As someone who has about 20 years in the restaurant business, I think this is probably a really bad idea.

I have nothing against West, of course, but celebrity-owned restaurants almost never work.

Unless he has an Operations VP who is strong (strong enough to know when to tell West no and when to mean it), the restaurants won’t last 5 years.

It never ceases to amaze me when celebrities get that “I think it would be fun to own a restaurant” idea rolling around their heads.

No, it isn’t fun to own a restaurant. It’s hard work, it requires constant attention, it’s real easy to screw things up, and you need years of experience to pull it off.

Yes, his name will get the customers in for the first 6 months, but after that it’s going to be the same day-to-day grind that all restaurant management really is.

Don’t believe me? Tell it to the scores of celebrities who sold off their restaurants just before (or just after) they went bankrupt.

I won’t even bring up the people I know personally who screwed up a restaurant company by not knowing what they were doing (the doctors who blew $15 million in one concept, and a guy out east who’s in the process of blowing $5 million on one right now)

If West is smart, this is what he’ll do: He’ll write the check to buy the units, he’ll turn over operational control to someone with 20 years of experience, he’ll show up every now and then to say hi, and he’ll keep is nose out of the actual operation of the business.

not really feelin this power move but he got the dough so he can do as he please wit it, jus hope he hire a good team cuz the restaurant biz is risky especially in this current economy