Opening a Bagel Shop: Startup Costs & Equipment List
Opening a bagel shop can be profitable for food entrepreneurs who love the chewy crust and soft interior of fresh-baked bagels, whether topped with a cream cheese schmear, piled with lox, or served as a breakfast sandwich.
This article breaks down the essential steps to starting a bagel bakery and covers the equipment needed to consistently produce golden-brown bagels.
How to Start a Bagel Shop
Starting any foodservice establishment requires hard work and planning. Follow these steps and consider the following questions when starting your own bagel shop:
- Evaluate Your Finances: Do you have the necessary capital or investors to start a bagel shop?
- Determine Your Concept: Options range from cafe-style restaurants to home-based bakeries or pop ups
- Plan Your Menu: Do you want standard bagel recipes or innovative flavor creations? Do you want to focus solely on bagels, or do you want to serve sandwiches, spreads, and drinks, too?
- Choose Your Location: Analyze population density, demographics, and employment data to understand your community and create a market analysis
- Design Your Building: Plan your kitchen layout and dining area based on your output needs and bagel shop concept
- Outfit Your Operation: Purchase equipment, furniture, and ingredients necessary to start serving bagels
- Perfect Your Process: Create, market, and sell your bagels to grow a loyal customer base
Bagel Shop Models
Before opening a bagel shop, consider the different business models available. Your concept will impact your menu, layout, and equipment needs.
- Brick-and-mortar cafe: Full-service bakery with seating, drink service, spreads, and sandwiches
- Pop-up or food truck: Mobile option with a limited menu and fast output
- Wholesale bagel bakery: Focuses on supplying other restaurants, stores, or cafes
- Home bakery: A cottage-style setup with preorder batches and local delivery
Equipment Needed to Start a Bagel Shop
Though technically bread, bagels require a very specific baking process to achieve their unique texture and shape. Use the following bagel shop equipment list to ensure you have all the supplies you need.
Supplies for Making Bagel Dough
- Commercial mixers: Must have large-capacity bowls with durable motors that are gentle on tough bagel dough. View our commercial mixer guide
- Dough sheeters and dough dividers: Flatten and separate dough for faster prep
- Pan racks: Store dough or shaped bagels for resting
- Proofing cabinets: Maintain temperature and humidity levels during dough proofing. View our proofing cabinet guide
- Work tables: Provide space for shaping and adding toppings to bagels
- Refrigeration: Safely stores uncooked bagels, ingredients, or extra toppings and spreads. View our reach-in refrigerator guide
Appliances Essential for Bagel Baking
- Boiling equipment: Use equipment like stock pots to boil bagels before baking for traditional bagel making
- Bagel Ovens: Operations use different kinds of ovens based on available resources and desired product
- Combi ovens: Use steam for faster output and drier texture
- Deck ovens: Provide intense, even heat for cooking bagels
- Convection ovens: Offer high capacities but don't retain heat as well
- Some bagel shops use specialty bagel ovens and cook them on boards, allowing the operator to flip them halfway through the baking process
Serving Equipment for Bagels and More
- Bread slicers and bread knives: Cut through bagels
- Toasters: Warm up bagels for immediate service
- Bakery display cases: Showcase bagel varieties
- Bread baskets: Store bagels or other bread products
- Sandwich prep tables: Offer storage and prep space for assembling bagel sandwiches
- Coffee makers: Provide fresh coffee to pair with your bagel offerings
How Much Does It Cost to Open a Bagel Shop?
The cost of opening and operating a bagel shop varies depending on the style of shop, your location, and menu offerings. Here's a breakdown of average initial costs associated with opening a bagel bakery:
| Item | Type of Cost | Frequency | Average Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kitchen Equipment | Fixed | One time and as needed | $10,000–$75,000 |
| Kitchen/Restaurant Design | Fixed | One time | $3,000–$8,000 |
| Mortgage/Rent | Fixed | Monthly | $1,000–$8,000 |
| Permits & Licenses | Fixed | One time and as required | $1,000–$3,000 |
| Insurance | Fixed | Monthly | $100–$300 |
| Ingredients | Variable | Monthly | $1,000–$4,000 |
| Labor | Fixed or Variable | Monthly | $3,000–$7,000 |
| Marketing & Branding | Fixed | One time and monthly | $2,000–$5,000 |
| Packaging & Serving | Variable | Monthly | $200–$500 |
Bagel shops can cost well over $100,000 to start, so be sure you're well prepared to meet both upfront and ongoing costs before you begin.
Find Bagel Shop Equipment at KaTom
KaTom Restaurant Supply offers bagel equipment from leading brands to help launch your operation. Shop our online catalog or learn more about how to open a bagel shop with resources from our learning center.
