how to make business plan for food cart

Food Truck Business Plan Template

Written by Dave Lavinsky

Food Truck Business Plan

You’ve come to the right place to create your food truck business plan.

We have helped over 100,000 entrepreneurs and business owners create business plans and many have used them to start or grow their food trucks.

Food Truck Business Plan Example & Template

Below is a template to help you create each section of your food truck business plan.

Executive Summary

Business overview.

Zesty Zane’s Food Truck is a new food truck located in Portland owned by local critically acclaimed chef, Zane Benedict. The menu will consist of popular food options that consist of burgers, sandwiches, gyros, and tacos uniquely made with the creativity and uniqueness that Chef Zane can offer. Chef Zane’s eclectic style and consistency make him a favorite among Portland foodies and his food truck will garner a loyal following amongst young professionals and college students.

Zesty Zane’s Food Truck will be located in the immensely popular food truck pod known as Cartopia. Chef Zane will receive lots of exposure by being a part of this community as there are plenty of neighboring food trucks, bars, nightlife, and entertainment options nearby. With the popular location of Cartopia and an impressive Instagram social media following, Zesty Zane’s Food Truck is destined to become a local go-to dining destination for anyone craving delicious, interesting fare at an affordable price.

Products Served

The following are the products to be offered by Zesty Zane’s Food Truck:

• Sandwiches & paninis
• Assorted non-alcoholic beverages

Customer Focus

Zesty Zane’s Food Truck will target customers in Portland who live, work, or socialize near Cartopia. This area is frequented by numerous young professionals, college students, and the late-night crowd who regularly eat at food trucks. Anyone seeking trendy dining options are the target customers of Zesty Zane’s Food Truck.

Management Team

Chef Zane has worked in the culinary industry for over ten years and is accustomed to the long, demanding hours of operating a kitchen. He attended culinary school in San Francisco and returned home to Portland to be a part of the world-renowned food scene that Portland has built for itself. After working under three award-winning chefs, Chef Zane is ready to venture out on his own and start his own business as a food truck.

Chef Zane Benedict will be the food truck owner and operator of his food truck. He will operate the food truck Tuesday through Sunday from 11:00 am until 1:00 am. Chef Zane will also employ two part-time cooks to assist him during peak hours of operation.

Success Factors

The following success factors will set Zesty Zane’s Food Truck apart from the competition:

• Exceptional cuisine made fresh with locally sourced ingredients.
• An eclectic menu that is unlike any other in the Portland food scene.
• Convenient location: Zesty Zane’s Food Truck will be located in a highly-trafficked food truck pod that is frequented by college students, young professionals, and night-life regulars.
• Delicious food at a good price. Zesty Zane’s food items will be cheaper than other food truck dishes without sacrificing quality.

Financial Highlights

Zesty Zane’s Food Truck is seeking $40,000 in debt financing to open its food truck. The funding will be dedicated for the purchase of the food truck, cooking supplies and equipment, working capital, three months worth of payroll expenses and opening inventory. The breakout of the funding is below:

• Purchase of food truck – $20,000
• Food truck kitchen supplies and equipment – $10,000
• Opening inventory – $2,000
• Working capital (to include 3 months of overhead expenses) – $3,000
• Marketing (website design and management) – $5,000

The following graph outlines the pro forma financial projections for Zesty Zane’s Food Truck:

Company Overview

Who is zesty zane’s food truck.

Zesty Zane’s Food Truck is a startup food truck business located in Portland, Oregon. The menu offerings are eclectic, made-to-order, bistro-type dishes served fresh and fast in the entertainment district of Portland. The ingredients are locally-sourced from independent food growers and artisans in and around the Portland region. The dishes are incorporated with an ingenious twist to commonly known popular food menu items. The menu options are simple dishes commonly seen at food trucks, but Chef Zane adds his own spin to the typical fare – sandwiches, gyros, burgers, and tacos all made his way unlike any other food establishment.

Zesty Zane’s Food Truck is owned and operated by Zane Benedict, a local Chef classically trained in culinary school and under the most prestigious chefs in Portland. Chef Zane is known for his creativity, consistency, and quickness in the kitchen and his dishes receive multiple positive reviews in the restaurants Zane has been employed. Chef Zane specializes in fine French, Italian, and Mediterranean cuisine with a creative twist not typically found in other restaurant establishments.

Zesty Zane’s Food Truck History

After graduating from culinary school in 2008, Chef Zane Benedict worked as a sous chef in three different restaurants in Portland. All of the chefs Zane worked under were award-winning, locally-acclaimed chefs that frequently trained their apprentices to prepare dishes up to their expectation and standards.

Chef Zane learned a great deal from these chefs and garnered a reputation himself for his creativity and consistency. Now that Zane feels he has learned as much as he can from the senior chefs, he would like to venture out on his own and start his own business. Due to the large amount of capital required to open a full-scale restaurant, Chef Zane decided a food truck business was the most cost-effective option for his operation.

Since incorporation, Zesty Zane’s Food Truck has achieved the following milestones:

• Developed the food truck’s branding image, social media, and website.
• Has a soft hold on a used food truck that recently went out of business.
• Developed and finalized the menu of the dishes Chef Zane will serve.
• Obtained a food permit license to be able to prepare and sell food and drinks in Portland County.
• Obtained a sales and use tax permit for use in Portland County.

Zesty Zane’s Food Truck Products

The following are the types of menu items Zesty Zane’s Food Truck will produce:

Food Truck Industry Analysis

Food truck vendors will continue to perform well over the next five years, benefiting from consumers with deeper pockets who are able to spend on pricier gourmet food options. Revenues are expected to increase to $1.4 billion during this time period.

Food Truck industry operators are expected to continue to experience growth, as generally positive economic conditions and momentum from the gourmet food movement propel growth.

Consumers nowadays demand higher-quality food, a wider variety of styles and tastes, better presentation and, most importantly, more healthy menu options. Therefore, operators that include healthy options on their menus will be best situated for success over the next five years. Vendors that continue to offer unique food options will also be in a strong position by carving out a niche and developing a loyal customer base.

The food truck industry will also benefit from an increase in the urban population, which is expected to comprise the majority of the US population in five years. The food truck industry benefits from agglomeration because it relies on high foot traffic. Additionally, urban dwellers are also more likely to purchase meals rather than cooking at home due to their above-average incomes and limited spare time.

Customer Analysis

Demographic profile of target market.

Zesty Zane’s Food Truck will target the population of Portland that frequently dines in the entertainment district. There is a large food truck area of Portland known as Cartopia, where Chef Zane will set up his business. This area is home to numerous dining establishments, nightlife, bars, clubs, and food trucks. The target market of this area are usually young professionals and college students who have disposable income.

The precise demographics for Portland, Oregon are:

Customer Segmentation

Zesty Zane’s Food Truck will primarily target the following customer profile:

• Local residents of Portland who partake in late-night activities such as socializing with friends or bar-hopping
• Business professionals that work and reside in the Portland Cartopia area – law offices, hospitals, clinics, insurance agencies, retail, and schools
• College students who are in search of fast, cheap, and trendy eats

Competitive Analysis

Direct and indirect competitors.

Zesty Zane’s Food Truck will be competing with other food trucks in the Portland community. A profile of each competitor is below.

Potato Champion

Potato Champion is a local favorite of Portland foodies that is also located in Cartopia. Started in 2008, Potato Champion quickly established itself as a fan favorite for late night food. Potato Champion serves a limited menu of hand cut, twice fried Belgian style fries, a variety of dipping sauces, and their own version of the Canadian classic Poutine, as well as other fry related dishes. They pride themselves in using the highest quality ingredients and focus on an inventive menu that combines tastes from all over the world with one of the most popular foods found on the globe, the french fry.

Potato Champion is open for lunch, dinner, and late-night. They are available for catering and delivery through Postmates. Followers of Potato Champion are also able to purchase swag from their store that includes music, bags, pins, and hoodies.

Started by John Eads in 2009, Pyro Pizza was built out of a 8’x16’ food cart that he custom-built with a cast iron wood fire oven. Aside from wood fired pizza, John also makes his own sodas using all real ingredients and natural cane sugar. John’s belief is that good ingredients make good food. His crew makes many components in-house and sources regional flour, pepperoni, sausage, blue cheese, soda ingredients, and seasonal produce all from Portland businesses and farms. In 2015, Pyro’s expanded to a new sandwich cart, Pyro’s Wicked Wiches – a scratch-made sandwich, soup, chips and cookie food cart.

Pyro’s serves an assortment of wood fire pizzas made from scratch. Their choices are margherita, marinara, arugula and mushroom, pepperoni, quattro formaggi, fennel sausage, veggie bianca, breadsticks, salads, and sodas.

Chicken and Guns

Chicken and Guns is another local favorite among Portland foodies. Also found in Cartopia, Chicken and Guns serves up Latin American chicken, wings, tacos, salad, soup, and their “guns” are crispy seasoned potatoes. The chicken is served by the quarter, half, or whole bird. Another item they are acclaimed for is their peruvian aji sauce, habanero carrot sauce and chimichurri sauce. They have been named the best fried chicken in Portland by the PDX Eater.

Chicken and Guns is open everyday from 11:00 am to 10:00 pm for takeout and delivery options. With a large Instagram and social media following, there is always destined to be a line at the Chicken and Guns food truck.

Competitive Advantage

Zesty Zane’s Food Truck offers several advantages over its competition. Those advantages are:

Food Truck Marketing Plan

Zesty Zane’s Food Truck will offer a unique value proposition to its clientele:

• Delicious food made fresh with locally sourced ingredients using exquisite techniques.
• Located in the ultra-hip food truck area known as Cartopia.
• Great food at a great price. The menu offerings of Zesty Zane’s Food Truck will be accessible to customers of all walks of life.

Promotions Strategy

The promotions strategy for Zesty Zane’s Food Truck are as follows:

Social Media

Zesty Zane’s Food Truck’s main source of marketing will be through social media, primarily their Instagram page. Chef Zane has become adept at taking appealing photographs of his dishes. He will post pictures of his menu and add details on the location and hours of operation. His food truck account already has over 3,000 followers and he posts daily “Coming Soon” teaser photos.

Zesty Zane’s Food Truck will be parked in the immensely popular food truck hub known as Cartopia of Portland. There are dozens of food trucks located in this pod and there is always a crowd of people. Cartopia hosts bands, art shows, shopping events, and other social gatherings to enhance the entertainment vibe of the pod. By being part of Cartopia, Zesty Zane’s Food Truck will receive lots of exposure and traffic.

SEO Website Marketing

Zesty Zane’s Food Truck plans to invest funds into maintaining a strong SEO presence on search engines like Google and Bing. When a person types in “local food truck” or “top food trucks in Portland”, Zesty Zane’s Food Truck will appear in the top three choices. Zesty Zane’s will also invest in their website also to ensure that it is user friendly, always up to date, and displays professional photographs of its menu items and location.

Third Party Delivery Sites

Zesty Zane’s Food Truck will maintain a presence on sites like GrubHub, Uber Eats, Doordash, and Postmates so that people looking for local food with the option of delivery will see Zesty Zane’s listed.

The pricing of Zesty Zane’s Food Truck will be moderate and on par with other food trucks so customers feel they receive value when purchasing their menu items.

Operations Plan

The operations plan for Zesty Zane’s Food Truck is relatively simple as its overhead and cost is small. The functional roles for its employees are as follows:

Operation Functions:

• Chef Zane will run the food truck operation. He will be in charge of inventory, menu creation, food truck marketing, customer service, and bookkeeping. Chef Zane will work every day that he chooses to open the food truck. Chef Zane plans on operating the food truck Tuesday through Sunday 11:00 am to 1:00 am.
• Two part-time cooks that will alternate helping Chef Zane during the hours of operation. As business picks up, there will be two cooks at the same time assisting Chef Zane during peak hours.

Milestones:

Zesty Zane’s Food Truck aims to open in the next 3 months. The following are the milestones needed in order to obtain this goal.

4/15/202X – Purchase food truck

5/1/202X – Finalize menu

5/15/202X – Social media and advertising campaign begins

6/1/202X – Finish cleaning up the food truck and prepare it for operation

6/10/202X – Purchase food and drink inventory, stock truck, and park it at Cartopia

6/11/202X – Grand Opening of Zesty Zane’s Food Truck

Zesty Zane’s Food Truck will be owned and operated by Chef Zane Benedict.

Chef Zane Benedict, Food Truck Owner

Chef Zane Benedict is a Portland native who attended culinary school in San Francisco and returned to Portland to become a part of the world-renowned food scene Portland is uniquely known for. Zane was trained under three different chefs at fine dining establishments in downtown Portland and was awarded Best Sous Chef of Portland in 2017. Chef Zane has won two local culinary competitions, placed runner-up in a statewide competition, and participated in a cooking competition show on the Food Network.

Chef Zane has received numerous awards for his creativity and consistency of his food while being able to prepare dishes in a short amount of time. His ability to prepare food under pressure allows him the unique skill of serving numerous customers without having them undergo long wait times. This will keep customers happy and coming back for more.

Financial Plan

Key revenue & costs.

The revenue drivers for Zesty Zane’s Food Truck will come from the menu items being offered daily.

The cost drivers will be the ingredients and products needed to make the menu items (oil, bread, meat, chicken, produce, drinks) as well as the cooking materials (pots, pans, bowls, plates, utensils, etc.). Other cost drivers will be the overhead expenses of payroll for the part-time employees and propane for the food truck.

Funding Requirements and Use of Funds

• Food Truck Marketing (website design and management) – $5,000

Key Assumptions

The following table outlines the key assumptions required in order to achieve the revenue and cost numbers in the financials and in order to pay off the business loan.

Initial Number of Customers Per Day: 50

Average Menu Item Cost: $9.00

Average Order per Customer: $15.00

Annual Cost for Maintenance of Truck: $10,000

Financial Projections

Income statement, balance sheet, cash flow statement, food truck business plan faqs, what is a food truck business plan.

A food truck business plan is a plan to start and/or grow your food truck business. Among other things, it outlines your business concept, identifies your target customers, presents your marketing plan and details your financial projections.

You can  easily complete your food truck business plan using our Food Truck Business Plan Template here .

What Are the Main Types of Food Truck Companies?

There are a variety of types of food trucks, each specializing in a specific type of cuisine or food item. There are food trucks that sell burgers, cookies, ice cream, tacos, pizza, sandwiches, salads and more.  

What Are the Main Sources of Revenues and Expenses for a Food Truck Business?

The primary source of revenue for food truck businesses is its food and beverage sales. 

The key expenses for a food truck business are food costs, salaries, and transportation expenses. 

How Do You Get Funding for Your Food Truck Business?

Food truck businesses are typically funded through small business loans, personal savings, crowdfunding and credit card financing.  A well-crafted food truck business plan is essential to securing funding.

What are the Steps To Start a Food Truck Business?

Starting a food truck business can be an exciting endeavor. Having a clear roadmap of the steps to start a business will help you stay focused on your goals and get started faster.

1. Develop A Food Truck Business Plan - The first step in starting a business is to create a detailed business plan for your food truck that outlines all aspects of the venture. This should include potential market size and target customers, the services or products you will offer, pricing strategies and a detailed financial forecast.  

2. Choose Your Legal Structure - It's important to select an appropriate legal entity for your food truck business. This could be a limited liability company (LLC), corporation, partnership, or sole proprietorship. Each type has its own benefits and drawbacks so it’s important to do research and choose wisely so that your food truck business is in compliance with local laws.

3. Register Your Food Truck Business - Once you have chosen a legal structure, the next step is to register your food truck business with the government or state where you’re operating from. This includes obtaining licenses and permits as required by federal, state, and local laws. 

4. Identify Financing Options - It’s likely that you’ll need some capital to start your food truck business, so take some time to identify what financing options are available such as bank loans, investor funding, grants, or crowdfunding platforms. 

5. Choose a Location - Whether you plan on operating out of a physical location or not, you should always have an idea of where you’ll be based should it become necessary in the future as well as what kind of space would be suitable for your operations. 

6. Hire Employees - There are several ways to find qualified employees including job boards like LinkedIn or Indeed as well as hiring agencies if needed – depending on what type of employees you need it might also be more effective to reach out directly through networking events. 

7. Acquire Necessary Food Truck Equipment & Supplies - In order to start your food truck business, you'll need to purchase all of the necessary equipment and supplies to run a successful operation. 

8. Market & Promote Your Business - Once you have all the necessary pieces in place, it’s time to start promoting and marketing your food truck business. Food truck marketing includes creating a website, utilizing social media platforms like Facebook or Twitter, and having an effective Search Engine Optimization (SEO) strategy. You should also consider traditional marketing techniques such as radio or print advertising. 

Learn more about how to start a successful food truck business:

• How to Start a Food Truck Business

Where Can I Get a Food Truck Business Plan PDF?

You can download our free food truck business plan template PDF here . This is a sample food truck business plan template you can use in PDF format.

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Food Cart Business Plan [Sample Template]

By: Author Tony Martins Ajaero

Home » Business Plans » Food Sector » Food Truck & Cart

Are you about starting a food cart business ? If YES, here is a complete sample food cart business plan template & feasibility report you can use for FREE .

Starting a food cart might be one of the nicest moves to make. This is hinged on the fact that there are a whole lot of people who are into the consumption of food. In fact it is very essential to human health. Look around you and you will find that there are an avalanche of restaurants that are saddled with catering to the food needs of people.

However, the food cart business is also gaining ore grounds as more and more people are making money from this trade. One thing is however sure, and that is that if you are able to draft a great business plan, you can be sure to work and run with it whilst building your business. Here below is a sample plan to work with;

A Sample Food Cart Business Plan Template

1. industry overview.

The Food Trucks industry has skilled people and van be said to have witnesses a remarkable rise over the past five years, as consumers have increasingly favored unique, gourmet cuisine at budget-conscious prices.

Despite the efforts which the entrepreneurs in this field put into the trade, there is still a high competition and an unfavorable regulatory conditions in some cities in the united states of America that have limited the growth of industry vendors.

Nonetheless, the industry has overtaken the broader food-service sector over the period in terms of revenue growth. Research has shown that soon in 2023, favorable consumer trends will continue to support moderate revenue growth. However, the industry will need to work with community governments to resolve the numerous legal challenges to food cart operations.

The Food Carts industry is in the increasing phase of its life cycle. Nonetheless, growth has increased slightly over the past few years and revenue is still growing at a much faster rate than the larger food-service sector. In the past food carts have progressed better than their food-service counterparts, primarily due to the budget-friendly features of their products and the expanding style of consumers seeking new food concepts.

Besides, the industry continues to progress and new creations are still entering the industry with new concepts. Figures have it that by 2022, industry value added (IVA), which has its measure an industry’s contribution to GDP, is predictable and is likely to grow at an average annual rate of 6.4%.

2. Executive Summary

Buena Foods ® is a leading and standard food cart Company that will be based in Boston – Massachusetts, USA that covers a wide range of clients both individual and corporate clients.

We have been able to lease a standard corner piece facility that is centrally located in the heart of Boston and few minutes drive to Harvard University Community. We have put plans in place to also sell our franchise and offer consultancy services in line with our area of business.

Buena Foods® is established by the Massachusetts awarding winning food nutritionist and caterer – Andrew Hago – Hugo who has B.Sc. in Food Science Technology and a Master’s Degree in Business Administration (MBA) from Harvard Business School.

He also has a robust experience in the food business having worked both in the public sector and the private sector prior to starting his own business.

We are in the food cart Industry to favorably compete with other leading and brands in the industry. Our corporate business goal is to be among the top 10 food cart chain brand in the United States of America.

As a company, we are willing to go the extra mile to invest in some of the finest professionals we can find and also we have set plans in place to acquire the best of equipment when it comes to setting up a standard and first class food cart business.

When it comes to hygiene and proper packaging, we have put plans, process and structures in place that will ensure that we are always at the top of game when it comes to that. We have been able to secure permits from all relevant departments in Massachusetts.

Beyond every reasonable doubt, the demand for goo food isn’t going to plummet any time soon, which is why we have put plans in place to continue to explore all available market around the cities where we are going to be located and ensure that we create a wide range of distribution channels via franchising. With that, we know that we will be able to maximize profits in our business.

Our strongest selling point at Buena Foods ® is the unique taste of the different types of delicacies that we will make and sell. There is hardly any customer that will taste any of our meals who would not want to come back and make more purchase or order more– we take great delight in welcoming repeat customers over and over again.

