Inflation, a driving force behind lots of the challenges businesses face today, has caused one restaurant owner to charge nearly $16 for a BLT sandwich due to rising costs.
Will Restaurants Investment Group founder and CEO Brian Will broke down his monthly expenses during an appearance on “Varney & Co.” after a friend confronted him in regards to the price of his $16 BLT sandwich.
The wholesale cost for the favored sandwich is just $5 according to Will, but the necessity to cover operational expenses is what caused the meal that was once $12.99 three years ago, to turn into $15.99 today.
Will detailed his monthly expenses, sharing insight on the business side of running a restaurant and justifying the rising price of meals.
Will spends $20,000 a month on renting an area that houses one in all his restaurants in a “latest mixed-use development,” arguing it “costs lots” given the situation.
“My utilities [are] $6,000 a month. My labor in December [was] $60,000, which suggests I’ve got $86,000 of base cost the day I open the doors on January 1,” Will explained.
“You work in a 32% food cost. I actually have $11 of gross profit in that sandwich. You’re taking all my costs divided by $11 of gross profit, and I [have] to sell 93,000 sandwiches just to get to zero before I could make any money,” he continued.
Will Restaurants Investment Group was established in 2010.
The premier restaurant management company owns and operates brands like Central City Tavern, The Tavern House, The Derby Sports Bar, and Cantina Loca.
Will told Fox Business that he’s “now coping with a unique economy” than when he first signed the lease for the eatery’s location.
“We signed our lease pre-COVID with fixed increases every yr. And I actually have a private guarantee, so my rent isn’t going down. It’s going up every yr eternally,” he stressed.
The business real estate industry continues to grapple with the rise in rates of interest and the impact of distant work.
“My revenue per operation has dropped about $350,000 per store while my rent has gone up, labor is up 30%, insurance is up 40%, rents up 10%,” the restaurateur stressed.
“It’s incredible what my costs have gone up during the last three years.”