Making Accurate Income Projections for a Concession Businesses
How does one make income projections for a concession business? We recommend thinking about your food cost as a percent of the menu price. In your income projections, you can use this percentage to calculate your food cost for that month. Let’s say you are projecting to make $8,000 a month with a one item menu. You charge $8 for that menu item, and your food cost is 25% of the price: $8000 total sales for month * .25 = $2000 total food cost In an Income Projections template spreadsheet, there are a few fillable sections that allow you to account [...]
10 Best BBQ Business Names of 2019
Sometimes picking a name for your business is as simple as snapping your fingers. Others, it can be a brain-racking process which gnaws on your psyche for days on end. Even more difficult is this when there are hundreds, THOUSANDS of other people in the country going into the same kind of business as yourself, like BBQ. Which can suck, as the name is one of the few things one can TRULY control and call their own without having to worry about annoying factors like costs, budget, local laws, or anything else affecting it. It’s the pivotal display of who [...]
Food Truck Documentary: Food on Four Wheels Video Review
This upbeat, sincere documentary short explores food trucks in Durham, North Carolina from food truck customers' and owners' points of view for 12:57. Made by students at The School of Doc, a free summer filmmaking camp open to high school students in Durham. The film opens with a customer expressing happiness with the casualness of food trucks. "It's fun to try something new." "There's no commitment before choosing and ordering," as there is in a restaurant. Casual, familiar and conversational are characteristics repeated and emphasized in this entertaining little movie. Only Burgers' food truck owner expresses his reason for opening [...]
What Happens When Food Trucks, Cinema, & Music Collide
Food Trucks and other activities have gone hand in hand ever since the trend started up. Truly the mobile businesses excel within symbiotic relationships; whether it’s doing a rally at a brewery or offering easy edibles during a music festival, the combo of ‘food truck + other thing’ has always proven beneficial to both parties when done right. Of course this idea has been noticed rather easily, building to lasting relationships and even grander events put together. Nowhere is this more seen than LA’s own Street Food Cinema. After a couple years ‘experimenting’ the idea, event producers and vending companies [...]
Can You Franchise a Food Truck Business?
The quick answer is "yes!" The big questions are "should you?" and "do you want to?" Brand sustainability, time and capital investment to franchise your concept are big factors in making the decision. Is your food truck business successful and running like a well oiled machine? If you have success with regular vending locations, a solid event and catering history, expansion may be the next profitable step. Franchising may catch your attention as a way of increasing your income streams from one truck to two with less effort and expense. Franchising eliminates the day to day operational responsibilities of additional [...]
Bootstrapping Guide to a Weekend BBQ Business
Bootstrapping, the new business word of the year [well, last year, but still], and basically the one which applies to almost all new startup owners in the food industry. Especially those tied to BBQ. By now you’re probably already wondering what the heck I mean/am talking about. Well let’s start out, for those not yet aware, by explaining what bootstrapping is. Technically speaking, it’s “Financing your company’s startup [or continued existence] by using the input or support of others.” And yeah, I hate this definition; it’s extremely broad, and basically sounds like how ANY business is run. But what it [...]
Creating a Profitable Culture on a Food Truck
Every work place has a culture. BusinessDictionary.com defines it: "organizational culture encompasses values and behaviors that contribute to the unique social and psychological environment of an organization," including "expectations, experiences, philosophy and values that hold it together." Some of the values to consider on a food truck include dress code, customer interaction and service values, owner-employee structure and relationships, and clear processes. Is there a how-to manual on the truck? Are employees trained? Is there room for feedback in the training and on the job? How does the staff interact with customers? Are staff comfortable with one another, with the [...]
Concession Business Mastermind: How to Find Peers for Learning and Support
Going it alone only gets you so far, whether you've launched your food truck business or are in the planning stages. Forming or joining a mastermind group can fill in the gaps that family, friends and business associates can't, and it can make the journey more successful and rewarding. Napoleon Hill coined the term "master mind" in his book Think and Grow Rich in 1937. Mastermind groups pool the experiences and knowledge of all members to create an environment that nurtures growth - a think tank for small businesses where entrepreneurs come together for mutual support, shared resources and accountability. [...]
Should You Pay Concession Fee's at an Event?
Should you pay to be a vendor at an event? I'm still new to food trucking, and have been asked to participate in both no-fee and fee events. Here's how I think it through and make my decisions. What You Need To Know Before making this decision, I want all the event details: how many people, how many food trucks or food vendors, what else is going on at the event, is it a benefit for a nonprofit, how long has this event been happening, is there a cancellation policy? I want to know how it went last year, and [...]
How Much Does a Food Truck Weigh?
Let’s face it, food trucks and vending carts/trailers weigh a lot. They’re big, tricked out behemoths designed to stand out and be durable, so on their own the things get quite heavy. THEN we load them up with all manner of ranges, coolers, equipment, and food; damn if that doesn’t add some tonnage. It becomes a factor in operation, you can be sure about that. Now, is this something that you need to know and will affect our every day? Not majorly. Should you know how much your vehicle weighs in general and have it listed in a place to [...]