What are your thoughts on location for a delco pizzeria. I was thinking I could save money on rent by getting a spot that is out of the way but in a good neighborhood. I believe most of my business will be delivery as other shops that had locations on main roads but did not deliver have closed despite the best deals in town. From what I’ve looked at the savings from a lesser location would more than pay marketing costs or am I crazy and its still all about location location location?
For a delco there are a couple of key considerations beyond the practical issues such as size, mechanical characteristics, security etc:
Central location in desired delivery area with good access to streets in all directions. The amount of time your drivers spend going too and from deliveries is an important cost and service level issue.
Visibility. You are correct to link rent and marketing. The cost savings on a secondary location can certainly help pay for your marketing… well, that is because you are giving up a key marketing benefit when you give up visibility and you will need to spend more than you would if you had a highly visible and accessible location. Name recognition and the perception that you are easy to find and get to (carryout) are very valuable. Not an absolute one way or the other but you have to consider visibility when considering the trade-off of rent and marketing.