your budget based on finding a location...I would like to add that 90% of failures happen because of poor location selection and underfunding!!!!

SO be careful and be smart!

Cheers
Chris

[ministry]

owneroper is right. get a job first ! we have here is yet another person who wants help but doesnt want to look for himself.

[Rivalrys]

In Atlanta you will be competing against two of the best pool rooms in Georgia (the 3rd being mine located in Macon, The Hole Thang, 40 tables, poker room, etc), Mr. Cues and The Pool Room. Pool is not the brisk business it once was. The key is location location location, look in Marietta, I had looked at the building Mazzy's is in before they rented it.

[hardnard9]

well rivalrys iam not trying anything that big just something around 8 pool tables, dance floor and food. Iam willing to learn and do what ever it takes 2 know about this business and i thought asking people doing it is the best way 2 learn

[realityrox.com]

I think getting the first hand experience working in the trenches is the best way to learn. Plus, a lot of the time, working in the environment can be fun!

[hardnard9]

So if i got a job at a bar what would i gain from that and how long do u think i should work there before i start my business

[realityrox.com]

You need to start at the bottom and work your way to the top. I guess it depends on how fast a learner you are and how quickly you are promoted!

The best way to learn the bar business, is to be IN the bar business. ;)

[Ruben]

So if i got a job at a bar what would i gain from that and how long do u think i should work there before i start my business


Some ppl take longer to learn and grasp onto the business. I'd try and get a job in a bar or club starting off as the barback like suggested. The barback might sound like a low job but let me tell you! without the barback the bartenders and your bar wont make any money!!! They are pretty much the sources for clean cups/ice/limes,lemons/ and most important LIQUOR and BEER! they stock the fridges etc

I use to be head barback at a club and i saw a lot of mistakes for the club i worked for and hence why it was closed. i gave a lot of suggestions to help to change the place and because there was more then just 1 owner each owner had their own opinion so it made it hard in the end to have the place run.

So like we all suggest try and find yourself a job doing that. you'll get a lot of experience and not only that you'll learn about the type of alcohols each place is selling. So since you want to do a pool room/bar go find a job working in one. It never hurts working in another place like the one you want to open in the future. It will help you see what works and what doesnt and makes you aware of flaws and problems that you could encounter.

Just some advice! And also we cant tell you when to quit! dont quit unless you know EVERYTHING that will help you start devolping your business plan! You wont get all the info you so you resort to the forum but use the search function and read read read just like LOCATION LOCATION LOCATION REAL ESTATE! :p ;)

[owneroper]

wasnt trying to be hard on anybody, just short and sweet with typing. Get a job in the business it may just change your mind. As with all business each type brings its own set of problems that you dont realize until your part of it. Not knowing the business side of a bar can be a big problem early on and cause you to lose your savings fast.. I dont think any owner here claims to know everything or we wouldnt be here reading and posting.

Look how many answers you will get for each question ask. we cant give you all the answers cause you dont know all the questions. Get a job and you will have many why and how come questions. we can all write a business plan but to make it work is a different story.

What type of jobs have you had working with the public? Read the boards I think you find some posts that you would have never guessed.

[ministry]

if you got a job what would you gain from it ? are you freakin serious ? let me guess your one of these guys that think it's all rock starish owning a bar ? you say it's nothing big that you want 8 tables and a dance floor and food ? that's not easy. food is the hardest part of this biz. can you change a keg ? can you fix a toilet? can you unclog a ice machine ? can you bartend ? can you write a schedule ? learn the basics first or i'll be coming to your auction when you go out.

[Ruben]

Omg your scarying him! Dont be so mean mr... But no Ministry is completly right! You have to know and have experienced it for a long time to know exactly what your doing in the business. I dont know everything frankly not everyone does and others know more in some aspects then others so you try and learn from them.

Ministry you forgot the biggest one... If he doesnt have the funds to fully buy everything out of his pockets... CAN YOU MAKE A REALLLLLLY GOOD BUSINESS PLAN or are you going to buy a template lol



if you got a job what would you gain from it ? are you freakin serious ? let me guess your one of these guys that think it's all rock starish owning a bar ? you say it's nothing big that you want 8 tables and a dance floor and food ? that's not easy. food is the hardest part of this biz. can you change a keg ? can you fix a toilet? can you unclog a ice machine ? can you bartend ? can you write a schedule ? learn the basics first or i'll be coming to your auction when you go out.

