Thinking about starting a mobile food business? Having your own food truck is an appealing prospect for a lot of people. You can work when and where you want, get out meeting people and be your own boss. But there’s a lot more to running a successful food truck than you might think. There’s insurance to think about, deciding what you’re going to be selling and a whole lot more.
Here are some top tips to starting your own food truck business:
Starting your food truck business
Invest in a quality, well-built truck
If you are going to be running your own food truck business, it’s important to have a well-built truck you know you can rely on. If your truck breaks down, then you’re out of business until you get it fixed again. Spending a little extra money from the outset will likely save you money in the long term, preventing the need for repair in the future. This also includes the equipment you use took, such as your generator and cooking tools. Bare this in mind when choosing the right food truck manufacturer to build your truck.
Decide on a brand
Having a memorable brand is a great way to stick in people’s minds and get them coming back time and time again. Food trucks aren’t too dissimilar to ordinary trucks, so it’s important to cover it in branding to get people flocking to your business.
Not only thinking about a catchy name but thinking about your whole food truck branding so that it stands out and gets attention! Modern technology has made it relatively straightforward and not too expensive to fully brand your truck, so it’s an option that’s worth considering.
Don’t Forget Insurance!
Perhaps the most important step to take is ensuring that you’re fully legal. Not only is it important to have motor insurance for your food truck, you also need to be protected should something go wrong off the road. Having adequate insurance protects your mobile business from damage, or if someone becomes ill and blames your food! If you don’t have the right insurance it could cost you tens of thousands of dollars if someone makes a claim.
You may wish to look into a specialized food truck insurer, such as Insure My Food Trailer.
Decide on your target area
Choosing the right area to set up your mobile food business is essential to not only making a profit but maintaining longevity in your business. Does the town or city already have established food trucks? Is there sufficient room for more? Is the area friendly to mobile food businesses? Would it be easy to set up and sell there? These are all things you need to think about when choosing your primary location.
Also consider the potential for festivals, fayres, and concerts, are there additional opportunities like these?
Do you have a license/permit?
You won’t get very far with your food truck business if you aren’t licensed to sell in your local area. Think about the area you want to target and find out about the relevant permits and licensing you need to sell there, such as food safety regulations, employee training and specific local regulations.
It’s important to note that each town and city has may have their own rules and regulations. Some states are stricter than others when it comes to food truck regulation, so it’s best to find out from your local council what the requirements are.
Get yourself known
Once you have everything you need to start selling, you need to get out promoting your food truck! After all, if people don’t know you’re there, how can they do business with you? Think about:
- Social media (Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat etc..)
- Special opening discounts (Groupon)
- Local press (Announcing your new business)
- Flyers/business cards (particularly handed out to local offices/business parks)
- Food truck directories such as https://www.foodtrucksin.com
There are countless ways you can promote your mobile food business, without spending too much money.
Starting a food truck is an exciting prospect, but don’t forget these top tips to get you off to a good start! Many food truck businesses fail because they don’t have enough planning. It’s not enough just to have great food, you need to be smart about marketing plans and profit margins.
Taking time to fully plan your new business will help to ensure its long term success in the future. Often it’s a case of investing more in the first place, so that you will continue to reap the benefits in the future. Starting a food truck business can be tough, but extremely rewarding!
