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Legal and Statutory Compliance Required to Start Restaurant or Cafe Business in India

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Introduction: Restaurant or Café Business

Every business is a numbers game and this holds water when it comes to India. Being the second most populous country in the world, the business environment India provides is nowhere else to be seen. Be it its culture, colors, or people, everything makes India different from the rest of the world. Wait, are we forgetting something? Yes, it's globally-renowned food. From the streets of Hollywood to Bollywood, everyone is a fan of Indian dishes. And, why wouldn't this be such a thing? The relationship of an Indian with food goes above and beyond taste. For us, eating food expresses an emotion, we eat when we’re hungry, sad, nostalgic, bored, in love, out of love, and of course for our survival.

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These are the reasons despite the recent downfalls caused by Covid and the lockdowns, the Indian food serving market has been continuously thriving and is expected to touch USD 79.65 billion by the end of 2028. Not just this, it can also be a source of employment for 10 million people in the country by 2025. If you’re among people who intend to start a restaurant or cafe business in India but don’t know the compliances required for it, then this article is surely for you.

Read Our Blog: Know Everything About Starting And Managing A Restaurant Business In India

Restaurant or Cafe Business in India

The Indian restaurant industry with a market size valuation of USD 41.10 billion in 2022 has placed itself among the world’s fastest-growing industries. And, with the improving ease of doing business and more key players coming to the sector, it is expected to grow further at an impressive compounded annual growth rate of 11.19 percent. Development of urban lifestyles and the rise of the middle class with people working in better conditions and income are expected to act as the drivers for the Industry’s growth. But as fascinating as it seems to start a restaurant or cafe business in India, it requires a lot of effort and planning on the part of business owners. 

Read Our Blog: How to Start Restaurant with Bars in india

Tips to Start a Restaurant or Cafe Business in India

  • Opt a Concept for Your Restaurant

Every restaurant has its specialty and that’s what attracts customers to it. Here, you have to decide which area suits your business idea best. It can be a cafe, fast food point, buffet, fine dining, or bakery. Doing this will help you find the restaurant theme and accordingly, you can design the interiors and decide on the menu.

  • Get Funding

The restaurant industry is capital intensive, therefore, before commencing any activity or applying for the required permits, it’s better you first secure the ways for funding it because the absence of required capital can create a lot of problems here and there. For this, you can pitch your business idea to potential investors or go to financial institutions for a loan.

  • Select a location

Location matters a lot in the food business and that’s the reason we see many of the fine restaurants of the country located near happening places, such as malls, markets, etc. The first thing you can do here is to analyze your competitor's restaurants. Go through their menus and see what sort of food people prefer the most in those locations. The second thing you can consider doing is checking which place will be the best for your restaurant in terms of visibility and accessibility. 

  • Marketing

What’s the benefit of putting so much thought into everything if customers don’t even know about the existence of your restaurant? That’s where marketing and its strategies will play their roles. You need to create a unique identity for your brand name among the audience. For this, you can take the help of social media and traditional advertising. Another thing you can do here is the creation of a website, which can act as a sign of authenticity for your restaurant. 

Compliances Required to Start Restaurant or Cafe Business in India

  • Fire Safety Clearance

Mishappenings caused by fire are not uncommon in Indian restaurants or cafes as every day hundreds of people and property worth crores become victims of them. And, the absence of measures crucial for fire safety is often found to be the cause behind them. Therefore, to ensure every business complies with the fire safety rules and regulations, the Indian government has mandated it to get fire NOC (No objection certificate) from the concerned fire departments.

  • Health Trade License

Restaurant or cafe businesses can affect public health and any mistake or carelessness on their part can result in bad consequences for the people. Considering this, every business intending to engage in activities, especially related to food and medicines, is mandated to obtain the Health Trade License from the local municipal corporation body.   

  • FSSAI License

To ensure the quality of food and compliance with its related safety guidelines, the Indian government has mandated every restaurant owner to get an FSSAI license from the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India. There are three types of food licenses issued by FSSAI.

  1. FSSAI Registration Central License:- For food business operators, especially big restaurants and food chains, whose annual turnover crosses INR 20 crore.
  2. FSSAI Registration State License:- For food business operators, especially small and medium restaurants, whose annual turnover is between INR 12 lakhs to 20 crores.
  3. FSSAI Basic Registration Licence:- For food business operators, especially small restaurants and cafes, whose annual turnover is up to INR 12 lakhs.
  • GST Registration

Running a restaurant or cafe in India also requires registration under GST and obtaining a GSTIN number if the annual turnover of the business is more than the prescribed limits, which is INR 40 lakhs for businesses located in normal states and INR 20 lakhs for businesses located in the special category states. In case your restaurants have outlets in different states, then you’re required to obtain an individual GST registration for each state.

  • Eating House License

Any place that offers food or beverages for public consumption is an ‘Eating House’ and as per the regulatory framework, requires to obtain an Eating House License from the governmental authority as a permit to operate in a location. 

  • Liquor License

Consumption of liquor happens at scale when it comes to restaurants, well in fact for many, it acts as a major source of revenue. If your restaurant or cafe also intends to offer alcoholic beverages to its consumers, then obtaining the Liquor license becomes necessary for you as permission from the State Excise Department. 

  • Business Registration

To run a business as a separate entity, registering it with concerned government authorities also becomes necessary on the part of its owner. Often issued by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MoCA), it specifies the birth of the company and its business operations as a separate entity.

Conclusion

‘Food’ is not just food in India, it’s a way people connect and express their emotions and by starting a restaurant or cafe business, you can tap this massive potential and establish a highly profitable business. If you need any help with the compliances required for it, then you can get in touch with the professionals of Corpseed ITES, which is India’s top environmental consulting firm and has already worked for thousands of national and international companies.

This portion of the site is for informational purposes only. The content is not legal advice. The statements and opinions are the expression of author, not corpseed, and have not been evaluated by corpseed for accuracy, completeness, or changes in the law.

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