Buena Foods ® will at all times demonstrate her commitment to sustainability, both individually and as a firm, by actively participating in our communities and integrating sustainable business practices wherever possible. We will ensure that we hold ourselves accountable to the highest standards by meeting our customers need precisely and completely whenever they patronize our products.

We will cultivate a working environment that provides a human, sustainable approach to earning a living, and living in our world, for our partners, employees and for our customers.

Our plan is to position Buena Foods ® to become the leading brand in mobile food industry in the whole of Massachusetts, and also to be amongst the top 10 food cart brand in the United States of America within the first 10 years of starting our business.

This might look too tall a dream but we are optimistic that this will surely come to pass because we have done our research and feasibility studies and we are enthusiastic and confident that Boston – Massachusetts is the right place to launch this type of business before spreading to other cities all across The United States of America.

3. Our Products and Services

At Buena Foods ® we make a wide range of pizzas in terms of sizes and flavors et al; we prepare and serve our meals and other related items. We will also adopt full-service restaurants and quick-service style. As part our strategy to create multiple sources of income in line with our core business concept, we will run a consultancy service and trainings.

Our intention of starting Buena Foods ® is to make profits from the industry and we will do all that is permitted by the law in the US to achieve our aim and ambition. Here are some of our products and services;

• sell lunch (assorted meals)
• sell snacks
• sell assorted drinks (Soft Drinks, Wines, smoothie, and punch, Fruit Juice, amongst others)
• Sell franchise
• Training and consultancy services on mobile truck food business

4. Our Mission and Vision Statement

• To become the leading brand in mobile food cart business in Boston and the whole of United States of America.
• We are in the mobile food truck industry with the aim of constructing a brand that can readily meet the needs of our valued clients in places where they can hardly access standard cafeterias.
• And also to offer entrepreneurs the opportunity and training needed to successfully lunch their own mobile food truck business in other cities in the US.

Our Business Structure

Most people who go into the mobile foods business usually choose the business over the conventional restaurant business; this is because it is perhaps less expensive to manage especially when it comes to taking care of overhead and operational cost.

On the average, mobile food companies usually have 4 or 5 employees under their payroll. Because of the type of mobile food business brand that we intend building, we have been able to make provision for the following employees;

• Chief Operating Officer (Owner)
• Chef / Caterer
• Assistant Caterer

Office Administrator

5. Job Roles and Responsibilities

Chief Operating Officer (owner)

• Responsible for providing direction for the business
• Creates, communicates, and implements the organization’s vision, mission, and overall direction – i.e. leading the development and implementation of the overall organization’s strategy.
• Responsible for the day to day running of the business
• Responsible for fixing prices
• Responsible for recruitment
• Responsible for payment of salaries
• Responsible for signing checks and documents on behalf of the company
• Evaluates the success of the organization

Chef / Caterer /Cooks

• Responsible for preparing delicacies
• Makes lists and budget for kitchen supplies
• Oversees the entire kitchen staff
• Responsible for training new cooks
• Makes sure that the meals being whipped up tastes really good
• Kitchen Assistant / Utility Staff

Assistant the chef/ cook in the kitchen

• Ensures that all the needed cooking ingredients are in supply
• Runs errand for the chef / cook and every member of the workforce
• Ensures that the kitchen area of the truck is clean and hygienic at all times
• Responsible for washing cooking pots, utensil and dishes when necessary
• Assists in packaging food and snacks
• Responsible for moving packed foods from the kitchen to the cubicle / point of sale
• Ensures that various types of drinks are present in the fridge per time (get them replaced as soon as they are sold)
• Any other duty as assigned by the line manager
• Interfaces with our highly esteem customers
• Collects orders and issues foods as demanded by customers after payment
• Keeps proper records of daily sales and then reconcile with the cashier
• Responsible for manning the fridge and every stuffs that are up for sale
• Any other duty as assigned by the Chief Operating Officer
• Receives payments on behalf of the company (POS, cash, mobile money et al)
• Issues receipt to customers
• Prepares financial report at the end of every working week
• Handles all financial transaction on behalf of the company
• Responsible for driving the cart to sales venues and back to base
• Ensures that the cart is in top shape at all times
• Ensures that maintenance schedules for the cart are strictly followed
• Responsible for renewing the vehicle license, insurance and any other documentation for the vehicle as at when due
• Any other duty as assigned by the food cart manager
• Responsible for managing the daily activities of the back end office
• Prepares payroll for the organization
• Prepare monthly financial report for the organization
• Interfaces with vendors and third party suppliers ( drink suppliers, raw food suppliers and maintenance team et al)
• Responds to enquiries on behalf of the company
• Handles phone calls for the company
• Manage the company’s e-mail and website
• Interfaces with our bankers (lodgment of cash, checks and bank drafts et al)
• Responsible for payment of tax, levies and utility bills

6. SWOT Analysis

As a team together with our paid business consultants, we have been able to look both inward and outward, as well as critically assess ourselves and business ideas to know if we are truly ready to launch our mobile food truck business in Boston.

No doubt, we have a lot of factors working in our favor but at the same time we have some factors that we must contend with if we intend becoming the number one brand when it comes to mobile food cart business in Boston and the whole of North America. Below is a summary of the SWOT analysis that was conducted on behalf of Buena Foods® Mobile Food Company;

Aside from the trainings that have been acquired, as well as the hands on experience attained over the years prior to starting Buena Foods ® Company, our strength lies in our financial capacity and determination to succeed in the business at all cost. We have been able to acquire a brand new mobile food preparation vehicle (MFPV).

It has the capacity to meet the needs of well over 500 customers per day. Our strength also lies in the fact that we have relationship with brand experts who are working almost for free for us. With that, will be able to build our brand to a level where we can start selling franchises and offer trainings and consultancy services on mobile food Cart business.

The fact that we are planning to roll out our mobile cart business alongside other similar business offerings like training, consultancy services and sale of franchise could distract us from concentrating and channeling our energy in one direction. We are quite aware of that and we are working towards blocking any area that will sap our energy and make us under performed in our core business area – sale of foods and drinks from a mobile cart.

• Opportunities:

The opportunities that we stand to leverage on are much. The fact that we are not tied down to a location is indeed a good opportunity for us to grow our business to the level we want to grow it to. For example; we can afford to trade foods, snacks and drinks in more than two locations within a day. It is all about knowing when to arrive and leave for another location.

There is hardly any business venture that doesn’t face its own threat. Regarding mobile food cart business, one of the threat that we may likely face is; vehicular traffic in key cities.

Traffic can delay one and as a result of that one may get to the location where one intend selling the foods and drinks late- this could be when the lunch break is over (basically for organized events). Yet another threat is; the government policies, which could also pose a great threat to the mobile food cart industry.

7. MARKET ANALYSIS

• Market Trends

In this dispensation more than ever before, people no longer have sufficient time to do all they would want to do within the available 24 hours. Hence, the rise of fast food restaurants all over the cities. As such, mobile food cart business is another business that is designed to fit into a dispensation like ours. Part of the marketing and sales strategies that we shall adopt include but not limited to the following;

Submit proposals to event management companies to become their official mobile food vendor. Submit proposals to management of public facility (sport centers, beach and schools, et al) to become their official mobile food vendor. Send proposals to schools and corporate organizations to become their official mobile food vendor. Sponsor relevant events, such as cooking competitions, and cultural events, et al.

8. Our Target Market

When it comes to mobile food cart business, there are no restrictions to the market you can explore, as long as you are operating within the law of the state where you are conducting your business. We do not intend to place any limit to the scope of our target market and these are the places / locations where we intend operating our mobile food cart business with the aim of maximizing sales;

• Construction sites
• Tourism locations
• University Campuses
• Carnival ground
• Stadiums and sport centers
• Community Outdoor Events
• Blue Collar work locations
• Farmers Markets
• Industrial Parks
• Movie Recording Location
• Farmers Market
• Military Bases
• Office Complexes
• Mechanic Villages
• Open air shows and programs

When it comes to foods, there is indeed a wide range of available customers. In essence, our target market can’t be restricted to just a group of people, but all those who eating out and of course those who would want to try it out. In view of that, we have conducted our market research and we have ideas of what our target market would be expecting from us. These are the groups of people we intend marketing our pizzas to;

• Corporate Executives
• Government Officials
• Business People
• Celebrities
• Military Men and Women
• Sports Men and Women
• Everyone who resides in our target locations.

Our Competitive Advantage

Loads of factors count towards our advantage as a mobile food cart business operator. The fact that we have the ability to determine where we want to sell our foods and drinks per time gives us the leverage to make as much sales as we can make in a day.

It has been observed that any organization that offers training and consultancy services is always amongst the leaders in their industry and we at Buena Foods Company are set to tow along this part because we want to become experts and amongst the leading mobile food truck company in the whole of the US.

We have put plans in place to facilitate continuous improvement on what we do, because we know that is one of the factors that will be give us competitive advantage in the market place. Another competitive advantage that we have as a company is the size and condition of or food truck.

We have been able to purchase a brand new retrofitted food cart with the entire required gadget. It is big enough to accommodate all that we would need for the business, we are going to spend less on maintenance and we can easily obtain approval from the appropriate authorities.

9. SALES AND MARKETING STRATEGY

• Sources of Income

Businesses that do pretty well are businesses that have more than one source where they generate revenue. It is risky to run a business where you can only generate income from just one source. The truth is that if anything goes wrong with the source of income, the business might likely collapse.

This is why we worked hard to provide you with a sample food truck marketing plan template to help you through the process. The big picture we have for Buena Foods ® Mobile Food Company is to generate income from the following sources;

• Sales of launch (meals)
• Sales of Snacks
• Offering training services
• Offering consultancy services in line with our business goal
• Sales of drinks
• Sales of our franchise

10. Sales Forecast

It is important to state that our sales forecast is based on the data gathered during our feasibility studies and also assumptions. This is for sales projections based on what we saw.

• 1000 lunches per day (on average), 12 months per year
• $20 per person on the average
• 1500 snacks per day, 12 months per year
• $5 per person on the average
• Sales of Drinks and Water et al:

On the average over 80% of people who purchase lunch (meal) and snacks would normally consume drinks as well.

• $1.5 for a bottle of coke

This equates to 2000 drinks in a day when you multiply 2000 by 1.5 we will make an estimate of $3000 daily from the sale of drinks alone

• Marketing Strategy and Sales Strategy

Before choosing a location to launch Buena Foods® and also the types and the types of foods we prepare, we conducted a thorough market survey and feasibility studies in order for us to be able to be able to penetrate the available market in the cities where we intend positioning our business.

We have detailed information and data that we were able to utilize to structure our business to attract the numbers of customers we want to attract per time and also for our products to favorable compete with other leading food cart brands in Boston – Massachusetts and the whole of the United States of America.

We hired experts who have good understanding of the industry to help us develop marketing strategies that will help us achieve our business goal of winning a larger percentage of the available market Boston – Massachusetts and throughout the United States of America where we intend selling our franchise.

In other to continue to be in business and grow, we must continue to sell our products to the available market which is why we will go all out to empower or sales and marketing team to deliver our corporate sales goals. In summary, Buena Foods ® will adopt the following sales and marketing approach to sell our pizzas and soft drinks;

• Introduce our food brand by sending introductory letters to residence, merchants and other stakeholders both in Boston – Massachusetts and in other cities in the United States of America
• Open our food cart business with a party and free meals so as to capture the attention of residence who are our first targets
• Engage in road show in targeted communities from time to time to sell our products
• Advertise our products in community based newspapers, local TV and radio stations
• List our business and products on yellow pages ads (local directories)
• Leverage on the internet to promote our mobile food brands
• Engage in direct marketing and sales
• Encourage the use of Word of mouth marketing (referrals)

11. Publicity and Advertising Strategy

Despite the fact that our food cart company is a standard one with a wide range of flavors and products that can favorably compete with other leading brands in the United States, we will still go ahead to intensify publicity for all our products and brand. We are going to explore all available means to promote our services ®

Buena Foods ® has a long term plan of opening outlets in various locations all around the United States of America and also to sell our franchise which is why we will purposefully build our brand to be well accepted in Boston – Massachusetts before venturing out to other cities in the United States of America.

As a matter of fact, our publicity and advertising strategy is not solely for selling our products but to also effectively communicate our brand. Here are the platforms we intend leveraging on to promote and advertise Buena Foods

• Place adverts on both print (community based newspapers and magazines) and electronic media platforms
• Sponsor relevant community programs
• Leverage on the internet and social media platforms like; Instagram, Facebook , twitter, et al to promote our brand
• Install our Bill Boards on strategic locations all around major cities in the United States of America
• Engage in road show from time to time in targeted communities
• Distribute our fliers and handbills in target areas
• Position our Flexi Banners at strategic positions in the location where we intend getting customers to start patronizing our products.
• Ensure that all our staff members wear our customized clothes, and all our official cars and distribution vans are customized and well branded.

12. Our Pricing Strategy

Generally food cart business sells meals, and snacks at a cheaper rate when compared to the conventional fixed – restaurant. We don’t have any plans to sell our foods, snacks and drinks beyond the prices that is obtainable in the industry.

That does not mean that we will fall below standard when it comes to the quality of our food. As a matter of fact, one of our strongest selling points will be the taste and perhaps the quantity of our foods when compared to our competitors.

From our market survey and feasibility studies, we are sure going to make reasonable profits even when we sell a little below the average price for package foods and snacks in the food cart industry, especially if the location we intend selling our foods and drinks is not far away from our base.

• Payment Options

At Biena Foods ®, our payment policy is all inclusive because we are quite aware that different people prefer different payment options as it suits them. Here are the payment options that will be available in every of our outlets;

• Payment by cash
• Payment via Point of Sale (POS) Machine
• Payment via online bank transfer (online payment portal)
• Payment via Mobile money

In view of the above, we have chosen banking platforms that will help us achieve our payment plans without any itches.

13. Startup Expenditure (Budget)

When it comes to starting a standard food cart business, one is expected to spend the bulk of the start – up capital on equipping for the business. Aside from that, you are not expected to spend much except for purchasing distribution vans, paying of your employees and utility bills.

This is the key areas where we will spend our start – up capital;

• The Total Fee for Registering the Business in Boston – Massachusetts – $750.
• Legal expenses for obtaining licenses and permits as well as the accounting services (software, P.O.S machines and other software) – $1,300.
• Marketing promotion expenses for the grand opening of Buena Food Cart Business Company®; in the amount of $3,500 and as well as flyer printing (2,000 flyers at $0.04 per copy) for the total amount of – $3,580.
• Cost for hiring Business Consultant – $2,500.
• Insurance (general liability, workers’ compensation and property casualty) coverage at a total premium – $2,400.
• Cost for payment of rent for 12 month at $1.76 per square feet in the total amount of $105,600.
• Cost for construction of a standard bakery – $100,000.
• Other start-up expenses including stationery ($500) and phone and utility deposits ($2,500).
• Operational cost for the first 3 months (salaries of employees, payments of bills et al) – $100,000
• The cost for Start-up inventory (raw materials and packaging materials et al) – $80,000
• Storage hardware (bins, rack, shelves, food case) – $3,720
• The cost for counter area equipment (counter top, sink, ice machine, etc.) – $9,500
• Cost for yogurt making equipment – $20,000
• Cost for store equipment (cash register, security, ventilation, signage) – $13,750
• Cost of purchase of distribution vans – $50,000
• The cost for the purchase of furniture and gadgets (Computers, Printers, Telephone, TVs, Sound System, tables and chairs et al) – $4,000.
• The cost of Launching a Website – $600
• The cost for our opening party – $10,000
• Miscellaneous – $10,000

We would need an estimate of $500,000 to successfully set up our Food Cart delivery company in Boston – Massachusetts. Please note that this amount includes the salaries of the entire staff member for the first month of operation.

Generating Funding / Startup Capital for Buena Food Cart Business®

Buena Food Cart® is a family business that is owned and financed by Mr. Andrew Hago – and Family. They do not intend to welcome any external business partner which is why he has decided to restrict the sourcing of the start – up capital to 3 major sources.

These are the areas we intend generating our start – up capital;

• Generate part of the start – up capital from personal savings and sell of stocks
• Source for soft loans from family members and friends
• Apply for loan from my Bank

N.B: We have been able to generate about $100,000 (Personal savings $80,000 and soft loan from family members $20,000) and we are at the final stages of obtaining a loan facility of $400,000 from our bank. All the papers and document have been signed and submitted, the loan has been approved and any moment from now our account will be credited with the amount.

14. Sustainability and Expansion Strategy

The future of a business lies in the numbers of loyal customers that they have the capacity and competence of the employees, their investment strategy and the business structure. If any of these factors is missing from a business (company), then it won’t be too long before the business close shop.

Buena Foods ® will ensure that all the factors listed above are reinforced on a regular basis, we will continue to improvise with our products, come up with pleasant and acceptable flavors and also we will engage in continuous capacity building of our workforce. As a matter of fact, profit-sharing arrangement will be made available to all our management staff and it will be based on their performance for a period of five years or more.

We will make sure that the right foundation, structures and processes are put in place to ensure that staff welfare are well taken of. Our company’s corporate culture is designed to drive our business to greater heights and training and re – training of our workforce is at the top burner. We have the plans of

Check List / Milestone

• Business Name Availability Check:>Completed
• Business Registration: Completed
• Opening of Corporate Bank Accounts: Completed
• Securing Point of Sales (POS) Machines: Completed
• Opening Mobile Money Accounts: Completed
• Opening Online Payment Platforms: Completed
• Application and Obtaining Tax Payer’s ID: In Progress
• Application for business license and permit: Completed
• Purchase of Insurance for the Business: Completed
• Leasing of facility and construction of standard Bakery: In Progress
• Conducting Feasibility Studies: Completed
• Generating capital from family members: Completed
• Applications for Loan from the bank: In Progress
• Writing of Business Plan: Completed
• Drafting of Employee’s Handbook: Completed
• Drafting of Contract Documents and other relevant Legal Documents: In Progress
• Design of The Company’s Logo: Completed
• Graphic Designs and Printing of Packaging Marketing / Promotional Materials: In Progress
• Recruitment of employees: In Progress
• Purchase of the Needed furniture, racks, shelves, computers, electronic appliances, office appliances and CCTV: In progress
• Creating Official Website for the Company: In Progress
• Creating Awareness for the business both online and around the community: In Progress
• Health and Safety and Fire Safety Arrangement (License): Secured
• Opening party / launching party planning: In Progress
• Establishing business relationship with vendors – wholesale suppliers / merchants: In Progress
• Purchase of delivery vans: Completed

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A Sample Food Truck Business Plan Template

The food truck concept has been around for centuries, right from when street vendors in ancient Rome made and sold delicacies to the public using wooden street carts. Today, that concept and the accompanying menus have evolved from just simple street food to different, complicated cuisines.

If you are looking to start a food truck business, you need a well-researched and detailed business plan. Aside from helping you cover all your bases, it makes available vital information about your new endeavor to potential investors. Since putting together a food truck business plan is such a vital step, it is advisable you write it before you even purchase a food truck.

Steps on How to Write a Food Truck Business Plan

Executive summary.

Beta Life Chops will be located in a large food cart pod near Portland’s Jade district known as Eastport Food Center. Our menu will include popular food options made with the creativity and uniqueness that our truck represents. Our eclectic style and consistency will make us a favorite among Portland foodies and ensure that our food maintains a loyal following amongst young professionals and college students.

With Eastport Food Centre nestled in one of the city’s most diverse neighborhoods and with an impressive social media following, Beta Life Chops is well-positioned to become a local go-to dining destination for anyone eager for a good, delicious, interesting fare at an affordable price.

Company Profile

A. our products and services.

• Hot Products: Burritos, tacos, flautas, Hunan Vegetables, Shanghai chicken, grilled chicken, Grilled cheese, pretzels, the chef specialty of the day
• Cold products: Seafood, sandwiches, rolls, wraps, and salads
• Drinks: Soda, freshly squeezed juices, hot chocolate, wine, beer, coffee
• Create your own: We will make available raw materials for our clients to combine anyway they want

b. Nature of the Business

• Specifically for food-conscious modern buyers
• Attending to all age groups
• Healthy choices
• Top menu customization
• Website and mobile app
• Festive truck event catering
• Customer feedback is an utmost priority
• Consulting chefs developing recipes
• Create your own recipe

c. The Industry

Our business will operate in the food truck industry. This industry is made up of businesses that are engaged in preparing and serving meals from a mobile truck.

d. Mission Statement

Our mission at Beta Life Chops is to create and serve a product line that fits nicely with health trends nationwide.

e. Vision Statement

Our vision at Beta Life Chops is to offer our customers out-of-this-world meals inspired by our eclectic style and consistency. We will always maintain a simple philosophy – serve only the highest quality product, prepare it in a clean and sparkling environment, and serve it in a warm and friendly manner.

f. Tagline or Slogan

Beta Life Chops – Trendy with Happiness

g. Legal Structure of the Business (LLC, C Corp, S Corp, LLP)

Beta Life Chops will be a member-managed Limited Liability Company, formed in the state of Oregon and operating out of a custom-built food truck in Jade District Portland. We believe that the LLC provides us adequate cover and protection to grow and diversify our revenue streams.

h. Organizational Structure

• Food Truck Manager
• Assistant Food Truck Manager
• Window Attendant
• Truck Cooks

 i. Ownership/Shareholder Structure and Board Members

Beta Life Chops will be a member-managed Limited Liability Company, formed in the state of Oregon and operating out of a custom-built food truck in Jade District Portland. Our Head Chef and Truck Manager Lillian Birch and Michelle William the Assistant Food Truck Manager remain the owner-operators and will share the responsibilities of day-to-day operations.

