hi,

Two of my foreign friends want to open a western style restaurant in Kunming/Yunnan. Currently, we are in Beijing.

Are there lots of restaurants operated by foreigners? Are their business good?

Thank you very much.

Effie

I think the only real requirements for a foreigner needs to run a restaurant in KM is to have at least worked as a dish washer in one in the west and have the capital and guanxi to launch it. The only real customer service skills required is that they be able to tell customers who are unhappy with their over-priced and tasteless meals -that are nothing like the western food s they are supposed to mimic- that they can just leave and never come back or that they can learn to cook for themselves. If you meet those criteria then welcome to the world of KM haute cuisine.

You also need deep pockets. Esp when you start.

There are some, but we're barely talking dozens, definitely not hundreds. Like Beijing or Shanghai, some are successful and some are sob stories, usually involving greedy landlords or business partners.

Even in the west, many businesses fail, usually in the first year.
Running a business needs 100% commitment and forget having your own life outside of the business for the first few years at least.

Quality doesn't pay you back, here in Yunnan.
But if you want to do Quality..be ready to receive the sneaky laowai who want to steel your secrets.
Or explain to the average-chinese-client (especially in this period) that PizzaHut is not the example of the best pizza.
Be ready to face threats from local police.
Be ready to face jealousy from local laowai, daily.

The question "how are you?" will be replaced by "how is your business?"
And so on. Good luck.

Foreign food in Kunming is average, I would say. I would call some of the food at Salvador's and the Lost Garden "good" and "better than average," but I have yet to have truly world-class Western cuisine in Kunming.

I second Tiger Tiger's post

"Running a business needs 100% commitment and forget having your own life outside of the business for the first few years at least."

The never ending conveyor belt of employees you need to train and fire is the downfall of all restaurants..

Salvadores gets my respect for the quality and happiness of staff, they have achieved something special, harmony with workers..
In my opinion if harmony in your workers is not achieved you become a slave to your restaurant..

Good luck

The above mentioned points are all depending on, what business you are starting (since it generally mentioned businesses). It depends of operation hours, product etc.
I started a business and I have plenty of sparetime. I have a small business with staff that didn't need much training or no training at all
(but higher salary)

I agree though that it needs 100% commitment and in terms of time you 'should' free enough time up, so that you could 'always', be reached and available.
And yes it's true most businesses fail in the first year due to lack of investment or running out of money, far too quickly.

That's why a buddy of mine told me: Make a good and honest calculation of all the money you need for the first two years....and when you think you got it (generously right) double it. Not what he learned in business school but it worked for him, and it did for me.

About Sal's, I dearly like the owners and the food- a lot.

But they don't get any 'respect' for treating their staff right. Coz all you have to do as a foreigner is treat them like you would treat them in any developed foreign country.
The employers 'really' getting my respect are Chinese managers doing so. Because they have to be enlightened enough to swim against the stream and against all they have ever learned in the Chinese business world.

@Ocean
Really? laowai's stole you business idea? I'm not saying it is not true but that's must be one for every 10 times an idea got stolen from a foreigner by a chinese individual. In the few years in Kunming (only) that happened to me on 4 occasions.

@Tomman

Couldn't agree more, Sal's probably leading in terms of quality and flavor but compared to the food you can get in other cities in China I would also call it average. But I am fine with that 'average' especially considering the price.

@Ifoundthetuna
Not sure whose comment you are referring to, but it ain't mine! I've never had a business idea in my life, stolen or otherwise!