[hardnard9]

Ok i get it need 2 get a job in a bar or find something else 2 do cause owning a a bar looks harder than owning microsoft

[owneroper]

with that attitude you wont get far on this site. come to my bar I'll will let you run it for a week and then you will see. Oh yeah I fired the cleanup guy last nite for showing up late. So you will be the cleanup guy until we hire somebody. Gotta be there by 2a.m. you get done at 5:30a.m and then you can go to bed but you need to be back by 9a.m. to pay the vendors and work lunch but you will be done by 2 or 3 as long as none of the customers want to chat with your . Pray it doesnt snow cause we are expecting 2-4 inches and then the bartender wont be in, she lives in the boonies. then you will work from 6 til close and then clean

You know I have looked up from cleaning toilets at 4a.m. and ask myself "what have I done" I'm thinking maybe my other job wasnt that bad.

Can you unclog a toilet? thats a valid question. How far will you stick your hand down a toilet before you call a plumber on sat nite at 168$ an hour. You would be surprised.

Nobody is trying to be mean we are trying to tell you the not so pretty truth. Microsoft makes alot more money than we do, they can afford to call a plumber. Most of us do this for a living and everytime we call a plumber it comes right out of our pay. And let me tell you some weeks my pay is not very much,

[bruce]

hardnard9; For about $200.00 a day I can show you the ropes in the booming state of Washington. I have just come off one of the slowest months of the year [$22,200]for my business. I can seat up to 89 people total in the bar and restaurant. And most of my business is currently food related by choice. If you have no experience, you would fit in well with myself and most of my crew. This place could use someone with drive and a pocket full of money to make their ideas come true.

[ministry]

we are not pickin on you but you gotta know what your in for. i have never called a plumber because they are to expensive and i cant tell you how many toilets i have unclogged or had the whole thing apart on a sat morn. oh ya you forgot cleaning up puke ! it's amazing what digests and what does not !

[realityrox.com]

Yeah Nard, this business takes a pretty tough skin. If you can't take the heat here, you sure are gonna have trouble in your own kitchen.

[hardnard9]

oK look this is turning into me verse everybody on here because i said i wanted to own a poolhall.I never asked anybody 2 hold my hand and guide me or even write me a business plan i can do all that by myself.I was always told ask questions if u don't know something or if u want 2 know about something well look where that got me .I never said owning a bar was going to be fun and games i know it will be hard work just like everything in this world. If all i get is how hard it is and not any good things then u all might need to change your careers

[realityrox.com]

I suggest you go do your thing, then. Nobody forced you on here - and nobody here wants criticism from someone that asked for help in the first place. Take it for what it is and move on. If you expect people to tell you exactly what you want to hear, then good luck to ya. Otherwise, do what you think is best. Then come back and see how it all went. I am sure people will offer answers to your questions then, too.

[owneroper]

Your ask
I am trying to figure out where 2 start first can anybody help me

we answered.. get a job in a bar then ask questions. We cant tell you how to start, everybody here did it differently and ended up the same owning a bar. We are trying to tell you the truth, people do puke on your freshly cleaned carpet, did you think of that? No they dont do it all day everyday but when it happens its ruff. The plumbing doesnt clog everyday but it always happens at an inconvient time. We would rather tell you the dark side of owning a bar now before you spend your money.


OK no more bad stuff tell us why you want to open a bar/pool hall tell us all the good things you see. I like working for myself. I dont want to ever look for a job again, thats all I did was buy a job. Now your turn

[ministry]

the only thing i had a problem with was your " what i will i learn from workin in a bar" comment. i am the first guy to step up and help anyone who asks but i take offence to people who 1. who don't do any reaserch and want all the answers given to them ( not saying your that guy but there are alot of them here) and 2. people who think that they know everything about the biz after 1 week. and 3. people who can't take a little critism. ive been doin this for 19+ years and i learn something new every day. that's it.

[hardnard9]

Why i want a poolhall because i like 2 go 2 poolhall for 1 , i like 2 see people have fun 2 , i want 2 create the perfect place that people would love that i can call mine 3 and 4 i want 2 work for myself and everybody knows thats harder than having a job

[ministry]

never mind