SWOT Analysis

A. strength.

Aside from the hands-on experience of our founders and chef, our strength lies in our financial capacity and eagerness to succeed in the business.

We have purchased a brand new mobile food preparation vehicle (MFPV) that can meet the needs of over 500 customers per day. We have also developed relationships with brand experts who will help to build our brand to a level where we can start selling franchises.

b. Weakness

Our intention of running our mobile truck business alongside other similar business offerings like training, consultancy services, and sale of the franchise can distract us from focusing our energy in one direction. We totally understand this and are striving to block any area that will sap our energy and make us underperform in our core business area – the sale of foods and drinks.

c. Opportunities

Our business location presents a massive opportunity for us at Beta Life Chops. Eastport Food Center is a large food cart pod near Portland’s Jade District, well situated in one of the city’s most diverse neighborhoods, and the 25 carts that reside here reflect that.

i. How big is the Industry?

According to industry reports, the market size of the US food truck industry measured by revenue is $1.2bn in 2023.

ii. Is the Industry Growing or Declining?

The US food truck industry is growing rapidly and has outpaced the broader foodservice sector. Reports have it that it experienced a boom over the five years to 2022 owing to the surge in gastronomy in the United States. It is still expected to grow at an annualized rate of 6.6% in the coming years.

iii. What are the Future Trends in the Industry

Here are the top trends in the industry according to experts.

• Rising demand for environmentally friendly food
• Growing vegan options and meat-plant blends
• More event partnerships and promotions
• More commercial restaurants experimenting with food trucks
• Increased technology and social media
• More peanut butter alternatives
• Flour alternatives
• West African cuisine
• Refined sugar alternatives

iv. Are There Existing Niches in the Industry?

When looking to start a food truck business, here are some niche ideas to look into;

• Preparing and serving food from a mobile truck
• Preparing and serving beverages from a mobile truck
• Preparing and serving dessert from a mobile truck
• Serving prepackaged food and beverages from a mobile truck

v. Can You Sell a Franchise of your Business in the Future?

Yes, our plan at Beta Life Chop is to build our brand to a level where we can start selling franchises and offer training and consultancy services in the mobile food truck industry.

At Beta Life Chops, one of the threats that we may likely face is vehicular traffic in key cities. Traffic can delay not just our clients but our truck from getting to our business location before lunch break is over. In addition, government policies could also pose a great threat to the mobile food truck industry.

i. Who are the Major Competitors?

• LGM Delicacies
• Eastport Beer Garden
• Grubtopia Comfort Soul Food(BBQ)
• Los Parceros (Colombian Food)
• Indian Hunger Point
• Lei’d Back Hawaiian Cuisine
• Samurai Sushi
• Off the Leash (Chicago Hot Dog)
• Japanese Express
• Northwest Gyros(Gyro &Shawarma)
• Bobablastic (Drinks & meals)
• Esan Thai (Thai Food)
• Mas Sabor ( Mexican Food)
• Turkish Agha (Turkish Cuisine)

ii. Is There a Franchise for Food Truck Business?

• Repicci’s real italian ice & gelato: $152,150 – $176,400
• Wayback burgers: $209,000 – $524,500
• Little caesars mobile pizza kitchen: $221,000 – $654,000
• Kona ice: $150,400 – $174,150
• Dairy queen: $1,101,135 – $1,856,655
• Cousins maine lobster: $187,150 – $815,450
• Johnny rockets: $597,100 – $1,189,000
• Toppers pizza: $292,146 – $530,652
• Gigi’s cupcakes: $226,700 – $425,500
• Captain d’s seafood: $709,300 – $1,231,400
• Cafe2u: $109,146 – $154,621
• Cheezious: $499,000 – $1,158,000
• Ice cream emergency: $129,700 – $179,650
• Sweet pea homemade ice cream: $40,250 – $110,500
• Mister softee: $158,500 – $181,000
• Tikiz shaved ice & ice cream: $132,000 – $144,000

iii. Are There Policies, Regulations, or Zoning Laws Affecting Food Truck Business?

Yes, the requirements to start a food truck business in the United States varies from state to state and even city to city. Food truck regulations most often fall into three major categories: health, zoning, and vehicle requirements. Health regulations handle the sort of equipment your truck must have, what permits you and your employees need, and whether you need a commissary kitchen.

Zoning regulations note the places you are permitted to park your truck for service, what types of neighborhoods are not allowed, and where you can park your truck overnight. There will also be laws on what type of vehicle you can use, what emissions regulations your truck must meet, where you need to register your vehicle, and if your truck driver needs to have a commercial driver’s license (CDL).

Marketing Plan

A. who is your target audience.

i. Age range

At Beta Life Chops, we believe our target audience will fall within the age range of 14 to 45 years.

ii. Level of Educational

The level of education of our target audience will vary exponentially. There is a middle school and high school in our town. We expect students from these schools to frequent our business location.

iii. Income Level

The income level of our target market will be individuals that earn from $2,400 annually and above.

iv. Ethnicity

Our target market at Beta Life Chops will include anyone who is looking to taste local cuisine without having to pause what they’re doing and take time to go to a restaurant.

v. Language

There are no language restrictions at Beta Life Chops.

vi. Geographical Location

Our aim at Beta Life Chop is to serve the residents of Portland, Oregon, and surrounding areas as well as those who work in the Jade District.

vii. Lifestyle

• Families and Couples
• Local office workers
• Soccer/stay-at-home moms

b. Advertising and Promotion Strategies

• Interact with the local establishments like unions and service organizations and inform them about our business. In addition, offer them catering service for their events.
• Align with the right people that can be advantageous to our food business like event coordinators, tour guides, hotel personnel, etc.
• Speak to local companies’ management and offer to cater their events.
• Attend all the local events, like a farmers market, arts festivals, and carnivals.
• Always be easygoing and friendly with our prospective customers and never try to be too insistent.
• Always get involved in the local community’s activities
• Distribute our promotional business flyers and paper menus. We believe that the more we advertise the more advantage we will have over competitors.

i. Traditional Marketing Strategies

• Ensure that our food truck exterior is extra appealing to attract passing customers
• Distribute food samples outside our food truck
• Advertise in local papers and magazines
• Sponsored listings on Yelp or other websites
• Participation in delivery services such as Uber Eats, DoorDash, etc

ii. Digital Marketing Strategies

• Reaching out to local bloggers and websites
• Social media advertising
• Partnerships with local organizations (e.g., gym members get a free fruit cup with each wrap they purchase)
• Local radio advertising
• Develop a customer loyalty program

iii. Social Media Marketing Plan

• Pay Per Click
• Use Facebook Advertising.
• Show Your Truck and Coils At Work On Instagram
• Encourage Engagement
• Post Consistently
• Make Posts Visual and Add Relevant Hashtag
• Engage with Customers and Followers
• Post About Food and Food Trucks

c. Pricing Strategy

At Beta Life Chops, our pricing will be moderate so customers will feel that they are getting great value when patronizing our trucks. We will also ensure that our pricing stays moderate and at par with competitors.

Sales and Distribution Plan

A. sales channels.

At Best Life Chops, our website and mobile app will bring our products to the eyes of the public. In addition, our presence at Eastport Food Centre will not go unnoticed as we will have nicely decorated trucks, food tasting events, and mini-contests. We will participate in fairs and local events and we will cater to weddings and parties.

b. Inventory Strategy

After extensive research, we intend to achieve a level of order accuracy and make everything easier by leveraging mobile POS software.

We believe that the Tablet-based ordering screens will offer our customer-facing person an easy way to input orders. This will ensure that sending orders to the cook, or remembering the nuances of each order becomes easier.

c. Payment Options for Customers

• Payment with cash
• Payment via credit cards
• Payment via online bank transfer
• Payment via mobile money transfer

d. Return Policy, Incentives, and Guarantees

At Best Life Chop, we will have an easy refund policy, with a 100 percent satisfaction guarantee. Since we are great at what we do, we will always take care of every customer complaint, including a full refund if that’s what it takes. Our other refund options include offering customers a replacement meal or coupons that give free meals for their use in the future. If they choose a refund for their meal, we will only refund in the same form of currency used for the purchase.

e. Customer Support Strategy

• Always make delicious food made fresh with locally sourced ingredients using exquisite techniques.
• Ensure that foods maintain their quality and taste.
• Having multiple foods for customers to choose from.
• Being flexible enough to cater to special requests by customers.
• Ensuring to get customers’ feedback and being open to suggestions.
• Leveraging social media and other tools to increase business reach.
• Using CRM to manage the database of clients.
• Considering customers’ opinions before making any major decision

Operational Plan

A. what happens during a typical day at a food truck business.

In this line of business, this is how a normal day goes;

• You have to begin early by picking up the truck and heading to the commercial kitchen space where you’ll prepare your menu items.
• After preparation, you have to move your truck to your parking location as soon as possible.
• See to the culinary needs of your customers as swiftly and efficiently as possible, especially if you have a weekday lunchtime location.
• Drive your truck back to the commissary or storage location where you can legally dispose of grease, wastewater, and other cooking waste, and thoroughly clean your vehicle.
• When not cooking or serving clients, you will have to reach out to your market via social media or the production of flyers, and other means of marketing your business.
• Gas up your vehicle and inspect it for repairs.
• Shop for your food ingredients daily or every few days. Your storage space will be limited, so you’ll shop often.

b. Production Process

At Beta Life Chop, one of our USPs (unique, selling, point) is that our foods will be cooked fresh in front of our customers. We understand that people want fresh food and not something that has been cooked a day or so before. Owing to that, our production process involves preparing and cooking their food in front of them.

c. Service Procedure

At Beta Life, we need to prepare the truck and pick up daily fresh food supply, after which we will proceed to our commissary kitchen to prepare some of the meals. We then have to load up the truck and head to our sales location where we will now finish the meal preparation as each customer demands.

We will consult with specialized chefs to develop our base of proprietary food recipes and sauces. Also note that we will offer desserts, drinks, and also cater special events. For such occasions, we will use our festive truck specially painted and decorated for the event.

d. The Supply Chain

Our aim is to only make use of fresh products sourced from locally grown organic crops. Have it in mind that our prices will be almost the same as those of any fast food, which will encourage the vast majority of customers to want to try our food.

e. Sources of Income

Our primary source of revenue includes;

• Food and beverage sales
• Food truck consultation

Financial Plan

A. amount needed to start your food truck business.

We need around $40,000 to $200,000 to start up Beta Life Chops.

b. What are the Cost Involved?

• Purchasing a Food Truck: $5,000
• Vehicle Inspection: $500
• Retrofitting and Bringing Our Truck to Code: $25,000
• Generator: $2,500
• POS Software System and Hardware: $1,500
• Paint: $1,000
• Truck Wrap: $2,500
• Initial Food Purchases $2,000
• Utensils, Papers, and Goods: $2,000
• Permits and licensing: $2,300
• Website Design: $500
• Initial Office Equipment and Supplies: $1,000
• Advertising and Public Relations: $2,000
• Professional, Legal, and Consulting Fees: $2,000

c. Do You Need to Build a Facility?

No, Beta Life Chops will be started in Eastport Food Centre and operated out of a custom-built food truck in Jade District Portland.

d. What are the Ongoing Expenses for Running a Food Truck Business?

• Commercial Kitchen and Commissary Rent
• Monthly Credit Card Processing Fees
• Truck maintenance

e. What is the Average Salary of your Staff?

• Food Truck Manager: $48, 072
• Assistant Food Truck Manager: $35,734
• Window Attendant: $31,330
• Truck Cooks: $28,442
• Prep Cooks: $21,780

f. How Do You Get Funding to Start a Food Truck Business

• Equipment loan/financing program
• Rollover for business startups (ROBS)
• Business credit cards
• Personal loan
• A microloan from Small Business Administration (SBA)

Financial Projection

A. how much should you charge for your product/service.

To find out a good price point for your products and offerings, you should observe other food trucks in your location. Find out how many meals they serve on a typical lunch hour and how much they charge. However, remember to be conservative in your estimation, and figure out how much you need to make to be profitable daily. Divide the number of meals you expect to serve by this number and this is what each meal should cost to hit that number.

b. Sales Forecast?

• First Fiscal Year (FY1): $120,000
• Second Fiscal Year (FY2): $270,000
• Third Fiscal Year (FY3): $490,000

c. Estimated Profit You Will Make a Year?

At Beta Life Chops, we expect to make;

• First Fiscal Year (FY1): $36,000 (30% of revenue generated)
• Second Fiscal Year (FY2): $121,500 (45% of revenue generated)
• Third Fiscal Year (FY3): $269,500 (55% of revenue generated)

d. Profit Margin of a Food Truck Business 

In this line of business, a 30 percent profit margin is encouraging, but it will depend on your location, competition, efficiency, among other factors.

Growth Plan

A. how do you intend to grow and expand .

Our plan at Beta Life Chop is to build our brand to a level where we can start selling franchises and offer training and consultancy services in the mobile food truck industry.

b. Where do you intend to expand to and why?

• Bethany, Portland, OR
• Cedar Mill, Portland, OR.
• Oak Hills, Portland, OR
• West Linn, Portland, OR.
• Lake Oswego, Portland, OR
• Camas, Washington
• Stafford, Portland

Our reason for choosing these locations is because trucks flourish in their culinary scene, though in Portland they are called food carts.

At Beta Life Chops, we envisage family succession as our business exit strategy. We strongly believe that this business exit strategy, unlike others, does not require that much involvement of external parties. In addition, it is also one of the easiest and most straightforward options when done right, and we hope to put together a well-detailed plan to ensure success.

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How to Start a Food Truck Business

Many or all of the products featured here are from our partners who compensate us. This influences which products we write about and where and how the product appears on a page. However, this does not influence our evaluations. Our opinions are our own. Here is a list of our partners and here's how we make money .

1. Plan your costs and find a truck

2. get approved by the board of health, 3. get permits and licenses, 4. decide how you’re going to prepare your food, 5. hire employees and get mobile food vendor badges, 6. figure out where to park, 7. start marketing and promoting your food truck, 8. consider using a point-of-sale system, 9. perfect your day-to-day plan, the bottom line.

Lining the streets and sidewalks of every corner with cheap, tasty eats, food trucks — once thought to be just a fad — have proven they’re here to stay. In the past several years, the multi-billion-dollar food truck industry has become increasingly popular as sidewalk chefs reinvent street food, launching the gourmet food truck craze. From 2016 to 2021, the industry saw a 7.5% growth rate, according to Los Angeles-based industry-research firm IBISWorld — and it doesn’t seem to be slowing down anytime soon.

However, starting a food truck business is not as simple as buying a truck and cooking up some food. With any new entrepreneurial endeavor, and particularly food businesses , there is a lot of planning and preparation required even before you get into the details of the actual operation.

In this guide, we’ll walk you through, step by step, how to start a food truck. Plus, we’ll include tips from Debbie and Derek Kaye — who run the booming tri-state food truck business, Eddies Pizza Truck & Cart.

Before we break down our steps on how to start a food truck business specifically, let’s briefly discuss some of the actions you’ll want to take first — when you start a food truck, or any other business:

Write a business plan: Although you may want to get your food truck up and running as soon as possible, a well-thought-out business plan will certainly help you in the long run. By thinking out your long-term plan ahead of time, you’ll have a guide to follow as you continue through the process of starting your food truck.

Choose your business legal structure: Before you start thinking about trucks, cooking and where to park, you’ll need to decide how your business will legally be structured. Will you operate as a sole proprietorship or maybe a partnership? A business attorney or online legal service may be useful in helping you make this decision.

Register your business: Once you’ve determined your legal structure, you’ll want to register your business name, if necessary, as well as register for federal, state and local taxes. You’ll more than likely need to get an employee identification number, or EIN, from the IRS.

Open a business bank account: After you’ve registered for your taxes, you’ll want to open a business bank account as the first crucial step in separating your business and personal finances. This account will be the base for you to manage and organize your funds as you go through the process of starting a food truck.

At this point, you’ll be in good shape to actually get your business off the ground. Let’s break down how to start a food truck:

First, you’ll need to think about costs.

How much does it cost to start a food truck? It’s hard to give an accurate estimate for startup costs because there are so many possibilities in what you’ll need to get started. First, you’ll have to find the right truck for your business and you’ll likely have to get it custom made to fit your needs, which can cost anywhere from $20,000 and $40,000. You’ll also want to consider costs such as:

Ingredients and food.

Salary and benefits for employees.

Technology to operate your truck.

Marketing, advertising and more.

Your actual truck will be the largest and most pressing expense you’ll need to pay for. Before settling on a truck, you’ll want to have a few layout options, keeping in mind what specifically you’ll need for your food truck business.

You might consult various food truck vendors or other business owners to get a sense of what different layouts look like and which one might work best for you. It’s important to also keep in mind that things tend to break a lot more on a truck, cautioned Debbie Kaye, so you’ll want to make sure you consider this in your planning process and have enough finances on hand in case the inevitable happens.

“Appliances weren’t meant to be on wheels, so they frequently need repairing,” she tells us.

With this in mind, you might also think about your various food truck financing options — such as different loans and business credit cards — to cover many of your startup costs.

How much do you need?

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We’ll start with a brief questionnaire to better understand the unique needs of your business.

Once we uncover your personalized matches, our team will consult you on the process moving forward.

Next, you’ll have to sort through the rules and regulations you’ll need to abide by. As a food-based business, there will definitely be more considerations to take within this regard.

Therefore, you’ll likely want to first determine what Board of Health regulations you need to follow. It probably isn’t surprising to learn that just like health department inspectors check food at restaurants, the same goes for food trucks. Most inspections are conducted to at least verify the following:

Proof of ownership, identification and license of the vehicle.

Proof of District-issued Food Manager Identification Card.

Food is stored and kept at proper temperature.

Records of food purchase.

Health and fire codes are met.

After figuring out your health requirements, the next step involved in how to start a food truck is getting the necessary permits and business licenses. Once again, because starting a food truck business means handling food and serving it to customers, there will likely be a variety of regulations and permit requirements to sort through. Additionally, the specific licenses and permits you need will depend largely on your state and city.

In fact, some cities, including New York City, have limits on the number of truck permits issued at a time. You’ll want to visit your city’s website to find out exactly what you need to do to get the proper documentation. Keep in mind that this process may take time and will also likely include fees and proof of a Health Department permit, tax certification and liability coverage.

Once you’ve figured out the behind-the-scenes details and decided on your truck, it’s time to think about your product.

After all, a crucial part of learning how to start a food truck business is deciding what kind of food you’re going to make and sell, how that process will work, what you’ll need and what your menu will look like. As you think about these things and start making decisions, you’ll want to remember that unlike starting a restaurant with a brick-and-mortar location, a food truck has limited space — so it can be difficult to prepare food inside.

Therefore, you’ll want to decide whether it’s best for your business to prepare food ahead of time before heading out for the day’s work or if you can feasibly prepare everything on-site. Additionally, when perfecting your recipes, you’ll want to make sure the food on your menu can be repeated in large quantities, taste consistently good, is easy to serve, is easy to eat and can travel well.

With a food plan in mind, the next thing you’ll need to do when starting a food truck is think about hiring staff. In a small environment like a food truck, you obviously won’t be able to have too many employees, but depending on your food, process and the demand you may face, you’ll want to consider hiring help.

When you first start out, you may be able to work with friends, family or a partner, but if your food truck grows quickly, some part-time or full-time employees will likely be helpful. Plus, when it comes to food truck employees, you’ll need to go beyond the typical process of hiring and onboarding a team member.

