My mentor from 1998 called me out on a stat I totally forgot

I was digging through old notebooks from my first kitchen job in Portland and found a note that said 70% of new restaurants fail in the first year. My old chef always said that number was way higher if you counted the ones that barely break even. Does anyone still track that stat or is it all just gut feeling now?

2 comments

2 Comments

lisa_ross166d ago

I remember hearing that same 70% number back in the late 90s when I first started out. My old boss had a beat up copy of some industry report tacked to the wall, and he swore the real failure rate was closer to 80% if you factored in the places that just limped along for years. It's rough hearing that stat again, especially when you realize how many people pour everything they have into a spot only to watch it not work out. I feel for you having that memory come back like that, it's the kind of thing that sticks with you.

jamiekim6d ago

That "limped along for years" part is honestly even scarier than the outright failures.