Most of us take a hard look at our homes and we will try to make it look as good as we can for the upcoming months. Why not do the same for your restaurant? If you’re thinking of selling your restaurant, here are some of the major areas to focus on from the restaurant brokers. These are the major areas and ideas for your Spring cleaning.

Dining room, Patio, Kitchen

When it comes to selling your restaurant, you need to look up, down, and all around. When is the last time you really cleaned your dining room floor? I don’t mean just mopping it. What about steam cleaning, rebuffing, re-waxing or even replacing a tired surface. You may not look down, but your customers do.

A continuation of the dining room floor are the base boards. When selling your restaurant, no detail is too small. Take a moment and wipe down the baseboards?

For a larger project, consider touching up paint on walls, a fresh coat of paint maybe even a new color? HGTV is filled with stories of a “before” and “after.” Many of these are just fresh paint colors that can have a huge impact.

Don’t forget to look up. That A/C leak from last year that stained a few of your ceiling tiles is a constant reminder of failed equipment. Don’t let a restaurant buyer focus on these negative items if you’re selling your restaurant. Look up, fix the ceiling tiles and, how about those ceiling fans? Please don’t tell me the last time you dusted them was last Spring.

Look at your décor. Change out old faded artwork or posters. You can do better. New pictures, new TV screens, new table covers; all are easy and simple (low cost) ways to bring Spring in the air.

Your kitchen is the engine every buyer wants to see. When is the last time you pulled out your kitchen equipment and steam cleaned the entire space and equipment? Have you gone to your storage area and disposed of any items no longer in use? Consider updating to newer technologies or upgraded equipment for the upcoming busy season. New equipment may cost now but make a huge difference to your bottom line this year if the food cooks faster or the temperature is stable.

Patios are often a huge plus for restaurants but to require upkeep. That area if visible from the road could also be the first look in your establishment for many customers. Make sure you have a picture-perfect patio area. Adding water or fire elements to your patio could also make a very positive impact on your business. Your patio, seen from the road, can be a billboard for you.

Menu Spring Cleaning

When selling a restaurant, the focus is on profitability. When is the last time you took a hard look at your menu? Adding and/or deleting items, pricing adjustment, seasonal specials, promotions, LTO’s. Be very strategic here. An outside consultant or food vendor can help with this. This is a big part of your business. If you can bring up your loss leaders or trade non-selling items on your menu for more profitable and sellable items what are you waiting for? Status quo is very easy and comfortable but if your sales are not going up, you are losing marketing share.

Staff Spring Cleaning

When selling your restaurant, you want the best possible crew. Do you need to provide additional training to the current team? Should you roll out a new incentive package for the team to participate in? You can host team building activity to set the tone and expectations for the busy season ahead. Whichever you decide to do here do not overlook or skip staff spring cleaning.

You spend a tremendous of time in your restaurant and sometimes it is very difficult to step out be candidly honest with yourself about the appearance. When selling your restaurant, that first impression may seal or sink the deal.

A quick Spring cleaning can go a long way. Any changes small or big will be noticed by your team and your customers. That new paint smell or new air freshener in your bathrooms will soon become the smell of new customers and new profits.