To explain, aside from all the licenses and permits you need to get as a business owner, each of your employees needs to have a mobile food vendor badge in order to legally work and serve food in your truck. And, unfortunately, it takes about four months to get this badge.

“It is really frustrating to hire someone and tell them they can’t begin working for four months,” says Kaye. “It is quite the backward system that the food truck association has been trying to work on getting fixed, but no luck so far. If [you’re] caught without the badge, it is a $1,000 fine.”

If you anticipate you’ll need staff for your food truck, you’ll want to get this process out of the way and hire your first employee from the get-go. “It’s even more frustrating,” says Kaye, “because if your business loses an employee, you have to wait four months for a new employee to obtain their badge, which means that you might not have enough employees to work lunch and dinner services.”

One of the benefits (and also challenges) of starting a food truck business is the mobile element. While you have the ability to go (to a certain extent) where your customers are, you’ll also need to figure out where the best places are to attract customers, and perhaps just as importantly where you can and cannot park your truck.

Just as is the case with licenses and permits, the restrictions around parking for your food truck are going to be specific to your city; therefore, you’ll want to consult your local regulations to determine what your options are.

It’s very likely that if you’re in a larger location, like New York City, this process will be all the more difficult.

“Technically there is a book that lists where you can and can’t park,” says Kaye. “However, there is a loophole in the system and trucks can be moved by the police at any time from any spot. It is quite frustrating.”

These strict rules and regulations on New York City’s streets had the Kayes paying fines up to $1,000 a month at one time. According to Kaye, finding parking has only become more complicated as more gourmet food trucks are appearing around the city.

With this in mind, you’ll want to take extra care to determine the rules (and any possible loopholes) for your particular location.

First, you’ll need to plan and execute some marketing tactics to inform the local community of your food truck’s existence.

You might plan a “grand opening,” or see if you can take part in a local event to draw up attention and customers. You’ll also want to consider starting a website and social media presence, as well as advertising around town.

Moreover, as a mobile business, whose location can change on a daily basis, it’s important to keep your customers aware of where you’ll be. Whether this means making an established schedule on a weekly basis or simply keeping your customers up to date on your website or social media accounts, you’ll need to keep this in mind.

Although you may very well be able to run your food truck with a paper-based order system and a cash drawer, you might consider investing in a point-of-sale system to automate the process. With your food truck POS system , you’ll be able to manage orders, accept payments (including credit cards), as well as track inventory, create loyalty programs and more.

In fact, there are a variety of POS systems on the market designed specifically for food trucks.

By using one of these systems, you’ll be able to manage everything in one place, speed up and simplify your processes, and therefore, better serve your customers. This is especially important for food trucks, which often experience a rush of customers for a few short hours a day — meaning customers can end up waiting in long lines. In this case, you might consider using a pre-order system to help your food truck handle this kind of rush in business.

According to Kaye, running a food truck business is much more difficult than people think because most people see food trucks only operating during lunch hours.

“What people don’t think about is that to get our spot, we arrive at 6 a.m.,” she explains. “That means we get to our kitchen by 4 a.m. to prep and drive to the spot. After lunch, we drive back to our kitchen and have to clean the truck and the dishes. So for just a few hours of service, we work a 12- to 15-hour day.”

Therefore, like the Kayes, you’ll want to think about how your day-to-day will look: how you’ll work with your employees, where you’ll be on a daily basis, which days will require more time or investment than others. By planning ahead of time, even if just at the beginning of every week, you’ll be able to maximize your time and hopefully, your business as well.

Along these lines, you might also want to think about if your strategy will simply consist of parking around town or if you’ll consider taking part in local events, or even start catering .

Start Your Dream Business

Ultimately, learning how to start a food truck is going to take significant time, effort and investment.

Athough the competition has gotten tougher, if you’re able to carve out a niche, you have a great chance of success without the high costs of opening up a restaurant.

Moreover, if your plans are to open a restaurant eventually, a food truck can be a great starting point. For instance, Laura O’Neill and her co-founders, Ben and Pete Van Leeuwen, started the Van Leeuwen Artisan Ice Cream truck in the spring of 2008. Since then, the trio has received so much success, their business now includes over 20 locations, including both storefronts and trucks in New York and LA.

According to O’Neill, the food trucks allowed the co-founders to explore different locations to figure out who the customers were and what kind of food they liked to eat. Therefore, in a way, it allows you to test out your food creations before having to commit to a costly lease and other high overheads.

Plus, as you figure out how to start a food truck and get your business up and running, you might ultimately decide the mobile business life is the way to go and continue to invest in different trucks around your city or state — the possibilities are endless.

This article originally appeared on JustBusiness, a subsidiary of NerdWallet.

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NerdWallet has rounded up some of our best information on starting a business, including structuring and naming your company, creating a solid plan and much more. We’ll help you do your homework and get started on the right foot.

On a similar note...

• How to Create Food Truck Business Plan? Complete Guide

A food truck business is a great way to venture into the world of street food. Unlike a conventional brick-and-mortar restaurant, it offers great flexibility to reach out to a diverse set of customers from a variety of locations.

The food truck business model has witnessed stupendous growth during the past few years due to several reasons. It provides convenience of food on the go and is ideal for people following a mobile lifestyle. It is the choice of first-time entrepreneurs as it is a low-investment , low-risk option in the restaurant industry. The influence of consumerism and the growing preference for eating outside has led to the growth of the food truck business.

Table of Contents

What Is A Food Truck Business Plan?

A food truck business plan is a comprehensive document outlining the business goals, strategies and operational processes for goal achievement. It is a blueprint that details all the elements needed for the success of the business venture.

Planning To Start A Food Truck Business?

A food truck business is just like any other profitable business. Running it successfully requires diligent planning and strategizing. Some operational challenges include figuring out fuel and power, securing necessary parking permits and cooking and serving in a compact space. But all these challenges can be overcome efficiently with a robust food truck business plan.  

A solid food truck business plan functions as the roadmap to your success by highlighting the complexities of the market and showing you the best way to navigate through them.  

A well-planned, well-thought and well-executed business plan distinctly outlines the business goals, defines the target audience and operational strategies. A robust business plan helps build trust and is, therefore, a compelling tool for securing funding. A handy business plan template also helps entrepreneurs take notes or jot down brilliant ideas as and when they occur. The truck operations – from everyday tasks to year-end paperwork will run more smoothly if the food truck owner uses the detailed business plan as a north star. 

This blog will help you gain better insights into the process of writing a comprehensive food truck business plan.  

Before getting into the intricacies of drafting a food truck business plan, let us first understand the reasons why a food truck is becoming an attractive alternative to opening a restaurant.  

6 Reasons Why A Food Truck Business Plan Is Important For Success

1) depicts focus.

A formal food truck business plan shows all the stakeholders that you have an unswerving focus on brand building. It is an indication that you are a visionary leader and an invitation for others to join your ambitious project. 

2) Determines Financial Needs

Starting a food truck might involve lesser cost than opening a conventional restaurant. But they have a very high rate of failure. It is, therefore, important to consider various cost factors like food costs, payroll, fuel, power and taxes that drain the business rapidly. The business plan brings the start-up cost, projected sales and the annual budget to paper, helping to determine the capital amount precisely. 

3) Understand Competition 

The process of creating a food truck business plan involves evaluating the competitors. This will help avoid risks from direct and indirect competitors. While conducting research to draft the business plan, if you discover that a few other food trucks operating in the same radius share the same concept as you, you can make necessary changes before it causes harm to your brand. 

4) Understand Customers

Customer analysis forms a vital part of the food truck business plan. It helps you understand the demographics and psychology of your customers. You get to know the products that your target audience buys, the places they buy from and their purchase motives. The analysis also throws light on what they do not buy, the reason behind their dislike for certain products or places, and so on.  

5) Evaluate Concept Feasibility

When you draft a proper food truck business plan, you educate yourself on the target market and the competition. This is like a feasibility study that helps you foresee survival and success rate of the business. 

6) Discover New Opportunities 

It takes solid brainstorming to draft a flawless food truck business plan. During this process, you will get a completely different perspective of your business that will, subsequently, lead to the generation of new ideas and strategies.

Elements Of A Food Truck Business Plan

A food truck business plan provides great clarity to first time restaurateurs and food entrepreneurs. This document outlines the culinary vision and contains specific details about the way the owner intends to achieve it. 

A reliable, professional food truck business plan contains the following elements. These elements are essential to stay focused while navigating the intricacies of the food truck business. When the plan encompasses these vital elements, the potential investors can understand the viability of the venture 

• Executive Summary
• Company Overview
• Management Structure
• Finance and Operations
• Market Analysis and Outreach

I) Executive Summary 

A solid executive summary functions as the foundation of the business plan. It is like the resume of the food truck providing a concise overview of how your concept and business is unique.  

The executive summary aims to provide a high-level overview of aspects like: 

• Menu Offerings 
• Target Audience 
• Intended location 
• Business mission 
• Core Values 
• Financial projections 

How To Write An Effective Executive Summary?

• Describe the menu and the inspiration that helped design it 
• Explain the gap in the market that you wish to fill 
• Vividly elucidate the offerings and their value proposition 

You might decide to offer fusion cuisine by blending the flavors of diverse culinary cultures or simply serve family recipes handed down through generations. This executive summary will increase the interest of potential investors and make them want to know more.  

II) Company Overview 

Your business plan tells stakeholders about what your food truck represents. While the function of the executive summary is to catch the attention of the reader, the company overview performs the function of exploring and divulging the details. 

It is good to ask yourself the following questions while preparing the company overview. 

• What are the advantages that I am going to enjoy by opting for a food truck instead of a conventional restaurant?
• What is the type of mobile kitchen that can be operated with ease? Will it be a food truck, trailer or food cart? 
• Will all the food preparation take place inside the food truck, or will I adopt the ghost kitchen model? 

The company overview helps highlight specific menu offerings and the key milestones that the business wishes to accomplish with details of the time frame. If you have already acquired any relevant business license or equipment, you can mention details about it in this section. 

III) Management Structure 

The overall success of a food truck is determined by the people who take charge of the grills and write down orders. Whether your food truck business is going to be a one-man show or run by an expansive crew, list the details of the expertise and individual skills that the management will bring to customer’s tables. This includes prior work experience and education of the members and the name of the positions they will occupy.  

Asking the following questions will help you gain greater clarity while creating the management structure. 

• Who will take care of the operations and management of the food truck? 
• What are the operating shifts of the key management members? 
• What are the peak hours of the business when additional help is required? 

Determine the company ownership with the exact percentages in writing. This gives a concrete form to the hierarchy and throws light on licensing and tax information.  

IV) Financial Plan 

This section of the food truck business plan possesses details of the financial anatomy of the venture. List out every element of the initial investment like truck cost, equipment and starting inventory.  

You must also list details of ongoing or recurring operational expenses like ingredients, fuel, permits & licenses, food truck insurance and marketing endeavors. Listing these points is mandatory particularly if you are seeking external funding like a startup loan. Make clear mentions of the amount required, explain how it will be spent and tell stakeholders the terms for repayment as well. 

With thorough market research, you will also be able to estimate the potential profitability of the venture. Calculate profits for the upcoming five years and mention details in the financial plan section. In this section, it is very important to highlight the benefits to investors. Elaborate on the lucrative potential of the food truck business. Back it up with solid financial projections and a robust plan for sustainability and profitability. 

V) Operations Plan

This section is meant to offer a behind-the-scenes look into the working model of the food truck business. This part must have elaborate details of how you plan to run the food truck including details of: 

• How are the ingredients going to be sourced and food prepared? 
• Details of the suppliers and vendors 
• Information of the various locations in which the truck will be stationed 
• Adherence to health and safety regulations 

This part helps you identify gaps, if any, in your future daily routine. It prepares you to establish efficient processes to serve customers, address challenges like poor weather or equipment malfunction. In this section, you can explain your plans to overcome such contingencies.   

IV) Market Analysis And Outreach 

This process must be started by defining the target audience. Do your customers consist of office workers looking for a quick bite on the go, are they festive goers seeking culinary specialties and so on. Make use of demographic data to build profiles for ideal customers and mention them in this section of the food truck business plan. 

Studying the competition gives great insights into the food truck arena in your intended radius. Study the audience demographic that your competition is already targeting, their strengths and weaknesses in their menu and marketing strategies. 

This analysis helps you in formulating your own unique marketing efforts. Describe the specific strategies you have planned to reach out to and retain your target audience.  

Your marketing strategies should include: 

• Social media posts
• SEO-optimized websites 
• Professionally designed logos and branding 
• Using third-party food delivery services and apps like DoorDash, GrunHub, etc. 

Make use of broader marketing strokes as well. Vividly explain your overall growth plans like hiring extra staff, acquiring additional food trucks or widening the area within which you serve. Including data-driven strategies gives you a distinct roadmap to follow once your business starts operating. Your investors will also be convinced that you are well-prepared to fill the market niche that others have either not even noticed or occupied successfully.  

This blog would have helped you understand the nuances of writing a food truck business plan. For more assistance with the food industry and digital marketing strategies for restaurants, get in touch. 

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How to Start a Food Truck Business in 9 Steps

Published May 6, 2024

WRITTEN BY: Mary King

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This article is part of a larger series on Starting a Business .

Starting A Business?

• Step 1: Research Local Food Trucks & Laws
• Step 2: Choose a Menu, Name & Logo
• Step 3: Register Your Business & Open a Bank Account
• Step 4. Raise Funds

Step 5: Get Your Food Truck

• Step 6: Get Licenses, Permits & Insurance
• Step 7: Purchase Equipment & Supplies
• Step 8: Hire & Train Staff

Step 9: Market Your Food Truck

• Pros & Cons

Bottom Line

There has never been a better time to start a food truck business; in fact, the number of food trucks grew by almost 10% from 2022 to 2023 1 . If you’re looking for a money-making business idea, a food truck is a great one. Successful food trucks can bring in more than $500,000 per year, with startup costs from $40,000–$200,000.

Starting a food truck typically takes three to 12 months and requires the nine steps below. Download our checklist to help you stay on track.

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Starting a Food Truck Checklist

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Step 1: research local food trucks & laws.

When starting your food truck business, it’s essential to make sure you are filling a hole in the market, supplying a demand, and operating within the law. So, you should evaluate the food truck scene in your area and research local food truck laws and regulations. This information will help you decide if a food truck is the best-fitting business for you to start .

When evaluating your local food truck scene, make sure you do the following:

• Evaluate existing trucks: Note popular cuisines and price points, serving hours, and popular selling locations. This will help you develop a truck that fits your market.
• Research local food truck laws: Some areas have generous food truck regulations, while others are so restrictive that it seems they don’t want trucks at all. Call your local health department and county or city clerk’s office to find out what permits you need and what parking restrictions to comply with.
• Check the availability of commercial kitchens: In most locations, food trucks are required to contract with a commercial kitchen to prepare and store food.
• Look for food truck parks: Truck parks indicate that an area welcomes trucks and helps potential customers locate you.

Introduce yourself to truck owners and ask them about their biggest operational challenges. You‘ll find that most are eager to share their knowledge with an up-and-coming food trucker. One of the best aspects of food truck communities is the camaraderie and support of other truck operators.

Step 2: Choose a Menu, Name & Logo

Food trucks are known for their clever remixes and personal flair. The most successful food truck concepts reflect their owner’s interests and personal experiences. Consider the popular Las Vegas truck Buldogis , which serves Korean-inflected gourmet hot dogs that reflect the owners’ American and Korean backgrounds. Start with your menu, and your name and logo should naturally follow.

• Read our menu development guide for tips on creating your food truck menu.
• Our restaurant name generator will help you find a unique food truck name.
• Read our guide to business logos for details on crafting your food truck logo.

Step 3: Register Your Business & Open a Bank Account

When starting a food truck, you’ll need to create a business entity and register with your state. For most food truck operations, a limited liability company (LLC) makes the most sense. It protects your personal assets in the event of a lawsuit or business bankruptcy and shows vendors, insurers, and permitting agencies that your business is legitimate.

Filing fees vary from state to state, but forming an LLC isn’t necessarily expensive. Costs range from $40 to $500, and you can find the forms you need on your state’s business office website.

Filing LLC paperwork can be tedious and a little complicated. If you need guided assistance, we recommend working with a legal website like Incfile or one of our other recommended online legal services .

Open a Business Bank Account

You’ll need to separate your personal finances from your business finances by opening a business bank account . This account will hold funds invested in your food truck and be used to pay permitting, licensing, and vendor fees. When your truck is up and running, your credit card deposits will run to this account, and you will pay employees and suppliers from it. You can inquire about business banking options at the bank that handles your personal banking.

See our list of the best small business checking accounts for more business banking options.

Step 4: Raise Funds for Your Food Truck

Starting a food truck business can cost anywhere from $40,000 to $200,000, depending on your location, the cooking appliances you need, and the type of truck you purchase. The tables below give you a rough estimate of the itemized costs involved in starting a food truck business. Click the tabs to view one-time and recurring food truck costs.

Food Truck Business Estimated Startup Costs

The first step to raising the funds you need to start a food truck is writing a business plan.

Write a Food Truck Business Plan

Like any other business, your food truck will need a well-prepared business plan if you want it to succeed. Your business plan puts your concept on paper so potential investors and loan officers can see that your food truck is a good investment. Having a food truck business plan gives you a better understanding of how long it will take for your food truck to turn a profit and what funds you need to sustain your business until that point.

Read our guide to writing a business plan for step-by-step instructions.

Food Truck Funding Options

Most people don’t have immediate access to the capital required to start a food truck, so financing your food truck business will be an essential step. Most lenders require a business plan before issuing a loan, so be sure to have your thorough plan ready, along with the amount you need and your credit history.

Here are some financing options available for aspiring food truck owners:

• Equipment loan/financing program: Some truck sellers or equipment financiers will loan to you to purchase the truck.
• Rollover for business startups (ROBS): If you have more than $50,000 in a retirement account, you can set up a ROBS , which will allow you to use the funds in your retirement account to fund your business without paying early withdrawal penalties.
• Business credit cards: If you are good at paying off debt, a business credit card may be a good option.
• Personal loan: This is a good option if you have a good credit score and need less than $50,000.
• Microloan from Small Business Administration (SBA): Microloans are considerably smaller in size than conventional business loans but may be sufficient to cover food truck startup costs. Check out SBA’s Microloan Program for loans of less than $50,000.
• Find investors: Whether it’s a friend or family member, finding investors for your food truck business requires strategy. Prepare your concept and a solid business plan to help convince investors to fund your venture.

Not all funding comes from banks and big investors. If you have an active fanbase of friends and family who support your food truck concept, crowdfunding can provide some or all of your opening budget. Your business plan will give you a great jumping-off point to create a compelling crowdfunding page. A bonus of crowdfunding for a food truck is that you’ll already have a fanbase excited to see your truck come to life.

For a detailed look at crowdfunding, see our guide on how to crowdfund a small business .

Several of the permits and licenses you need depend on the type of vehicle you purchase. So this step typically happens before– simultaneously with– the next step; getting your permits. You can buy, build, or lease a food truck. Food trucks can cost anywhere from $3,250 for a secondhand trailer to as much as $300,000 for a new, custom-built truck, although $5,000–$125,000 is the general range.

Regardless of your budget, you should invest in the best quality truck you can afford. Investing in a quality food truck from the beginning minimizes your risk of incurring repair expenses down the road, and protects you and your staff from dangerous cooking or vehicle-related accidents.

Expand the sections below to explore your options for getting a food truck.

Buy a Food Truck

You have several options for purchasing a food truck. You can purchase a used truck from an individual seller in person or online. By purchasing a used truck, you can typically get a fully outfitted truck for around $50,000, although you will have to repaint the outside and possibly renovate the inside to match your business.

A few good directory sites to find used food trucks are:

• Commercial Truck Trader
• Used Vending
• Road Stoves
• Miami Trailer & Equipment Company

You can also purchase a new food truck directly from a manufacturer like Ibarras. Prices for its standard trucks start at around $18,000. Major car manufacturers like Ford, Nissan, and Mercedes-Benz also supply food truck-compatible vehicles; you’ll need to contact a local dealer for pricing and options. When buying new from a major manufacturer, you should expect prices starting at $40,000, plus equipment.

Build a Food Truck

Custom-built food trucks can set your food truck apart from the competition if you have the budget for one. Companies like Prestige Food Trucks, Cruising Kitchens, and Northwest Mobile Kitchens specialize in custom food trucks built to your exact specifications. New custom food trucks will cost around $100,000 to $200,000. The benefit, of course, is that everything is new, built for purpose, and usually under warranty. You don’t need to worry about how previous owners cared for the truck or if a professional installed the gas lines.

