How to Start a Bakery in India

The first step in starting a successful bakery is, like all other business ventures, a good business plan. A properly created business plan helps attract future investors as well as top officials from other organizations. The business plan should include the following:

• Anticipated expenditure
• Long term business goals
• Probable income
• Expansion plans for future
• Marketing strategies
• Plans for starting a retail store
• List of products to be sold
• Locations for sale

Steps involved in opening a bakery

Financial Evaluation

It is important for entrepreneurs to evaluate their respective financial conditions before they set out to start the bakery. Their credit situation should be good enough before they approach the banks or other financial institutions for business loans.

They also need to have some cash that can be used as down payment when they are buying or leasing the building where their bakery will be set up.

Following are some ways in which entrepreneurs can secure the start-up finance:

• Credit cards
• Grants from national government
• Small business loans
• Gifts from family members, friends, and relatives
• Grants from local government
• Angel or institutional investors

Community Research

Researching the immediate community before setting up the bakery is always useful because of several reasons like getting to understand the tastes and preferences of the potential customers. At times they can also get some information regarding a bakery that might be closing shop, which will help them get a readymade establishment.

This will help them to get started right away and also minimize their costs and time that would have been taken up in looking for a proper location.

Deciding on Products

It is always important to decide what will be the focus product of the bakery before it is started so that the arrangements could be made likewise.

Experts think it is always better to start off with the strong area before the necessary capital and experience are accumulated to branch out to other type of products.

With better capital the owner will be in a good position to employ workers who are skilled in different areas of bakery. Greater experience will help them to get the courage to foray into new products.

Often a good start enables the entrepreneurs to garner the fame that ensures proper reception of any new product launched by them.

Importance of Location

The bakery owners should not waste much time in buying or leasing, depending on their financial capabilities and requirements, a house that they find ideal for their purposes.

They can also enlist the help of professionals such as commercial real estate brokers and lawyers to take care of the various procedures and legal concerns.

They also need to get in touch with the local health officers to invite them to inspect the facility before they buy it or before they open the bakery. The kitchen is an important area in this aspect.

They can also do some prior research from the official website of the government department that will be doing the inspection. This will help them get prepared to meet their requirements by keeping what is necessary and thus starting off on the right foot.

Purchasing Kitchen Equipment

This is an important part of the bakery business and perhaps also the most difficult part as the payment needs to be done straightaway if the establishment that has been bought for opening the outlet does not have a readymade one.

In case the owners are on a tight leash in terms of financial availability they can look at restaurants that are closing or auctioning off their equipment.

The owners can also look up sites such as eBay.com for second hand equipment that can be used in commercial establishments. They need to remember that proper kitchen equipment goes a long way in making the inspectors feel satisfied with the arrangements.

Post Health Inspection Procedures

Once the health inspection process gets over the owners will need to fill up the necessary papers and submit the amount needed to get the permit.

If the owners have rented a kitchen from an operational food related organization such as a restaurant or another bakery, they can arrange a review of its file and straightaway apply for the permit. However, they need to do some research beforehand to determine which licenses and permits will be applicable for them.

Promotion of the Bakery

In order to make sure that people come to know about the bakery the owners need to come up with promotional materials or, better still, create a website to spread the word about the bakery.

As soon as the necessary permits are obtained the owners can decide the company name and logo. The following can be used, aside from websites, to make people aware of the bakery:

• Business cards
• Brochures
• Order forms

In order for the website to be deemed authentic, it should have the following:

• Logo
• Product information
• Contact details
• Special offers

They should also use the logos on the bags and boxes while delivering to make sure that customers know whom to call when they throw a party or are in a mood for a munch or two.

There are several ways in which the bakery owners can generate interest within the local community about their company and this can be done even without a major opening ceremony.

They can provide the local media houses press releases about their organization – they can also provide regular updates regarding their products and services to the media through press releases later on.

Attending meetings and events organized by the regional associations

A sure way to get greater visibility in the local business circle is to attend the meetings and events organized by the regional associations like the chambers of commerce.

Here, the owners will be able to interact with community leaders and business owners about their set-up. They can also market their products at these events. Furthermore they can provide free samples or sponsor local fundraisers and charity events to become famous and appreciated.

Supply Chain Management in Bakeries

Managing the production is an integral part of a bakery’s operation. However, this comes in a little later when the company has been catering on a regular basis to a significant number of people.

The following professionals are required to help address these issues in a bakery:

Designation	Role
Assistant dough maker	Production in the plant Proper operation Product quality Yield maintenance Proper deployment of labor Developing new product lines Stopping ingredients wastage Prevention of losses owing to damaged or spoiled products
Assistant dough maker	Helps the dough maker especially during the breaks Knocks the dough back at previously specified times
Assistant manager and Night manager	Assisting the production manager Performing the duties assigned by the production manager
Flour runner	Supplying the flour into the blender as per instructions provided by the production manager Operating the sack cleaning plant
Purchase officer	Buying everything needed in a bakery
Divider man	Controls the amount of dough being fed into a divider Proper operation of the divider Maintaining regular weights
Store keeper	Managing the stores Keeping records Checking materials coming in lots Supervision of supply and stacking of materials
Final proover feeder	Checks the dough’s tinning Changing over the production type
Foreman/shift in charge/supervisor	Answers to the production manager Oven cleaner Takes out the breads from the tins
Oven cleaner	Takes out the breads from the tins
Assistant supervisor/Charge hand	Assist the foreman or supervisor Performs the foreman’s duties when he is absent
Baker/Table hand	Moulds, handles and scales the dough Feeding empty or full tins in the oven Clearing the oven
Dough maker	Making proper dough through good weighing Blending and sifting of flour Proper scaling of other ingredients Cleaning the premises where he or she is working Keep proper records of all the ingredients used

List of Top (Leading) Bakeries in India

Following are the leading bakeries in the country and their locations:

• Brown Bread Bakery in Varanasi
• Samrat in Mumbai
• Theobroma in Mumbai
• Devraj Coffee Corner in Rishikesh
• JB’s in Guwahati
• Rawat Kachori in Jaipur
• Kayani Bakery in Pune
• Wenger’s in Delhi
• Bakers Café in Gangtok
• New Shanthi in Hampi