Week 3 Autopsy: The location audit

Week 3 — testing whether the site itself was ever viable, using foot traffic, rent signals and nearby competition.

10 August 2026

Before the session#

Estimate what your specimen’s site would have cost to lease, using comparable local listings, and what revenue a venue that size and price point would need to clear it — Renata’s back-of-envelope method, not a real audit. Map the competing restaurants within a comparable walk.

In the session#

Renata works a live example on the board first, including the two mistakes everyone makes: comparing rent to peak-season revenue instead of an average month, and counting “nearby” competitors by straight-line distance instead of the route a customer would actually walk. You then run your own numbers and defend them to a partner who is explicitly told to find the weak assumption.

Afterwards#

A location viability verdict for your specimen, with the arithmetic attached — the first real building block of the eventual Autopsy Report, and the first place your gut theory about “why it closed” gets to survive contact with a number.