Lease a Food Truck

If you’re only operating seasonally or your funds are limited, you should explore leasing a food truck. Brands like Mobi Munch, RoadStoves, and Ibarras lease trucks month-to-month. If there are truck agents in your area, leasing is an attractive option because leases tend to come with lots of included services. RoadStoves customers, for example, get overnight truck parking, a health permit, and access to a commissary kitchen included in their truck lease. It is common for food truck leases to run from $3,000 to $4,500 per month.

The downside to leasing is that the truck won’t be customized to your needs. You’ll also need to get creative with magnetic decals to customize the truck with your logo and menu. When your lease term is up, you may also have to pause your business until you find another truck.

Step 6: Get Licenses, Permits & Insurance

Food trucks need at least three types of licenses and permits: general business licenses, food service licenses, and vehicle licenses. Depending on your location, most food truck licenses and permits will cost between $100 to $500 each. Your total permit and license fees can range from $1,500 to $20,000, depending on your location and the type of food you cook.

A mobile food vending permit is one of the licenses your truck needs. (Image from NYC Dept. of Health)

To ensure your food truck is fully licensed and permitted, you’ll need to contact:

• Your local health department: The health department issues licenses for your truck, prep kitchen, and managers. If your location also requires food handler’s permits for your staff, the health department will handle that.
• Your local fire department: The fire department inspects your cooking equipment and the truck’s electrical and fire suppression systems to ensure they operate safely.
• State, county, and city clerk’s offices: These offices issue general business licenses, tax licenses, and other foundational documents for running your business.

Food Truck Insurance

Like any small business, food trucks need general liability insurance. Since food trucks operate as mobile businesses, serve food to the public, and may have employees, you’ll have additional insurance needs like commercial auto coverage and worker’s comp. Contact an insurance provider for a comprehensive quote.

For more details, read our expert-written guides to food truck insurance costs and coverage plus a ranking of the best food truck insurance companies .

Step 7: Purchase Equipment & Supplies

Even if your truck is fully outfitted with cooking and refrigeration equipment, you’ll still need some extra tools. Generators, condiment tables, registers, and point-of-sale (POS) systems are all standard food truck equipment. Increasingly food truck owners are adding rooftop solar panels to offset fuel costs. You’ll also want to open accounts with food suppliers so you can buy in bulk and avoid paying sales tax.

Food truck equipment and supplies you’ll want to budget for include:

• Truck wrap and exterior decor: Those vibrant trucks with nose-to-tail designs are covered in a “truck wrap.” The cost of installing a truck wrap ranges from $2,500 to $5,000 (including design). If you are short on funds, local sign shops can print smaller vinyl decals or magnets.
• Cooking and serving equipment: You’ll likely need small equipment like a food processor, baking sheets, and Cambro containers to store your prepped food and transport it from your prep kitchen to your truck. If you offer catering, you’ll also want a couple of sturdy collapsible tables and chafing dishes to keep your food warm outdoors. You’ll be able to find most small equipment at a local restaurant supply or kitchen store.
• Generator: You’ll need a generator to run your cooking and electrical equipment when your truck is parked.
• Ingredients: You’ll need the ingredients to make your signature dishes before you can cook and serve food. If your food truck is even a little bit busy, you’ll want to open accounts with wholesale suppliers. This gives you a price break on food and beverage supplies and saves driving time, as most distributors will deliver directly to your commercial kitchen space.
• POS and payment equipment: Most customers prefer to pay with cards or apps, so you’ll need a way to process payments on the go. Our top-ranked food truck point-of-sale (POS) systems can operate via Wi-Fi or cellular networks, and many are free to use.

More than half of the food trucks I know use some type of Square POS. Square operates on iPads and smartphones, and you can download the Square POS and start taking payments in a couple of hours. For more information, visit Square .

Step 8: Hire & Train Staff

Food truck owners do a lot of work themselves, but you’ll still likely hire some hourly employees. The staff you hire should fill in skills you lack or areas you cannot pay attention to. For example, if you are an expert grill cook, it makes more sense to hire a cashier than a cook. But if you have a welcoming personality and are great at add-on sales, you’ll be stronger in a customer-facing role and should hire cooks. If you get a lot of catering inquiries, it might make sense to hire an event salesperson to send estimates and wrangle catering contracts.

Expand the sections below to view common food truck employees:

Window Attendant

(Image by Kampus Production from Pexels)

Your window attendant takes orders at the truck window, interacts with customers, and processes payments. Someone with a friendly personality and cash-handling experience is good in this position. Window attendants are typically hourly, minimum wage positions and may earn tips.

If you are struggling to find staff, a window attendant can be replaced by a self-service kiosk . If you are short-staffed, this is one of the simplest solutions.

(Image from RODNAE Productions, Pexels)

A truck cook cooks and serves dishes on the truck itself. Depending on the number of cooktops you have and your menu style, you may need two cooks in the truck all the time. Truck cooks tend to be hourly employees who earn at least minimum wage; however, you should definitely pay more if your truck cook is experienced. They are frequently included in on-truck tip pools.

(Image by Mikhail Nilov, Pexels)

If your truck is busy, you may need a hand with off-truck prep cooking. Hiring a prep cook to work in your commercial kitchen while your truck is on the road can significantly reduce your turnaround time between events. Prep cooks are usually part-time staff who earn at least minimum wage. Depending on your local labor laws, prep cooks may or may not be included in tip pools.

Catering Salesperson

(Image from Harvest Kitchen)

You don’t want to miss the chance to book private catering events. These can be a massive boost to your truck’s bottom line. A catering salesperson responds to all private event inquiries and works directly with your clients to create a menu, execute an event contract, collect deposits, and hire rental equipment. Catering salespeople typically earn a small hourly base pay or salary, plus a 3% to 10% commission on their booked events. They are typically not tipped, though their commission fee may appear as a service charge on the final invoice.

Catering Servers

(Image from cater-waiters.com)

Large events sometimes request tray-passed food or to have some foods served at individual tables. Event coordinators may hire this staff themselves, but it can help to have some staff of your own to call in. Having your own catering servers can give you an edge in landing bigger (and higher budget!) events. You may pay catering servers a flat hourly wage (usually higher than minimum wage) or minimum wage plus tips.

Training Food Truck Staff

Once you’ve hired your truck staff, set aside time to train them. Depending on your team’s experience level, you’ll need to allow two days to two weeks to get your team up to speed. Prepare itemized copies of your menu with ingredient lists and common allergens, along with what items can and cannot be modified. For example, if your housemade chili is cooked with bulgur wheat, it cannot be made gluten-free.

All of your truckers should know how to use fire safety equipment on your truck. You’ll also want to train your team on the policies and procedures at your commercial kitchen. If there are strict operating hours, designated storage areas, or designated parking areas, you’ll want to cover that explicitly, so your team reflects well on your brand.

If your truck collects tips, you may also run a tip pool to distribute tips to your staff. For tips on managing a tip pool, see our guide to restaurant tip pooling laws and tipping out . A tip pool based on hours is a popular way to distribute food truck tips.

Once you have your truck, permits, and staff, the final step in starting your food truck business is marketing your truck. A good food truck marketing strategy involves a combination of online and traditional marketing strategies, including social media marketing, vending at local events, building a website, and joining advocacy groups.

You can take a deep dive by reading our guide to food truck marketing . Expand the accordions below for a quick overview.

Food Truck Social Media Marketing

Instagram and Facebook are great ways to connect with your local community and help potential customers find your business. Plus, Instagram and TikTok are ideal places to show off pictures of your tasty food. For maximum impact, post regularly, and be sure to use any local hashtags to help your business get discovered. Don’t just stick to food photos; part of the appeal of food trucks is their personal story and the camaraderie of their team. Let users see your personality and passion.

Post your locations and hours so that customers can easily find you. If you accept orders online or over the phone, include that information in your social media bio. You can also use stickers and buttons on your Facebook or Instagram accounts to add shoppable links to your online ordering site.

Create a Website

A website is essential for a food truck. It shows potential customers who you are, what kind of food you sell, and how to find your truck. Your website is also a great place to post your event calendar or a contact form for catering orders. Our guide on how to make a business website will walk you through the process.

Participate in Festivals & Local Events

Festivals are a great way to get customers and gain insight from fellow food truck owners. Especially in the spring and summer months, tons of towns and cities have outdoor events, from fairs to farmers’ markets. Participating in these events is a great way to spread awareness about your business while also getting extra sales.

Try to book as many events as you can. You’ll have a captive audience to market your business and are guaranteed to make sales. If you participate in several events, fairs, or festivals, create an event calendar that you can hand out to customers so that they know where to find you next.

Join a Street Vending Advocacy Group

Many cities with a vibrant food truck community also have advocacy groups. Joining one will put you in contact with other like-minded business owners who can help you troubleshoot problems and send you business if their truck is not available for an event. The added benefit of joining an advocacy group is, of course, advocacy. These groups work together to encourage local regulations that are food truck-friendly, which can’t help but boost everyone’s business.

The National Food Truck Association is an excellent place to start. It currently hosts local chapters in California, Texas, and many other locations

With your truck purchased, supplied, permitted, staffed, and marketed, all you need to do now is make your first sale. With this guide as your foundation, you’re well on your way to starting a successful food truck. So go out there and have a great service.

Pros & Cons of Starting a Food Truck

Still on the fence about starting a food truck? Like any other business venture, the food truck industry offers advantages and disadvantages. Read through this list of food truck pros and cons to help you make your final decision.

Starting a Food Truck Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

There is much to know about starting a food truck. These are the most common questions I hear from prospective food truck owners. Expand each question section for a detailed answer.

How much does a food truck cost?

Starting a food truck typically costs between $40,000 and $200,000. The cost varies based on whether you purchase or lease a truck, the truck type, the necessary equipment, and the cost of permits in your location.

How profitable is a food truck?

Successful food trucks can be very profitable, bringing in around $500,000 in annual sales, and sometimes as much as $50,000 per month. Hitting figures like that requires a targeted menu, excellent marketing, and a full-time commitment to managing your costs and overhead.

Having a highly profitable food truck may also involve expanding your truck operation to include private catering, online ordering , and other revenue streams like selling a shelf-stable signature sauce or retail merchandise. It helps to operate in a food truck-friendly city—like Los Angeles, Philadelphia, or Denver—that has regulations that allow food trucks to thrive.

Is owning a food truck hard?

Owning a food truck takes a lot of work, but can be very rewarding. The days can be long; food prep can start in your commissary kitchen several hours before service, and your day doesn’t finish until the truck is parked, the food unloaded, the greywater drained, and all surfaces scrubbed and sanitized. You’ll interact with excited food fans, but you’ll also be responsible for scheduling staff, processing payroll, and dealing with parking tickets. Marketing is important and all on your shoulders, as are less creative things like paying your sales taxes.

If that sounds manageable to you, then owning a food truck won’t feel hard. But if that description sounds overwhelming, you might want to bulk up your restaurant management or general business skills before taking the step to food truck ownership.

How can I start a food truck with no money?

If you want to start a food truck with no money, crowdfunding is your best bet. You can also consider starting with a smaller operation, like a cottage food operation or tent vending, to build a brand and fan following while you save to start your truck.

Why do food trucks fail?

Many food trucks fail within their first three years of operation due to a lack of funds. Difficulties can include unexciting concepts, tough regulations, poor supply choices, truck breakdowns, poor marketing, and more. Some of the biggest reasons food trucks lose money and ultimately fail are:

• Local regulations designed to protect traditional restaurants
• Poor operating and financial planning
• Unforeseen vehicle repair expenses
• Underestimating the daily number of hours needed
• Ineffective marketing

Not all food truck closures are failures, though. Many food trucks close when they become so popular the owners are able to open a brick-and-mortar restaurant or catering company. So in a way, some food trucks fail through success.

If you’ve been dreaming of how to start a food truck business, you should know it is a fun—yet time-consuming—process with plenty of opportunities for growth and profit. The food truck business is demanding but, ultimately, rewarding if you take the time to create a careful business plan with market research and a solid marketing strategy. Ensuring you have plenty of startup capital and the right equipment is the best way to encourage success.

• https://www.ibisworld.com/industry-statistics/number-of-businesses/food-trucks-united-states/

About the Author

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Mary King is an expert restaurant and small business contributor at Fit Small Business. With more than a decade of small business experience, Mary has worked with some of the best restaurants in the world, and some of the most forward-thinking hospitality programs in the country. Mary’s firsthand operational experience ranges from independent food trucks to the grand scale of Michelin-starred restaurants, from small trades-based businesses to cutting-edge co-working spaces.

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How to Start a Food Truck

Lisa Furgison

8 min. read

Updated November 13, 2023

Free Download:  Sample Food Truck Business Plan Template

Wondering how to start a food truck business?

We can’t blame you—the food truck craze is sweeping the nation. From thriving cities to small downtown areas, food on wheels is a growing trend. It’s not just drawing a new crowd of eat-on-the-street customers, it’s bringing in big bucks too. The food truck business pulls in an estimated $804 million in revenue every year, according to an industry report from IBIS World.

If this knowledge has your entrepreneurial spirit in high gear and you’re interested in learning how to start a food truck, we’ve got the tips and tricks to help you start selling must-eats from the streets. We asked two food truck owners to offer some insider secrets to get your business up and running,  who can tell you what starting a food truck is all about.

• Starting a food truck: Learn from the experts

Leigh Ann Tona rolls through the Delaware streets in her “I Don’t Give a Fork”  truck, which as the name implies, specializes in food that does not require utensils. Her menu consists mainly of sandwiches.

Anthony Fellows takes the Southern Florida streets by storm in his “HipPops”  truck, which is a micro creamery on wheels that offers homemade gelato bars.

With their help, we’ll explore whether or not starting a food truck business is right for you. We’ll go over the licensing and health inspection requirements, offer tips for success, and a list of resources to get you started.

• Is a starting a food truck business right for you?

Before your create a menu and design your truck, consider whether starting a food truck business really is the right fit for you. Ask yourself these four questions:

How well do I know the business?

Before taking the food truck plunge, there’s a lot of research to be done, Anthony says. He spent hours online reading guides and articles about successful businesses. He also toured “food truck cities” to watch traffic flow and speak with owners.

Figure out how many other food trucks specialize in the kind of food you plan on offering. If there are already three sandwich trucks that frequent the business district, is there room for yours too? Try to soak up as much information as you can before making a decision.

Like any other business, you’ll need to create a business plan , find startup funds, and handle all of the administrative tasks that come with owning a business.

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How will I find the right vehicle?

Both Anthony and Leigh Ann say that finding the right truck for your business is crucial. You’re not going to head out to your local dealership and buy a brand new 2014 food truck fresh off the showroom floor. Most food trucks are custom made. Leigh Ann’s truck, for example, was an old Entenmann’s delivery truck. It was gutted and fitted to meet her needs.

This process will take time and money, Anthony says. Plus, you want to find the right partner to build your truck because prices and workmanship can vary. Go in with a plan. To give you a few layout options, here are a few links:

• Food truck schematics with pictures
• Food truck floor plans
• Interior food truck video

Can I handle the schedule?

Your workday starts long before you pull into your lunchtime parking spot. You’ll need to buy food and prep it before you start putting everything together for your customers. While the weekday lunch crowd could be your main source of income, there are a lot of weekend events that could bring in some money too. Are you prepared to put in these hours?

Am I prepared to make money a few bucks at a time?

Anthony says his return on investment is based on nickels and dimes. In other words, if you’re selling a five dollar sandwich, your income will come in slowly. You’ll want to sit down and do the math. Figure out food costs, truck maintenance, and marketing expenses and see just how many items you need to sell to make the business profitable.

The technical side of starting a food truck

Creating a menu is the fun part, but there are plenty of not-so-glamorous aspects of the food truck business that you’ll need to tend to, like getting permits and setting up inspections.

Prepare for health inspections

Food trucks come with their own set of health inspection codes. These codes will vary depending on your business and its location, so you’ll want to check with your local department of health to get a complete list of rules.

While the codes can vary, here’s a look at an inspection checklist from Alameda County Department of Health in California to give you an idea of what an inspection consists of:

Equipment check:

• Are refrigeration units, steam table, and warming oven turned on and working properly?
• Is there hot and cold water inside the truck and is there adequate water pressure?
• Is there soap and paper towels available?
• Is there a working fire extinguisher on board?
• Is there a first aid kit on board?
• Does the truck have the correct signage?

Documentation requirements:

• Approved application documents from local government
• Food safety training certificate
• Current DMV registration
• Valid drivers license
• Seller’s permit

Other possible requirements:

• You may also need to provide a business plan,  menu, standard operating procedures, sampling plan, example of labels, and proof of current liability insurance.

Scheduled and random inspections:

• When you’re first starting a food truck business, you’ll have a scheduled inspection to make sure everything is up to code before you start feeding the lunch crowd. After that, most health departments require an annual inspection. In addition, you should expect random inspections from time to time.

Get a license

Before you park your truck in the downtown district to feed the masses, you’ll need a license. Go to your city website or visit the office building in person to understand how the process works. Each city is different, but expect to fill out an application and pay several fees.

To give you an idea of what’s required, here’s a look at the process in Rochester, New York.

• Fill out an application and attach proof of liability coverage, New York State sales tax certificate, New York State Health Department permit, and a list of all employees along with a photocopy of their ID.
• Complete a fire safety training class.
• Pass an inspection conducted by local city and fire officials, which could take up to 30 days to schedule.
• Pay fees. In Rochester, owners can pay $750 to set up in and around the City Center or $250 to set up outside the City Center. As with most cities, food trucks are only allowed to set up in designated areas and between certain times in Rochester.
• Tips for success

To succeed in this fast-paced food world, you’ll need a few pointers. To help make the process easier, here are a few tips from Leigh Ann and Anthony on starting a food truck business.

Specialize in a certain kind of food

For Leigh Ann, her specialty is sandwiches. For Anthony, it’s gelato. You can’t offer a full menu from a truck, but you can offer several high quality items that people crave. Pick a specialty and stick with it.

Market your business

Like any business, you need customers. To get customers, you need to market yourself and your food truck.  Both Anthony and Leigh Ann use social media to let people know where to find them. Anthony says at least four hours a day are spent monitoring and updating social sites. Sites like RoamingHunger also offer interactive maps to help customers find your truck.

Schedule routine maintenance

Let’s not forget, your restaurant is on wheels—so this means you have to handle routine vehicle maintenance. From oil changes to tire rotations, don’t overlook these chores because they will become a problem if left unattended, Anthony says.

Find a good mechanic

Along with routine maintenance, you’ll want to find a good mechanic, Leigh Ann says. When your generator fails on site or your truck won’t start, you’ll need the number of a trusted mechanic who offers service on location.

Get to know your customers

As with any restaurant business, you’ll start to see some of the same faces stop by. Get to know your customers.  If you have an extra minute, ask them how their day is going. One of the best ways to keep your loyal fan base coming back for more is to engage with them.

Watch your food prices

One of the expenses you’ll need to watch is your food cost, Anthony says. You want to find a balance between affordable and fresh ingredients, which can be tough. Anthony says he buys in bulk as much as possible to maximize his profits.

• Helpful resources

Here are several websites that offer additional information on how to start a food truck business:

• Mobile Food News:  A site dedicated to food truck headlines.
• Specialty Food Association:  A non-profit that promotes creators and entrepreneurs who sell specialty foods.
• Mobile-Cuisine.com:  A site that offers news and tips to promote and grow your food truck business.
• National Food Truck Association:  An 11-state group of food truck owners that provide resources and support for members.
• The Cost of Starting a Food Truck:  Forbes article that looks at startup costs.
• The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Starting a Food Truck Business:  A book that covers the many facets of the business.

Lisa Furgison is a multimedia journalist with a passion for writing. She holds a graduate degree in mass communications and spent eight years as a television reporter before moving into the freelance world, where she focuses mainly on content creation and social media strategies. Furgison has crisscrossed the U.S. as a reporter, but now calls Key West, Florida home. When she's not conducting interviews or typing away on her laptop, she loves to travel.

Table of Contents

• The technical side of starting a food truck

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How to Start a Food Cart Business

Starting a food cart business can be very profitable. With proper planning, execution and hard work, you can enjoy great success. Below you will learn the keys to launching a successful food cart business.

Importantly, a critical step in starting a food cart business is to complete your business plan. To help you out, you should download Growthink’s Ultimate Business Plan Template here .

