Harlequin And Brine Case Study

Harlequin and Brine will be a high-end restaurant with a causal atmosphere and live music. The company will be a partnership between my wife and I: Alan and Amanda Hess.
The success of Harlequin and Brine will hinge on having strong managers that inspire the staff. We will need an executive chef with a strong background in charcuterie, butchery, and baking. We will also bar manager that is an expert with craft cocktails, craft beer, and wine. Furthermore, we will need a front-of-the-house manager for the dining room, and a stage manager for the live music. Having over 25 years of experience in the food service industry, 10 years in Military leadership, and being certified as an Executive Chef, a Specialist of Wine, and a Specialist of

Spirits, I am more than qualified to fill any of the management roles within the restaurant. However, we intend on filling all of the vital management roles with top notch local talent instead of taking these roles ourselves. This will allow us to focus on growing the business while also being able to step in where ever needed. I intend to operate as a General Manager where I can coordinate with the staff on training the staff, procurement contracts with local vendors, marketing, and menu creation. Amanda will run the front office focusing on human resources, social media presence, accounts payable, and coordinating with our legal and accounting representatives.
We will be located in Northern Virginia, operating in the Greater Washington DC area. Our headquarters will at 8000 Hidden Bridge Dr. The Northern Virginia area will allow us to appeal to a large group of consumers within our target market. We hope to appeal to upper-middle class workers who enjoy high-quality goods and services, but prefers causal comfort. The Northern Virginia area has a high concentration of upper-middle classes families mixed with a large immigrate population creating the perfect atmosphere for Harlequin and Brine.
Harlequin and Brine is currently in the developmental stage.

Currently, I am serving in the United States Navy and plan on serving for twenty years in September of 2025. His will allow me to retire with a Military pension and give me an added layer of financial independence to help weather through the any difficult start-up periods. This puts Harlequin and Brine’s anticipated opening at the fall of 2025. Having 8 ½ years before opening, we will be able to perfect our products and services. First, we intend on getting input from focus group through small dinner parties. This can help us create a winning prototype. Once the we are closer to opening and have a clearer understanding of our future customers want, we can operate Harlequin and Brine as a one or two-night pop-up restaurant. This will give us the ability to promote the future business, while also generating revenue and continuing to get needed feedback.
Opening a restaurant can be expensive with the current average start costs coming in around half a million dollars. We can expect to reach or exceed those start-up costs due to the higher-than-average cost of living in the Northern Virginia area. The causal environment we seek to portray will mitigate some of these costs, but top notch talent is expensive. We already have some funding, and a few investors, but we will need to get a large amount of financing from other sources. Being a Military veteran, and my wife being a female minority, we are optimistic about getting the small business loans

needed.
Aside from top notch management, good products and services will be the life blood of our business. As previously stated, we intend on using feedback to make sure that our products are usable, useful, and desirable. In its current format, Harlequin and Brine will have Michelin-star cuisine, an industry leading bar-program, regionally and nationally acclaimed musical performances. The proper service and ambiance will key to the business’s success. Harlequin and Brine must be casual enough for live music to feel natural, but nice enough to warrant paying $50 for an entrée and $12 for a cocktail. We hope the combination of brick, wood, and chalk boards can create this atmosphere.
I look forward to hearing from you, and I would be more than happy to discuss the details at length to answer and questions that you may have.