A Pre-Opening Checklist for a New Food and Beverage Outlet in Singapore

Opening delays are expensive in a specific way. You are paying rent on a unit that cannot trade, you may be paying staff who have already resigned from previous jobs, and every week of slippage pushes your first revenue further away from your first rent payment.

Most delays are not caused by anything dramatic. They are caused by a task that nobody realised was on the critical path, usually an approval that had to be applied for weeks earlier than anyone thought. The checklist below is a working list you can adapt to your own project.

Before you commit to the unit

- Confirm the approved use of the premises and whether your intended operation requires any change of use approval.

- Check whether the unit has, or can accommodate, the ventilation, exhaust, grease trap, gas supply, and power capacity your kitchen needs.

- Confirm the fitting out period, what it costs, and when rent actually starts.

- Understand the reinstatement obligation at the end of the term and price it now, not in year three.

- Get the full occupancy cost in writing, including service charge, advertising and promotion contributions, and any turnover rent clause.

Licences and approvals

- Apply for your Singapore Food Agency licence for the retail food establishment, and confirm exactly which supporting documents and plans are required before you submit.

- Confirm fire safety requirements for your layout and whether plans need to be submitted for approval.

- Arrange for food handlers to complete the required food safety training before opening, not during the first week.

- If you intend to serve alcohol, start the liquor licence application early and confirm the permitted hours for your location.

- If halal certification is part of your positioning, engage with the certification process early, because it affects kitchen layout, storage, and supplier selection.

- If you plan outdoor seating, signage, or a shopfront alteration, confirm what approvals the landlord and the relevant authority require.

Requirements change, and they vary by premises type and operation. Confirm the current position with each authority rather than relying on what applied to a project two years ago.

Build and programme

- Produce a dated critical path from lease signing to first service, with a named owner against every task.

- Attach weekly cash requirements to that programme so you know what needs to be paid and when.

- Confirm equipment lead times before you finalise the kitchen layout, because a twelve week import lead time on one item can set the whole opening.

- Hold a weekly site meeting with a written status report, even when the project feels like it is running smoothly.

- Build in contingency for the approval steps you do not control.

Money and systems

- Have an operating model that shows break even covers and a payback period, with sensitivities for a slower than expected opening.

- Open the bank account, set up the payment terminal, and register for GST if you expect to cross the registration threshold.

- Configure the point of sale with the final menu, correct pricing, and the reporting categories you will actually want to read later.

- Set up your costing sheet before opening so day one purchases are captured properly.

- Agree payment terms in writing with your main suppliers.

People

- Confirm work pass applications and approval timing for any staff who require them.

- Write the roster against your projected covers, not against your ideal team.

- Run the full menu as a kitchen trial at service volume before you open the doors.

- Train front of house on the menu, the allergens, and the point of sale, and let them order and serve each dish once.

The fortnight before opening

- Run at least one full soft opening service with real orders and real timings.

- Check that every licence and certificate required to be displayed is on site and current.

- Confirm deliveries are scheduled for opening week and that storage is set up to receive them.

- Agree who signs off on the first week\'s invoices and how they get recorded.

Salt and Ledger runs pre-opening project management for first time operators and for groups adding locations. That means a dated critical path from lease signing to first service, weekly cash requirements, licence applications prepared and scheduled against the build, and weekly site meetings with status reporting until you open.