Download our Ultimate Business Plan Template here

14 Steps To Start a Food Cart Business :

• Choose the Name for Your Food Cart Business
• Develop Your Food Cart Business Plan
• Choose the Legal Structure for Your Food Cart Business
• Secure Startup Funding for Your Food Cart Business (If Needed)
• Secure a Location for Your Business
• Register Your Food Cart Business with the IRS
• Open a Business Bank Account
• Get a Business Credit Card
• Get the Required Business Licenses and Permits
• Get Business Insurance for Your Food Cart Business
• Buy or Lease the Right Food Cart Business Equipment
• Develop Your Food Cart Business Marketing Materials
• Purchase and Setup the Software Needed to Run Your Food Cart Business
• Open for Business

1. Choose the Name for Your Food Cart Business

The first step to starting a food cart business is to choose your business’ name.  

This is a very important choice since your company name is your brand and will last for the lifetime of your business. Ideally you choose a name that is meaningful and memorable. Here are some tips for choosing a name for your food cart business:

• Make sure the name is available . Check your desired name against trademark databases and your state’s list of registered business names to see if it’s available. Also check to see if a suitable domain name is available.
• Keep it simple . The best names are usually ones that are easy to remember, pronounce and spell.
• Think about marketing . Come up with a name that reflects the desired brand and/or focus of your food cart business.

2. Develop Your Food Cart Business Plan

One of the most important steps in starting a food truck business is to develop your business plan . The process of creating your plan ensures that you fully understand your market and your business strategy. The plan also provides you with a roadmap to follow and if needed, to present to funding sources to raise capital for your business.

Your business plan should include the following sections:

• Executive Summary – this section should summarize your entire business plan so readers can quickly understand the key details of your food cart business.
• Company Overview – this section tells the reader about the history of your food cart business and what type of food cart business you operate. For example, are you a traditional food cart, mobile food truck, or a concession stand?
• Industry Analysis – here you will document key information about the food truck industry. Conduct market research and document how big the industry is and what trends are affecting it.
• Customer Analysis – in this section, you will document who your ideal or target customers are and their demographics. For example, how old are they? Where do they live? What do they find important when purchasing products like the ones you will offer?
• Competitive Analysis – here you will document the key direct and indirect competitors you will face and how you will build competitive advantage.
• Marketing Plan – your marketing plan should address the 4Ps: Product, Price, Promotions and Place.
• Product : Determine and document what products/services you will offer 
• Prices : Document the prices of your products/services
• Place : Where will your business be located and how will that location help you increase sales?
• Promotions : What promotional methods will you use to attract customers to your food cart business? For example, you might decide to use pay-per-click advertising, public relations, search engine optimization and/or social media marketing.
• Operations Plan – here you will determine the key processes you will need to run your day-to-day food truck operations. You will also determine your staffing needs. Finally, in this section of your plan, you will create a projected growth timeline showing the milestones you hope to achieve in the coming years.
• Management Team – this section details the background of your company’s management team.
• Financial Plan – finally, the financial plan answers questions including the following:
• What startup costs will you incur?
• How will your food cart business make money?
• What are your projected sales and expenses for the next five years?
• Do you need to raise funding to launch your business?

Finish Your Business Plan Today!

3. choose the legal structure for your food cart business.

Next you need to choose a legal structure for your food cart business and register it and your business name with the Secretary of State in each state where you operate your business.

Below are the five most common legal structures:

1) Sole proprietorship

A sole proprietorship is a business entity in which the food truck owner and the business are the same legal person. The owner of a sole proprietorship is responsible for all debts and obligations of the business. There are no formalities required to establish a sole proprietorship, and it is easy to set up and operate. The main advantage of a sole proprietorship is that it is simple and inexpensive to establish. The main disadvantage is that the owner is liable for all debts and obligations of the business.

2) Partnerships

A partnership is a legal structure that is popular among small businesses. It is an agreement between two or more people who want to start a food cart business together. The partners share in the profits and losses of the business. 

The advantages of a partnership are that it is easy to set up, and the partners share in the profits and losses of the business. The disadvantages of a partnership are that the partners are jointly liable for the debts of the business, and disagreements between partners can be difficult to resolve.

3) Limited Liability Company (LLC)

A limited liability company, or LLC, is a type of business entity that provides limited liability to its owners. This means that the owners of an LLC are not personally responsible for the debts and liabilities of the business. The advantages of an LLC for a food cart business include flexibility in management, pass-through taxation (avoids double taxation as explained below), and limited personal liability. The disadvantages of an LLC include lack of availability in some states and self-employment taxes.

4) C Corporation

A C Corporation is a business entity that is separate from its owners. It has its own tax ID and can have shareholders. The main advantage of a C Corporation for a food cart business is that it offers limited liability to its owners. This means that the food truck owners are not personally responsible for the debts and liabilities of the business. The disadvantage is that C Corporations are subject to double taxation. This means that the corporation pays taxes on its profits, and the shareholders also pay taxes on their dividends.

5) S Corporation

An S Corporation is a type of corporation that provides its owners with limited liability protection and allows them to pass their business income through to their personal income tax returns, thus avoiding double taxation. There are several limitations on S Corporations including the number of shareholders they can have among others.

Once you register your food cart business, your state will send you your official “Articles of Incorporation.” You will need this among other documentation when establishing your banking account (see below). We recommend that you consult an attorney in determining which legal structure is best suited for your company.

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4. Secure Startup Funding for Your Food Cart Business (If Needed)

In developing your food cart business plan, you might have determined that you need to raise funding to launch your business. 

If so, the main sources of funding for a food cart business to consider are personal savings, family and friends, credit card financing, bank loans, crowdfunding and angel investors. Angel investors are individuals who provide capital to early-stage businesses. Angel investors typically will invest in a food cart business that they believe has high potential for growth.

5. Secure a Location for Your Business

To find a location for your food cart business, start by looking for areas with a lot of foot traffic. You’ll also want to consider whether there are enough people in the area that will be interested in your type of food. Additionally, make sure the location has space for your food cart and is in a safe area. Finally, check with your local government to see if there are any restrictions on food trucks in the area. 

6. Register Your Food Cart Business with the IRS

Next, you need to register your business with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) which will result in the IRS issuing you an Employer Identification Number (EIN).

Most banks will require you to have an EIN in order to open up an account. In addition, in order to hire employees, you will need an EIN since that is how the IRS tracks your payroll tax payments.

Note that if you are a sole proprietor without employees, you generally do not need to get an EIN. Rather, you would use your social security number (instead of your EIN) as your taxpayer identification number.

7. Open a Business Bank Account

It is important to establish a bank account in your food cart business’ name. This process is fairly simple and involves the following steps:

• Identify and contact the bank you want to use
• Gather and present the required documents (generally include your company’s Articles of Incorporation, driver’s license or passport, and proof of address)
• Complete the bank’s application form and provide all relevant information
• Meet with a banker to discuss your business needs and establish a relationship with them

8. Get a Business Credit Card

You should get a business credit card for your food cart business to help you separate personal and business expenses.

You can either apply for a business credit card through your bank or apply for one through a credit card company.

When you’re applying for a business credit card, you’ll need to provide some information about your business. This includes the name of your business, the address of your business, and the type of business you’re running. You’ll also need to provide some information about yourself, including your name, Social Security number, and date of birth.

Once you’ve been approved for a business credit card, you’ll be able to use it to make purchases for your business. You can also use it to build your credit history which could be very important in securing loans and getting credit lines for your business in the future.

9. Get the Required Business Licenses and Permits

There are a few licenses and permits you will need to start a mobile food business. You will need a food handler’s permit, a business license, and a zoning permit. You may also need a health permit depending on your state and local laws. Check with your local authorities to find out what you will need.

10. Get Business Insurance for Your Food Cart Business

The type of insurance you need to operate a food cart business depends on the size of your business and the risks involved.

Some business insurance policies you should consider for your food cart business include:

• General liability insurance : This covers accidents and injuries that occur on your property. It also covers damages caused by your employees or products.
• Auto insurance : If a vehicle is used in your business, this type of insurance will cover if a vehicle is damaged or stolen.
• Workers’ compensation insurance : If you have employees, this type of policy works with your general liability policy to protect against workplace injuries and accidents. It also covers medical expenses and lost wages.
• Commercial property insurance : This covers damage to your property caused by fire, theft, or vandalism.
• Business interruption insurance : This covers lost income and expenses if your business is forced to close due to a covered event.
• Professional liability insurance : This protects your business against claims of professional negligence.

Find an insurance agent, tell them about your business and its needs, and they will recommend policies that fit those needs. 

11. Buy or Lease the Right Food Cart Business Equipment

To start a food cart business, you will need a few pieces of equipment. First, you will need a cart or stand. You will also need cooking equipment, such as a stove or grill, and serving utensils. Finally, you may need a refrigerator or freezer to store food.

12. Develop Your Food Cart Business Marketing Materials

Marketing materials will be required to attract and retain food truck customers to your business.

The key marketing materials you will need are as follows:

• Logo : Spend some time developing a good logo for your food cart business. Your logo will be printed on company stationery, business cards, marketing materials and so forth. The right logo can increase customer trust and awareness of your brand.
• Website : Likewise, a professional food cart business website provides potential customers with information about the products you offer, your company’s history, and contact information. Importantly, remember that the look and feel of your website will affect how customers perceive you..
• Social Media Accounts : establish social media accounts in your company’s name. Accounts on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and/or other social media networks will help customers and others find and interact with your food cart business.

13. Purchase and Setup the Software Needed to Run Your Food Cart Business

You will need software to manage your food cart business, including a point of sale (POS) system, financial software, and inventory management software. You may also need software to track your business expenses and create invoices. Choose software that is compatible with your computer system and that will meet your specific needs.

14. Open for Business

You are now ready to open your food cart business. If you followed the steps above, you should be in a great position to build a successful business. Below are answers to frequently asked questions that might further help you.

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With Growthink’s Ultimate Business Plan Template you can finish your plan in just 8 hours or less!

How to Start a Food Cart Business FAQs

Is it hard to start a food cart business.

No, it is easy to start a food truck business. You just need to know what you're doing and have a good business plan. There are many resources available to help you get started, including books, websites, and even food carts for sale.

How can I start a food cart business with no experience?

The best way for aspiring food truck owners to start a food cart business with no experience is to do some research and get organized. Plan out your food truck concept , create a budget, and learn everything you can about the industry. Networking with other food cart businesses can also be helpful in learning the ropes.

What type of food cart business is most profitable?

There is no definitive answer to this question because profitability depends on many factors including location, target market, and competition. However, in general, a profitable type of food cart business is a mobile hot dog stand. This type of food cart business can offer a variety of hot dogs, sausages, and hamburgers that are affordable and are enjoyed by a wide range of customers. In addition, a mobile hot dog stand is perfect for catering events and providing food for large groups. Finally, hot dogs typically do not cost too much, and can therefore be sold at a healthy margin. 

How much does it cost to start a food cart business?

Food truck startup costs can vary depending on a number of factors, including the type of food and the size of the business. However, in general, you can expect to spend between $2,000 and $10,000 to start a food cart business. This includes the price of the food, cart, and marketing expenses. 

What are the ongoing expenses for a food cart business?

The most significant ongoing expense for a food cart business is the cost of the food itself. Other ongoing expenses may include the cost of repairs or maintenance for the cart or truck, and marketing and advertising expenses. 

How does a food cart business make money?

There are a few different ways a successful food truck business can make money. The simplest way is to sell food items. Another way is to offer catering services, which can be more profitable since the business can charge a higher price for the food.

Is owning a food cart business profitable?

Owning a food cart business can be profitable because it offers a low-cost way to start a business. There is a growing demand for food carts, and you can customize your food cart to meet your customers' needs.

Why do food cart businesses fail?

One of the most common reasons food cart businesses fail is that they don't have a solid food truck business plan. To be successful, you need to have a plan for marketing your cart, attracting customers, and growing your business. You also need to understand the costs associated with running your cart, from the food and supplies you need to the rent or lease for your space. If you're not prepared to handle the financial side of things, your business will fail. In addition, become familiar with the regulations governing food carts in your area, as there may be specific requirements you need to meet. Failing to comply with these regulations can shut your business down.

Other Helpful Business Plan Articles & Templates

• Motrike Blog

How to Start a Food Cart Business in 2023 [7 Steps]

Starting a food cart business in 2023 can be a great way to fulfill entrepreneurial dreams while tapping into the skyrocketing demand for street food. As the food industry continues to grow, food carts are becoming popular for entrepreneurs looking to enter the market with a lower startup cost. To get the best from the business, it is essential to have a well-thought-out plan in place to succeed in this industry.

This blog explains the market prospect of a food cart business, the cost of starting a food cart business, the advantages and the challenges associated with the business, and how to start a mobile food business.

Street Food Cart Business: Popularity and Market Prospect

Street food cart businesses have become increasingly popular in recent years, especially in urban areas. One of the biggest advantages of starting a street food cart business is its relatively low startup cost compared to a traditional restaurant. This makes it an attractive option for entrepreneurs who want to start a food business but have a limited amount of capital.

In terms of market prospects, the street food industry is expected to continue to grow in the coming years. According to a report by Grand View Research, the global street food market size was valued at $4.11 billion in 2021 and is projected to reach $6.63 billion by 2028, growing at a CAGR of 6.8% from 2021 to 2028.

Cost of Starting A Food Cart Business

There is no fixed amount for starting a food cart business. The cost of starting a food cart business can vary widely depending on factors such as location, menu, equipment, and licensing requirements.

The overall cost to get a food cart business functional includes the following:

• The cost of purchasing mobile food carts
• The cost of purchasing equipments and kitchen utensils
• Cost of obtaining permits and licenses
• Cost of foods and supplies
• Insurance 

Overall, the total cost of starting a food cart business can range from $10,000 to $50,000 or more, depending on the above factors. It’s important to carefully research the costs and requirements applicable to the local area before starting a food cart business.

Advantages and Challenges of Starting A Food Cart

Some of the advantages of starting a food cart business are:

• Lower Startup Costs: One of the main advantages of starting a food cart business is the lower startup costs compared to opening a brick-and-mortar restaurant. The prices of renting a commercial space, furnishing, and decorating are significantly higher than setting up a food cart.
• Flexibility: Food carts are highly flexible, as they can be moved to different locations based on demand. You can take your food cart to food festivals, fairs, or other events where potential customers are.
• Better Profit Margins: As the operating costs of food carts are low, the profit margins are much better compared to traditional restaurants.

A food cart vendor may be faced with different challenges, which include:

• Limited Menu Options: Food carts generally have a limited menu as they have limited space. This can be a challenge for customers who prefer a more extensive menu.
• Limited Storage Space: Storage space is also limited, so there may be a need to restock supplies frequently. This can be difficult when you are working in a crowded or busy area.
• Weather: Weather can impact food cart operations, especially during extreme weather conditions. Rain or wind can make setting up and operating the food cart difficult.

How To Start A Food Stand Business? 

Food cart business does not start with basic knowledge of how to open a food stand. It starts with well-thought out steps, as discussed below.

Step 1: Market Research for Food Cart Business

Market research is a crucial step to ensure the success of any business, including a food cart business. A well-conducted market research is needed to answer the question of how to start a food cart business. It helps to identify the best marketing channels to promote the food cart business. And also help to create effective marketing strategies and determine the best location for the business.

Who are the potential customers? Are they office workers, students, tourists, or local residents? What are their demographics, such as age, gender, income, and education? Knowing the target market will help understand their preferences and needs and help make an informed decision on how to start a mobile food business.

Step 2: Get Permits for Your Food Cart Business

Getting the necessary permits for a food cart business can be a complex and time-consuming process. Still, ensuring that the food cart vendor operates legally and safely is essential. Therefore, make sure to research all requirements in the proposed area and stay up to date on any changes or updates to regulations.

Permits for the food cart business are applied for with the local authority or the agencies assigned to issue the permit. The requirements may vary by location, so check with your local health department for specific requirements.

Getting a permit will require completing a business license application and paying a fee.

Step 3: Buying A Street Food Cart 

Street food carts come in a variety of sizes and designs. Consider the type of food you plan to sell and how much space you’ll need to prepare and store your ingredients. When choosing cart to buy, as much as it is important to focus on functionality, the aesthetics of the food cart is equally essential. 

Motrike cargo trikes are best suited for food cart businesses. Motrike offers different types of bikes with visually appealing designs that can be customized to fit your need. Some of the products are:

• Motrike Ice cream bikes
• Motrike Trade bike
• Motrike coffee bikes
• Motrike cargo delivery trike
• Luxury cargo trike
• Velo cargo trike 

To ensure stability, all Motrike’s cargo tricycles are built with top-notch components and strong frame materials like high carbon steel and aluminum alloy. The cargo tricycles also offer plenty of storage space, allowing enough space for a food cart business.

In addition, Motrike cargo tricycles are designed to be safe for humans and the goods transported. These cargo tricycles feature a spacious aluminum container that is both waterproof and resistant to UV rays, keeping the transported goods dry and safe from the damaging effects of rain and sunlight while traveling through the city.

All these features makes Motrike bikes an excellent choice as street food carts.

Step 4: Choosing Your Concept, Menu & Suppliers

Choosing a concept, menu, and suppliers is critical in starting a food cart business. Make sure to thoroughly research, test the menu, and choose a reliable supplier to set the food cart business up for success.

Based on the initial business research, a clear concept should be decided to create a roadmap for the business. The concept should reflect the target market, the location of the business, and personal preferences. Consider the type of food you want to serve, the atmosphere you want to create, the impression you want to leave on your customers, and other unique features that will set your business apart from competitors. Choose a suitable supplier to deliver the best quality products within a reasonable price range.

Step 5: Creating Your Food Cart Business Plan

Creating a food cart business plan is very crucial to business operations. A proper business plan should be tailored to suit the food cart business in line with the concept and mode of operation.

The food cart business plan should contain the following:

• A detailed business description that shows the mission statement, concept, and competitive advantage.
• A well-conducted market analysis that shows data on demographics, customer preferences, and industry trends.
• A marketing strategy that puts the targeted audience to account and how to reach them effectively.
• An operations plan covers the business’s day-to-day operations, including your hours of operation, staffing, and equipment.

Step 6: Get Funding For Your Food Stand

Depending on the scale of the business and mode of operation, a street food cart business requires funding to execute the plan. A small scale business can be funded with personal savings, depending on how much the owner has saved. It can also be funded by friends and family members. 

Personal savings might not be enough to fund a large scaled food cart business. When this is the case, consider sourcing for funds through microloans, small business administration loans with low interest, and flexible repayment plans. Fundings can also be sourced through angel investors in exchange for a percentage of ownership.

Step 7: Start Your Food Cart Business

All the processes mentioned earlier are part of the planning stage. starting a food cart business comes at the last stage. Before you start, it is expected that the necessary planning has been put in place. A popular adage says, “he who fails to plan, plans to fail” This statement is particularly relevant in business and entrepreneurship, where careful planning is often the key to success.

Once there is adequate planning, and the necessary licenses have been gotten, It’s time to Start!! Set out to carry out everything you have planned and achieve your goals.

How Motrike Power Up Your Food Cart Business

Motrike specializes in manufacturing high-quality cargo and food carts . They have over 15 years of experience producing suitable food carts for food vendors . Motrike offers you the best by using high-end durable components in the manufacture of different parts of the food cart.

The high-performing electric assistance of the Shimano 6 gears save the rider the stress of pedalling through a long ride. 

Overall, Motrike power up your food cart business by providing effective and efficient mobility, durability, and safety. By partnering with Motrike, you can take your food cart business to the next level and reach new heights of success.

Starting a food cart business can be an exciting and rewarding venture for those passionate about food and entrepreneurship. While it requires hard work and careful planning, following the steps outlined in this blog can help you get started on the right foot. 

From identifying your target market to sourcing ingredients, choosing a location, and marketing your business, each step is critical to the success of your business. 

You can create a thriving mobile food cart business that delights customers and generates profits by staying focused, motivated, and committed to your goals. So why wait? Start planning your food cart business today, and take the first step towards achieving your dreams by contacting us !

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Food Trucks 101: How to Start a Mobile Food Business Want to take your recipes on the road? Here are the basics.

By Entrepreneur Staff Jul 25, 2011

Editor's note: This article was excerpted from our Food Truck startup guide, available from the Entrepreneur Bookstore.

Today, a new generation of street-food lovers is lining up at food trucks and food carts like never before. Little do they know that neither food trucks nor food carts are new to the streets of American cities. Like so many other popular trends, they are the latest version of a long-standing part of American and world culture. Yet the street-food industry has never enjoyed so much publicity or notoriety.

