Sally's Business Idea

Sally and you have been best friends since childhood. She is a fourth-year student at the Culinary Institute of America (CIA). Whenever you met up, you two spent the entire time planning the "dream restaurant." It was always an inspiration and, ultimately, what led her to go to a culinary school. You would always tease her that she did not need to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to operate a food truck. You were always intrigued by the hospitality industry and ended up at ERAU's flight school. Sally would always tease you back by saying you did not need to learn to fly the plane to be a flight attendant. But she knew you were a wiz at business and felt comfortable with you managing the business end of the venture. "Just think," Sally said. "Opening a high-end white-tablecloth restaurant with a fancy name, live entertainment with outdoor tables on a balmy cool-breeze night by a Florida beach wouldn't that be amazing?!"

Sally said, "After conducting some preliminary research, it's now or never!" You both have been pooling resources for some time and have stockpiled a ton of money from your inventions, investments, and network marketing operations. Sally, too, has accumulated her share of funds from the lucrative government catering contracts.

After discussing her notes, you suggest that she research the initial requirements for start-up businesses, and you volunteered to complete those functions. You both realized that by investing in these activities early, there would be substantial cost savings. Sally agreed and stated that she would develop the back-of-the-house functions in the kitchen design and restaurant layout. Sally has been experimenting with new food preparation technologies. Her goal is to create a menu that appeals to high-end customers who experiment with original exotic flavors and culinary delights. She has been in the experimental cooking labs at school, learning advanced food preparation technics. You agreed that with her experience running her multi-million dollar catering business, it would be best if she took the lead in creating the direction, design, and management style of the food and beverage aspects of the backroom side of the company. As a student at the CIA, she has had multiple courses in restaurant management.

Fortunately, you are enrolled in a business law course covering the essentials of legal theory and business operations that should be helpful. The course was designed using a hands-on application of authentic legal and business-planning tools and required documentation to start up and operate a business. The course is going to provide a wealth of information.

Sally agreed to handle and provide various issues that need documentation. As her lifelong friend, you remember one important thing; she always has many questions. Timelines, deadlines, and expectations must be met and completed thoroughly and perfectly. You always tease Sally that it's like having a professor around all the time; all you want to do is assign a grade to everything! So you have developed the habit of reading all the support material you can find and performing research that you can use to document everything using a standard legal format that demonstrates that you have good sources and documentation for your work. She expects you to read your course material and follow the directions to complete assigned work. You must perform outside research and review all references provided as resources to assist you in constructing your work product critical to building a sound business plan and completing all of the requirements for a legally recognized company. Most importantly, the organization of work submitted is perhaps the most valuable asset!

Review the Readings to make sure you have all the knowledge you need! You have agreed to consult the rubrics before starting a project.

SWOT Analysis

The primary objective of a SWOT analysis is to help an entity develop a full awareness of all the factors involved in making a business decision. In this assignment, you are tasked with deciding if Sally's business idea is worthwhile, including any legal requirements (i.e., if applicable). Please review Conducting a SWOT Analysis (Hunt Library/LinkedIn Learning/17:00).Links to an external site. Note: You must be logged in through the Hunt Library to view.

As you complete the SWOT analysis think about:

• What are your strengths and weaknesses? What are Sally's strengths and weaknesses?
• What are your business and personal goals?
• What are the financial risks of the adventure?
• What are the start-up costs?
• Is the business location important?
• What does the market research indicate?
• What is your customer base?
• What are the associated liabilities?
• Which state, local, and federal regulations apply?

Use the SWOT Analysis Form (DOCX) Download SWOT Analysis Form (DOCX)to complete a SWOT analysis. Use clear and complete sentences.