According to Los Angeles-based industry-research firm IBISWorld, the street-food business -- including mobile food trucks and nonmechanized carts -- is a $1 billion industry that has seen an 8.4 percent growth rate from 2007 to 2012. It's very entrepreneurial: 78 percent of operators have four or fewer employees. The true number of these businesses is difficult to count, since the mobile food industry is comprised of food trucks, food carts and kiosks, which have appeared in malls as well as at train and bus stations, airports, stadiums, conference centers, resorts, and other locations in recent years.

Food-industry observers claim that the food-truck business is increasing largely in response to the slow-growing economy. People are seeking inexpensive breakfasts and lunches. Also, employees today are often pressed for time, with more work and shorter lunch hours. These factors make the mobile-food concept more appealing than ever.

From an entrepreneurial standpoint, kiosks, carts, trailers, and food trucks have a lower overhead than restaurants and can be moved if one location does not generate enough business. Rather than having to determine where to open a restaurant and worry about the old real-estate adage "location, location, location," the owner can actually drive to a new location, location, location if business is poor.For customers, you add the convenience of having food favorites right outside a particular location -- or inside with a kiosk -- and meet several needs by serving mobile food. First, you offer food that is cost friendly because you need not pay wait staff or bussers. You also offer the convenience of quick service. In many cases you provide food choices that can save those on a busy schedule from the need to sit down. Typically customers can eat street foods while en route to their next destination. Finally, mobile food is often fun to eat and (if it's good) great to talk about.

Related Book: Start Your Own Food Truck Business

Goin' Mobile: Your Options

Even before you decide what foods to sell, you'll want to consider how you want to sell them.

Clearly, your decision on how to sell your foods will depend on:

• Your startup money, budget and potential for returns
• Your commitment to the business: part time, full time, etc.
• Your creative ideas and what it will take to fulfill them
• Your experience at running a business
• The size of the business you want to start
• Your ideal demographic

These are a few of the considerations you will consider as you proceed, but for now, let's take a look at the common mobile-food entities.

Food Kiosks

Food kiosks are essentially booths or food stands that are temporary or mobile facilities used to prepare and sell food. Malls and stadiums are popular locations for food kiosks, which sell anything from pretzels and ice cream to more elaborate fare.

Although kiosks may have wheels, they are not mobile under their own power and in most cases need to be assembled. Most kiosks are rectangular and have room for two people to work within or stand behind, preparing and serving the food. They also have counter space and overhead signs.

The low overhead, flexibility and ease by which a kiosk can be opened and closed are among the reasons they're so popular. They are also an excellent choice in areas where your outdoor selling season would be limited by cold or nasty weather. Of course, the size of the kiosk limits the inventory, so it's important for a kiosk owner to carry as much as possible and price accordingly so that she can make money on what is on hand each day. Because they are usually operating indoors, kiosk owners typically sign licensing agreements at malls, stadiums, movie theaters, or other locations. Many major food businesses such as Ben & Jerry's and Baskin-Robbins franchise express kiosks.

Food Carts and Concession Trailers

The food cart and the concession trailer have been around for decades and combined are a multibillion-dollar industry today. The best known have always been hot-dog and ice-cream carts. They are among the most cost-effective ways to start a mobile food business because the carts are typically pulled by your car, truck or van, or pushed by hand. Food is either prepared in advance or purchased ready to sell -- like ice-cream pops or cups of Italian ices -- and stored, and then either heated up or pulled from the freezer. Carts are also fairly easy to maintain, and in many counties and communities, require less licensing than the full-size food trucks. It is also cost-effective if you choose to own several carts and hire friends, family or other employees to help run them for you.

There are two basic types of food carts. One has room for the vendor to sit or stand inside and serve food through a window. The other uses all the space in the cart for food storage and cooking equipment, which is typically a grill. The precise type of cart you'll want should be determined largely by the food being offered.

Modern-day food-cart owners have cleaned up the somewhat greasy reputation of street-food vendors. They have also expanded their menus. Kebobs and gyros came on the cart scene awhile ago, and vegetarian and Mediterranean salads have also caught on, as well as fish and chips. The Euro Trash food cart in Portland, Ore., for example, offers items like a prawn baguette with Portuguese curry prawns. And then there's Portland's Pie Lab, with slices of pie -- extra for ice cream or whipped cream on top.

Trailers, like carts, do not move under their own power, limiting their potential locations. Food trailers are often found at fairs, carnivals, sporting events, or other places where they can be unhitched and sit for awhile. Unlike most carts, trailers allow for cooking and have room for two or three people inside. Skillet Street Food in Seattle operates from an Airstream trailer with a full kitchen within. In short, a trailer can provide more options than a cart but is still less expensive than a truck.

Food Trucks

The food truck can carry any number of foods, and in some cases, more sophisticated equipment for storing, serving, cooking and preparing foods. Traditional food trucks were known for providing lunches, typically stocking sandwiches, kebobs, tacos, burgers and other standard fare for the lunch crowd. Many have expanded to include healthier vegetarian and vegan offerings, as well as not-so-healthy barbeque ribs. They do big business in corporate parks and places that have limited access to restaurants. Most food trucks are stocked from concessionaires, but there is a growing number that are associated with fast-food and midlevel restaurants. Sizzler and California Pizza Kitchen, for example, are putting together their own food trucks, as are other chains.

Larger than carts, trucks can carry more food and handle more business. However, food trucks need more space to park both when doing business and when off-duty. Essentially, there are two types of food trucks. One is the mobile food preparation vehicle (MFPV) where food is prepared as customers wait, hopefully not very long. The other is the industrial catering vehicle (ICV), which sells only prepackaged foods. An MFPV costs more than an ICV, and both cost more than a food cart. For example, a used hotdog cart may cost under $2,500, while a retrofitted used food truck would typically cost $30,000 or more. A newly designed food truck retrofitted MFPV with new all equipment could cost you upward of $100,000.

Complying with health-department rules and regulations can also drive up food-truck costs. Clearly, a smaller truck, a used truck, or a truck with limited equipment costs less. Therefore, it is up to you to determine whether you'll be cooking in the truck, preparing food somewhere else and serving from the vehicle, or selling prepared and prepackaged foods.

Gourmet Food Trucks

Basically the same as a food truck, the gourmet food truck takes food quality to a higher level. They are run by ambitious young chefs who offer cuisine not typically found in food trucks, such as specialty crepes, kimchi pork-fries, osso bucco, velvet cupcakes, or the chicken marsala meatballs with cilantro chutney found in the Great Balls on Tires gourmet food truck. Like Great Balls on Tires, many gourmet trucks have specialties and themes. In addition, they let their clientele know where they'll be parked through their websites and social media sites like Twitter. While food trucks need not have kitchens, gourmet trucks are more likely to have food prepared on the spot -- and high-end food at that. At the start of the new gourmet food-truck craze, Los Angeles was clearly the place to find such high-end dining. Now, however, New York has gained its share of such fancy food vehicles, such as the Rickshaw Dumpling Bar and The Dessert Truck founded by a former Le Cirque pastry chef. And as the concept of serving fine food rolls along, other cities from Portland, Ore., to St Louis and on down to Miami's South Beach are jumping on the foodie bandwagon with their own regional favorites. Food Network chef Ingrid Hoffmann's black and pink Latin Burger and Taco Truck, for example, has become quite the rage in Miami.

The Mobile-Catering Business

Mobile-catering trucks can be defined in a variety of ways and can overlap with mobile food trucks. Here are three differences: First, a catering truck is hired for a specific event such as a picnic, party or fair. Secondly, the person hiring the catering vehicle can select from a catering menu. Third, a catering vehicle can be used to transport the foods, which are then handed out from inside the truck or set up at the event or gathering, typically on trays or buffet style. This can mean providing the food to be served outdoors or parking and serving from the truck as the food trucks do. The differences are primarily in the manner of doing business. Nonetheless, the need for a reliable vehicle, licensing, permits, sanitary conditions, a business plan, and startup money are quite similar to the requirements of a mobile-food business.

One of the advantages of a mobile-catering business is that you are not risking as much in inventory because you are cooking and bringing food as ordered for the party. Therefore, you are covered for your food costs. You also have a specific destination, so you need not worry whether your favorite destinations will be busy. Typically, you are less dependent on good weather because many catered functions will be indoors. As long as you can get there with the food, you are usually OK. Of course, you do need to line up enough work to support your business. The difference between a mobile-catering business and other catering businesses is that you are using the mobility of the truck to show up rather than having a catering hall or venue.

Can You Handle the Heat?

While it may look easy, the food-truck industry takes a lot of hard work. For Scott Baitinger and partner Steve Mai who run the famous Streetza pizza truck in Milwaukee, Wis., a typical day starts three or four hours before taking the truck out on the road. "First we'll stop at Sam's Club or Restaurant Depot and pick up fresh ingredients. Then we go to our off-site commissary kitchen where we do all the prep work, which includes rolling the dough, making sauces, cutting the vegetables, and all of the things you really can't do in a 10-by-10 truck," explains Baitinger, who still works a day job in advertising but handles the truck on nights and weekends. Mai runs the weekday shifts except at times in the winter when no one in Milwaukee wants to trek outside in three feet of snow -- not even for pizza.

Then the Streetza team, which also includes a small staff on various shifts, parks at well-selected locations and prepare and sell food. At the end of a day, which is typically when they run out of food or the crowds have dissipated, comes the cleanup. "It's a lot like a restaurant cleanup with stainless steel cleaners, scrubbing, mopping, and making sure everything is in perfect shape to start again tomorrow," adds Baitinger.

Most mobile food business owners follow a similar set routine, whether it includes running the kiosk, cart or truck themselves or having employees run it. The routine, as is the case with Streetza, may include very early morning food shopping a few days a week, if not every day. Then there is stocking the kiosk or vehicle and heading to your destination(s). There is also a need to take some time during the day for marketing, usually via Twitter or another social media. Most mobile food vendors work roughly 10 hours a day. There are also days in which a business owner needs to sit down in a quiet office space, preferably at home with his feet up, and do all of the bookkeeping: paying taxes and bills, renewing licenses, and handling other fun paperwork responsibilities. The work is tiring and the day is long.

Can you handle such a day on a regular basis?

Planning Your Menu

If you look at the food trucks, trailers, carts and kiosks on the streets and at mobile catering menus, you'll find that almost anything edible can be served up street-side. Of course the big question is: How practical is it? This may account for the lack of baked Alaska carts out there, but rest assured, someone is probably selling it on some street corner.

Determining what to serve can be fun. But there are a lot of factors to consider when it comes to menu planning in the mobile food world. Here are a few:

• What do you know how to cook?
• What foods do you enjoy cooking?
• What foods are popular in your town, county, city or region?
• What ingredients are easy to get from wholesalers, markets or farms in your area?
• What foods are easy to transport to and from an off-site commercial kitchen?
• What can you prepare and/or heat up without much difficulty?
• What food(s) are ideally suited for your culinary expertise or allow you to try creative new recipes?
• What foods can customers easily carry around with them?
• What food(s) are potentially cost effective for you to sell?
• What foods are not being sold at 100 other food trucks, carts, kiosks or mobile caterers in your area?
• What times of day will you be open for business? Breakfast? Lunch? Dinner? Late night? All of the above?
• Are you going to specialize in one or two foods with several variations such as pizza, tacos or ice cream?
• Are you going to have a larger menu? Remember, a larger menu typically requires more space and may move you from a kiosk or cart to a truck or bus.

The Next Step: Perfecting Recipes

Unless you are buying prepared foods or have a chef providing you with foods, you'll want to plan your own recipes, work on them, re-work them, and have some taste tests. Consider your family and friends as your very own guinea pigs. Have parties, make a fun time of it, but get them to taste your foods and give you honest critiques. Don't be afraid of some criticism -- better to receive it from friends and family than from food critics and customers.

Once you've found a few favorites, make sure you can master the recipes. Write them down for future reference. Next, try some variations on a theme. Most mobile food entrepreneurs spend several months, often while waiting for their truck to be retrofitted and their backers to fork over some startup money, experimenting with various menu items.

Test Your Food Don't start out with foods you have not thoroughly tested. This means you need to perfect each recipe to be sure it has the following qualities:

• It is easy to make repeatedly in large quantities.
• It tastes consistently good.
• It is easy to serve.
• It travels well.

Buying Ingredients

Sourcing, as they call it in the food business, is the process of getting your foods and other ingredients. Like a restaurant, you need to determine your potential volume and buy accordingly. You always need to be planning in advance to shop or receive orders so that you are never out of necessities. If you are cooking, make a detailed shopping list of ingredients. If you are buying food from wholesalers, know how much you need, how much you can safely keep fresh, and how much you can sell before any food goes bad. You are better running out of food on a busy day than selling something that isn't fresh. Determining the right quantities to purchase is usually trial and error. Where to source your food, can be a factor in planning your purchases, schedule and offerings. Common sources include wholesale food distributors, food manufacturers, local and regional suppliers, greenmarkets and farmers markets, food cooperatives and shopping clubs like Costco or Restaurant Depot.

Food shopping is a huge endeavor for Adria Shimada, who looks for all organic products to use when making homemade ice cream for her Seattle food truck, the Parfait Ice Cream Truck. "I get everything from a different distributor. Milk and cream come from a local certified organic dairy farm about 80 miles away, and I get eggs in another nearby town from another organic farm. All of my produce is real fresh produce, I don't use flavors or extracts. For my mint ice cream, I use real spearmint from a farm in Carnation, Wash.," explains Shimada who scouted and tasted the food from many farms before finding her sources. Some deliver to her commercial kitchen, and others are found at farmers markets in Seattle where farmers bring the wholesale quantities she needs.

Related Article: Food Trucks 101: Where to Stock Up on Ingredients

Licenses and Permits

Before you finish putting your menu together, building your perfectly retrofitted cart or truck or setting up your kiosk, you need to get your licensing in order. While that's not one of the more exciting aspects of your entrepreneurial pursuit, it's one of the most important. It is, in fact, the overall commitment to more stringent health codes and sanitary regulations that have paved the way for food vehicles to generate such a mass following. The knock against food carts and trucks has long been that they were neither clean nor sanitary. Now, as that widespread perception changes, foodies and nonfoodies alike can enjoy their fare with confidence that those running the business are doing their utmost to meet, and surpass, sanitary requirements.

It would probably take several volumes to list and explain the numerous permits and licensing requirements because each state as well as most cities and even counties have their own. However, there are many universal concerns that need to be addressed. Typically, your local department of health will have the information you need. Therefore, you can get started by looking up the local health department online or in your local Yellow Pages and calling to inquire about the necessary requirements. The state or city will have specific requirements that must be met depending on your mode of operation.

If you are selling prepackaged foods, you are not considered a food handler and may have less stringent requirements than if you are actually preparing foods or even scooping ice cream. As long as food is unwrapped, you are typically considered to be a food handler and must meet specific regulations. While your cart or truck designer will not know the nuances of each city's requirements, he or she can usually help you meet health standards. Before you can hit the road, health inspectors will inspect your vehicle. What are inspectors actually looking for? In Washington, D.C., for example, an inspection is conducted to verify the following:

• Proof of ownership, proper identification and license (of the vehicle)
• Proof of District-issued Food Manager Identification Card
• Food-purchase record storage and record keeping
• That your depot, commissary or service support facility meets your vending unit operation needs
• Copy of license for the service support facility and/or a recent inspection report.

Food vehicles are typically inspected at least once a year by a health department inspector, sometimes randomly. The inspector checks to see how food is stored so that it does not spoil and that it is kept at the proper temperature. All food equipment as well as sinks and water supplies are checked. Commercial kitchens and garages in which food vehicles are kept are also inspected frequently and can be given high fines if they do not meet health and fire codes. Some have been shut down because of too many violations. Likewise, trucks and carts have lost their licenses over repeated violations.

Related Article: Clever Tips for Marketing Your Mobile Food Business

Your locations will play a major factor in your success. Your decisions on where to park for business purposes will depend on several key factors. First, you have to consider where you are allowed to park by law. Next, you want to ask yourself where in those areas can you find the customers who would like your foods and/or beverages. You also want to consider the prime hours for each potential location and, of course, the competition. Keep in mind that even if you've found the perfect lunch location on the map and you are allowed to park there, you may also find 19 other food carts and trucks lining the streets.

As more food trucks appear on the streets of major cities like New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco, it becomes much more difficult to find prime locations. Add in the fact that there will be business owners who do not want you parking near their establishments, and it can be a major challenge coming up with good places to do business.

Some places to consider parking are:

• Office parks . Find out if food trucks are allowed to park and during what hours. If you are lucky enough to find an office park without much competition, stake a claim or get a permit (if necessary) from the renting or leasing company to park there regularly. Breakfast and lunch hours should be your primary time slots.
• Empty lots . If you can find out who owns the property, make an offer to pay to park there on a regular basis. You can propose a flat daily rate, a percentage of your sales or both. Such an agreement can benefit both parties and give you a chance to establish yourself. Of course you need to find a lot where there is enough foot traffic to make it worthwhile.
• Shopping districts or malls . You may or may not be allowed to park on a public street alongside stores. Public streets are governed by local traffic laws. That being said, storeowners have a lot of say. Know your local ordinances. You may, however, be able to park near the parking lots or on an adjacent corner to a mall entrance. Malls will likely require you to have a permit to park on their property -- inquire within the mall. Established shopping areas may have little room for you to park, but newer areas, recently opened for business, may give you an opportunity. You may, however, have some growing pains along with the storeowners.
• Popular tourist locations . The tourist crowd is often a great demographic. However, the competition can be fierce near well-known attractions. Sure, you will find food carts around Central Park in New York City, but many have established themselves in specific locations, making it nearly impossible to break into their territory. In some cases, you may need to pay for the privilege of parking at a prime tourist attraction, and it can be pricey. The CupCakeStop owners pay several thousand dollars a month to park at the popular South Street Seaport in lower Manhattan.

You can also look for the opening of a new museum, gallery, theater, arena, visitor's center or anyplace that has just been added to the list of must-see places in your city.

• Sports venues . You may need permits to get close to an arena or stadium. However, if there is street parking for ticket holders, you can usually try to get on a street or a major roadway leading to or from the facility.
• Festivals and events . "We take the truck to local events like Market Square Day, which brings in like 80,000 people, which is a lot for a town of 25,000," says Michelle Lozuaway of Fresh Local in Portsmouth, N.H.
• Conferences and conventions . As is the case with festivals, if they are annual events, they are planned well in advance. Get to know where they are staged and lease your space well in advance or find a place on a public street that leads to the conference or convention center.
• Parks and beaches . You need permits to park in a park or on beach property. Check with the local parks commission to see if you can get such a permit and at what cost. Carts may have the upper hand here because they take up less space.
• Bus and train stations . If there is room, by all means consider these as busy locations where people may be hungry. Again, you have to know where you can park, so inquire. Also, get an idea of which hours will see the most foot traffic.
• College campuses . Off campus, public streets may be good for parking. However, unless it is a commuter school, you may not have a lot of traffic. To get on campus for a few hours a day, you need to get a permit from the school, and that may be difficult depending on the institution and its policies. If nothing else, you may be able to secure a spot when there are major school events, such as football or basketball games.
• The business district . Serving lunch in the middle of a busy business area can be terrific. However, in some cities, like New York, it's next to impossible to just slip into the mix without angering the competition (and you don't want to do that). Again, look for developing areas. Read about companies moving downtown or uptown or to a part of town that is now being built up or re-zoned for commercial use. Try to stake a claim in an up-and-coming area. You may struggle at first, as do many new businesses, but in time you may be the king of the hill.

Learning all about parking rules and regulations in your city and finding the best potential locations for your business takes due diligence. Even once you have found a few locations to your liking, keep on scouting around. Parking rules and regulations, as well as local ordinances, change often, so a good location one month may be gone the next. Also, note that as the seasons change, some locations become less viable, such as your great spot by the beaches on the Jersey shore, which will not be so great in the fall or winter months. So come up with other plans.

Startup Costs

There's no set formula for determining how much it costs to start a business. The field is broad, and there are too many possibilities. Clearly, a cart will typically cost less than a truck, and a prepackaged product such as ice cream, candy or cans of soda are typically cheaper than making your own foods or beverages.

For your purposes, you want to make a list of each of everything you need from the truck, cart, van, kiosk, bus and retrofitted equipment to marketing and promotion costs and home office equipment.

The range of costs varies greatly. You might spend $3,000 on a food cart, $500 on your initial food bill, $400 on permits and registrations, $200 on marketing, $300 on an attorney, and $300 for the first month to park and clean the cart. Tack on $300 in other miscellaneous costs, and you're off and running for $5,000.

On the other hand, you could spend $60,000 on a retrofitted food truck, $1,000 on initial ingredients, $2,000 on permits and licenses, $2,000 for the first month of a commercial kitchen rental, $300 for the first month of parking and maintaining the truck, $1,700 on kitchen supplies, $3,000 on marketing and promotion, $2,000 on packaging, $1,000 to set up a small home office for bookkeeping, and $500 in miscellaneous costs for a grand total of just under $75,000.

Compared to a restaurant, even $75,000 is not bad for starting a business. The point is, it varies greatly. You need to do the math before spending any money so that you do not run out before you get started.

The numbers will also vary depending on your needs. Do you need an oven? A rotisserie? Coffee pots? A grill? Hot-dog roller? The costs can range dramatically. Then, of course, you need to get and pay for all of the permits for the city or town you operate in and board of health approval. There simply is no exact number, but you can be pretty sure the vehicle is your biggest investment.

Your Concept and Look

Consider your brand or the character of your vehicle or kiosk.

That means having a consistent theme from the look of the truck to the napkins, menu and other accessories to the way you present the food. You can be pink and playful, dark and mysterious, ethnic, silly, or whatever suits your fancy -- but go with the theme. The Fojol Brothers of Merlindia created an entire world of their own that has generated a lot of media attention with their food truck in Washington, D.C. Their website at fojol.com is unique and entertaining. Foodies today are into the overall ambiance and brand of their favorite mobile food vendors.

The Louisiana Territory truck in San Jose, Calif., is built around the concept of serving Louisiana-style foods, including shrimp and sausage creole over rice and Louisiana smoked sausage. The Grilled Cheese trucks in LA are big and yellow, with a yellow menu featuring the signature Cheesy Mac and Rib and an online gallery of cheesy photos. Meanwhile, Van Leeuwen Artisan Ice Cream trucks in New York City are designed to be an old-fashioned ice cream parlor on wheels with freshly made ice cream and classic sundaes.

The days of the basic food cart or truck have given way to a new brand of vehicles with concepts, or themes, that carry through from exterior design to logos, menus and of course the foods. Your concept should be a means of distinguishing you from your competition and building your niche market. You might even name some of your foods in line with your theme, such as the Yellow Submarine in Miami which also sells the Lady Madonna sandwich, named from another Beatles song, or the Big Gay Ice Cream Truck in New York, which serves the Bea Arthur. Be clever and consistent (never confusing), and you can broaden your appeal and even draw media attention.

Resources Associations

• Convenience Caterers & Food Manufacturers Association
• DC Food Truck Association
• National Association of Concessionaires
• National Restaurant Association
• National Association for the Self Employed
• National Association of Specialty Food Trade
• Southern California Mobile Food Vendors

Mobile Food Industry Information

• Midtown Lunch
• Mobile Catering Business.com
• Mobile Cuisine
• Mobile Food News

Entrepreneur Staff

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How to Start a Concession Trailer Business

What do i need in order to open a restaurant in virginia, hot dog stand start up checklist.

• Starting a Food Vendor Mobile Business at Fairs, Carnivals and Festivals
• What Do I Need to Start an Ice Cream Truck Business?

If you have a passion for food and love being around people, a street food cart business might be right for you. You can succeed even if you're starting a food truck with no experience working in one. Learning how to open a food truck starts with exploring food cart business ideas and then making a solid business plan. From there, you can purchase what you need and start operating your popular new food truck, serving customers delicious food.

Make a Food Cart Business Plan

As much as it would be more fun to start naming your business, designing a logo and crafting your menu, you have to worry about practical matters first. Begin by researching the regulations and statutes governing mobile food businesses in your state, county and city, paying particular attention to the Board of Health's rules. Knowing these rules can help you understand what you can and cannot do and how the laws may restrict your movements and the cart or truck itself. These rules vary widely from place to place, so if you seek advice from other mobile restaurateurs, make sure they registered their business in your municipality.

Now that you understand what's allowed, you can get into more details, but the writers at Webstaurant Store explain that you need financing first. Start-up money is one of the biggest impediments for many aspiring food truck owners. While a mobile enterprise is undoubtedly less expensive than a brick-and-mortar restaurant, learning how to start a food truck with no money is even more challenging.

How to Open a Food Cart

To move forward with your business, you need to write your menu because the kind of food you sell might dictate the type of license you need. According to Square , analyzing your target market and local community's food preferences can help you decide what type of food will sell well. If you prepare prepackaged food in a commercial kitchen and sell it, that's likely different than if you cook the food onsite. The equipment you want to use could also change the type of truck and the licensing you need.

As you design your menu and consider your brand, you should always consider how you will outfit your truck. The cart or truck is likely the priciest piece of equipment you will purchase, so you want to ensure it will not only fit your needs now but also grow with your business in the future.

Once you know the details, you can write up a business proposal and put together a presentation for potential investors or banks.

Food Cart Business Ideas and More

There are many other critical factors when starting a food cart. For one thing, you need business skills. You'll need to incorporate your business and learn how to pay the applicable taxes. If you plan to hire employees, you'll also need to learn how to pay them and learn when they need to take breaks.

When trying to succeed as a small business, it's helpful to be active in your local community. Join your area's chamber of commerce and any other relevant organizations. You may even consider aligning your food cart with a charity or cause, such as an animal shelter or elementary school.

It can also help to get active on social media and try to amass a following with smart marketing techniques. Go where people gather, such as farmer's markets or festivals. If you're concerned about building a reputation and finding customers, you can look for a food cart business for sale. If it's a local business, they probably have a following already.

• Webstaurant Store: How to Start a Food Truck
• Square: How to Start a Food Truck Business

Danielle Smyth is a writer and content marketer from upstate New York. She has been writing on business-related topics for nearly 10 years. She owns her own content marketing agency, Wordsmyth Creative Content Marketing, and she works with a number of small businesses to develop B2B content for their websites, social media accounts, and marketing materials. In addition to this content, she has written business-related articles for sites like Sweet Frivolity, Alliance Worldwide Investigative Group, Bloom Co and Spent.

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The Ultimate List of Resources for Starting a Street Food or a Mobile Food Cart Business

If you’re considering starting your own street food or mobile food cart business but don’t have the know-how, then you’ll love this guide.

From how-to articles to podcasts and online communities of like-minded people, the guide lists everything you need in one place, so you’ll spend less time on research and more focusing on your business plan.

Let’s get started:

Table of Contents

• How-to Guides
• Buying Guides
• Legal Requirements
• Business Plan Templates
• Useful Websites
• Useful Articles
• Business Books
• Social Media Communities
• YouTube Videos & Channels
• Business Courses
• Organizations
• Other Resources

1. Street Food & Food Cart Business How-to Guides

When it comes to the how-to guides you can find online, you’ll notice that almost all of them focus on food trucks and very few address the particularities of smaller scale platforms such as food carts, food stalls etc.

For this reason, we created our own series of Street Food How-to Guides using real, actionable information from our customers.

In this list, however, we also included all the articles created by third parties that we considered to be the best in terms of relevance and practicality. 

Street Food / General

With a world-wide presence that’s stronger by the year, street food’s appeal is growing not just with customers but also with entrepreneurs.

Whether you’re considering a side hustle or a full-time commitment, these guides walk you through the fundamentals:

Guide 1: How to Start a Street Food Cart Business

Guide 2: How to Start a Profitable Street Food Business in the UK

Guide 3: How to Start a Street Food or Food Truck Business

Even with so many new street food contenders, these all-time classics continue to rule the popularity game, both in terms of customer preference, as well as profit margins. 

If you’re planning to start a hot dog cart business, take a look at these guides first:

Guide 1: How to Start a Hot Dog Cart Business

The guide is updated regularly to keep up with market trends

Guide 2: How to Start a Hot Dog Cart Business

Guide 3: Total Cost Breakdown For Hot Dog Cart Business Startups

This article runs you through the start-up and the monthly operational costs of a hot dog cart business. Bear in mind it was last updated in 2016; nevertheless, it should at least give you an idea of the outlay involved.

Although a very popular street food menu item – and very lucrative, dare we say – there aren’t too many articles out there detailing the know-how of a successful mobile ice cream business. Here are the best two:

Guide 1: How to Start an Ice Cream Cart Business

Guide 2: How To Start An Ice Cream Truck Business (USA)

We recommend this guide  – even though it’s geared towards ice cream trucks – because it does a very good job of detailing the registration process, most of which apply to ice cream carts as well.

Coffee is an all-season winner providing great profit margins and countless trading opportunities. But how do you turn it into a successful business? The guides below explain the steps:

Guide 1: How to Start a Coffee Cart Business

Guide 2: How To Start A Mobile Coffee Cart (USA)

As with their previous guide, Truic does a great job in outlining the registration steps for a coffee cart business, which is especially useful for first-time entrepreneurs.

2. Food Carts Buying Guide

As food carts manufacturers, we know first hand that finding a cart that fully meets your requirements is the second most time consuming aspect of setting up your business. 

A few fundamental pointers are necessary, especially for first-time buyers who need to make sure that their chosen platform is legally compliant as well as suitable for day to day operations.

And since there’s no other buying guide out there concerning food carts, we challenged ourselves to create the most in-depth one to date:

How to Choose the Right Food Cart for Your Business

3. Street Food & Food Cart Business Legal Requirements

Navigating the complex process of getting licensed and approved as a street food vendor is, hands down, the first most daunting and time consuming step of a street food business.

Since regulations differ not only from country to country but also from county to county and city to city, creating a complete guide would be pretty much impossible.

However, this doesn’t mean we can’t at least point you in the right direction by listing the universal concerns that need to be addressed.

1. Food Cart Business Laws – Europe

Here are the registration and licensing requirements for the following countries:

Belgium, Denmark, France, Italy, Netherlands & UK

2. Food Cart Business Laws – USA

In the USA, there are as many differences in terms of laws and licensing requirements as there are cities. Even more so, while some regions are quite open and permissive in regards to street food – like Portland, for example – others, such as Georgia or NY, are overly regulated and restrictive. 

Generally speaking, the best way to start would be by:

• checking the U.S. Small Business Administration’s website ;
• getting in touch with the local department of health, to find out what specific permits you need;
• contacting the city hall or the county clerk’s office for business registration info;
• consulting the local tax office for tax purposes.

4. Street Food & Food Cart Business Plan Templates

The very first step of starting your mobile food cart business should be writing your business plan. 

This will serve as a roadmap to success as you embark on your entrepreneurial journey as well as help you face any challenges in a constructive, practical way.

As a rule of the thumb, the more detailed your business plan, the better the chance of developing a successful business. 

By the end of it, you should have a pretty clear picture of each of your business’s aspects such as trading location(s), target market, estimated costs, marketing, projected sales etc. 

Important, right? Here are several templates we recommend: Template 1: Food Truck Business Template complete with example

Template 2: Food Truck Business Template 2 complete with step-by-step explanations

Template 3: US SBA’s Business plan template (generic)

5. Street Food & Food Cart Business Websites

While there aren’t many websites out there focusing exclusively on the ins and outs of street food, food cart or food truck businesses, the ones that do exist are treasure troves of knowledge created by experienced industry insiders, such as:

1. Street Food Central (UK)

2. StreetFood.org.uk (UK)

3. LearnHotDogs.com (USA/Global)

When Ben Wilson lost everything, he turned to hot dogs for a living. Shortly after, he became so successful at it that he grew his business into an empire. LearnHotDogs.com documents his years of experience in the trade, providing how-to guides, clever business tips and free resources such as online webinars.

4. FoodTruckr (USA/Global)

5. Food Truck Empire’s Blog (USA/Global)

The Food Truck Empire was initially started with the purpose to document the process of opening a food truck business and build some buzz through the process. Seven years later, the site has developed into a valuable hub that supports all forms of food entrepreneurship, featuring an active blog, a podcast and even a marketplace.

6. Street Food & Food Cart Business Useful Articles

The increasing popularity of mobile catering businesses and street food in general is well-reflected by the media, whose interest towards the subject has been growing steadily in the last few years. 

Mastering the ropes of a street food business has been covered by online publications such as Forbes and Entrepreneur, with the latter dedicating a whole series to it titled the Startup Kit.

The best articles so far are:

1. Entrepreneur’s series The Startup Kit

The Startup Kit covers several fundamental aspects of owning and operating a mobile street food business, from outlay and licensing , to inventory and marketing . While the series itself is quite informative, it’s actually a summary of Entrepreneur’s book on the same topic – Start Your Own Food Truck Business – included further down this guide.

Five Steps To Revving Up Your Mobile Food Business (Even During A Pandemic)

7. Street Food, Food Trucks & Food Cart Business Books

There’s no better way of starting a business than doing it by the book. And, luckily, thanks to a good number of entrepreneurs that turned their experience into written knowledge, there are plenty of good books when it comes to street food know-how.

While this by no means the full list, below you will find the most appreciated ones, based on reader recommendations and reviews:

Book 1: Start Your Own Food Truck Business (Second Edition): Cart, Trailer, Kiosk, Standard and Gourmet Trucks, Mobile Catering, Bustaurant (2015)

The book covers all the details behind starting and running a successful mobile food business, from choosing the right vehicle to franchising, plus gain recipes, shopping lists, favorite equipment buys and more from practicing street food entrepreneurs.

Book 2: Starting a Part-time Food Business: Everything You Need to Know to Turn Your Love for Food Into a Successful Business Without Necessarily Quitting Your Day Job (2011)

Book 3: Food On Wheels: The Complete Guide To Starting A Food Truck, Food Cart, Or Other Mobile Food Business (2011)

Book 4: Delicious Freedom: How to Take Your Street Food Business from Dream to Reality (2021)

Written by David Weber, the founder and president of the NYC Food Truck Association (NYCFTA), The Food Truck Handbook is, to this date, one of the best and most complete guides out there.

The book offers practical, step-by-step guidance to developing a successful food truck business from concept to equipment maintenance, while cutting through the hype and providing an accurate depiction of the street food lifestyle.

Alternate Reads

How To Start A Food Truck Business in 2020: How To Turn Your Passion Into A Profitable Business In 2020 Step By Step (2020)

Running a Food Truck For Dummies

Food Truck Business Guide for Beginners: Simple Strategic Plan to Build and Maintain a Successful Mobile Business

Melvin Lee – Hot Dog Cart Business – How to Get Started (2013)

Hot Dogs Saved My Life – The Most Comprehensive Guide On The Market (2011)

Turning Passion for Food into a Thriving Business

Book 1: Cooking Up a Business: Lessons from Food Lovers Who Turned Their Passion into a Career – and How You Can, Too

8. Street Food & Food Cart Business Social Media Communities

Reddit Communities

Known for its wide variety of communities for every topic under the sun, Reddit lives up to its name when it also comes to street food. Here are the two most active street food subreddits:

1. Food Trucks

2. Street Food Artists

Facebook Groups

Part marketplace, part discussion hubs, these street food groups have it all: you can seek and offer advice, buy and sell equipment, offer jobs, check organiser credibility etc.

1. Street food / Food Trucks / Traders / Venders / Equipment U.K

2. Street Food Traders – Mobile Caterers – Staff – STREET FOOD COLLECTIVE

USA / Global

1. Food Carts, Food Trailers, Food Trucks, Food Equipment for Sale

2. Food Truck & Trailer Life

3. All About Food Trucks and Trailers

9. Street Food & Food Cart Business Podcasts

  Podcasts are a fun way of consuming knowledge, especially when it comes from industry insiders and seasoned veterans. 

Fortunately, there are some great podcasts out there when it comes to street food. And even though none of them strictly refer to food carts, they are nonetheless full of know-how, ideas and useful tips that could easily be applied to a mobile food cart business.

Here are our favourites:

1. KERB On the Inside (UK)

The podcast is hosted by Petra Barran, the founder of KERB – an UK street food incubator and accelerator.

3. Food Truck Empire’s podcast

4. The Food Truck Scholar

5. Truck Tales by Food Truck Ventures

From the Archive

FoodTruckr School Podcast

Additional Listen

Chefs Without Restaurants

10. Street Food & Food Cart Business YouTube Videos

1. LearnHotDog’s YouTube Channel

Ben’s channel is dedicated exclusively to starting and developing a successful hot dog cart business. His videos cover pretty much everything there is to know on the subject, such as business planning, legal aspects, cart setup, how to deal with competition, and so on.

2. Business with Dave

Dave is a young entrepreneur from the UK, passionate about business, street food, and these two combined. His videos focus on street food businesses and entrepreneurship, providing a modern, hands-on approach to achieving success.

3. UpFlip’s Food Truck Series Part 1 & Part 2

Coming from UpFlip, an YouTube channel for business owners and entrepreneurs, this two part series features Kyle Gourlie, owner of the Vet Chef, voted the Best Food Truck in Western Washington in 2017. During the interview, he talks about how much his food truck cost, how he’s built a successful food truck business, and his plans for the future.

4. Marketing Food Online

This channel is the brainchild of Damian Roberti, the founder and owner of The Brittle Box Candy Company. It features over 700 hundred videos all about starting, growing, and helping food businesses succeed, including topics such as how to start and grow a mobile street food business, how to sell food at farmers markets and events, and how to market food products online.

11. Street Food & Food Cart Business Courses

The Food Truck Bible – The A-Z On How To Win On The Street!

Food Truck Business Plan – Template, Sample, Example & Excel

Start Your Own Food Truck – Leave the Corporate World Behind

Additional Course (UK only)

Food Safety in Catering (UK)

12. Street Food & Food Cart Business Organizations

3. European Street Food

1. Street Food en Mouvement

2. Food Truck Associations

Belgian Food Truck Association

1. Chicago Street Vendors Association

2. National Food Truck Association

1. L’association Des Restaurateurs De Rue Du Québec

2. StreetFood Vancouver Society

13. Other Resources

Food Truck Pub

This is a free online ordering system for food truck owners and street food enthusiasts. The app is available for iOS as well as Android users.

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How to Start a Food Cart Business: Detailed Steps

There is no better time than the present to start a food cart business. Street food is no longer an option people only grab when they are in a hurry or have limited options. Food carts, food bicycles, and food trucks have become popular, sought-out options for hungry customers around the globe. In the United States,  mobile food businesses represented a 1.4 billion market in 2022 and are projected to continue growing. With all the potential surrounding mobile food markets, it’s easy to see why learning how to start a food cart business has become desirable for entrepreneurs and beginners.

Let’s explore some of the things to consider when starting a food cart with wheels: 

Popular Food Cart Items

Mobile food cart offerings have come a long way over the years. Historically, a street food cart kitchen was associated with menu items like burgers, hot dogs, popcorn, doughnuts, or ice cream. While classic menu items are still popular and offer high-profit margins , there is also a significant market for other types of food like sushi, tacos, empanadas, nachos, french fries, crepes, coffee/tea, and shaved ice, among others. The popularity of food cart offerings largely depends on location, availability of ingredients, and customer type.

Food Cart Business Benefits and Requirements

Starting a food cart business has many benefits, like becoming your own boss with low startup costs, minimum experience, less risk, and location flexibility. Mobile food businesses also have the potential to bring in huge profits and business growth. Although there is unlimited potential for success, a lot of hard work and research are involved in reaching these goals. For motivated people, starting a food cart with wheels can be a true entrepreneur’s dream.

Legal Requirements for Starting Food Cart Business

Local legal requirements are one of the most important areas to research when starting a mobile food business. The principal regulations to research are health, vehicle requirements, and zoning laws. Permits and license requirements will vary depending on the type of street food cart purchased. Every city, state, or county will also have unique rules and laws that mobile food carts must follow to avoid expensive fines or closure.

Food Bike or Street Food Cart?

Both food bikes and carts are desirable options when learning how to sell street food. Deciding between purchasing a bike or a  street food cart will depend on multiple factors such as space requirements, budget, and menu options. A food bike is the most mobile, eco-friendly option, while a food cart offers more storage, equipment, and selling space.

Street Food Stand Budget

Building a budget for a food cart business is another crucial step toward success. Business budgets are updated regularly and include both one-time and recurring costs. A budget plan will include everything from the initial street food stand purchase to recurring food supplies, equipment, insurance costs, permits, payroll, etc.

Building A Food Cart Business Plan

A comprehensive business plan is one of the most vital steps in starting food cart ideas. A business plan is a roadmap to follow from the beginning and throughout. It should include information about a company, including, but not limited to, industry, customer, and competitive analysis, marketing and operations plans, legal structure type, and financial details on startup costs, projected expenses, and returns.

How To Start a Food Cart Business Marketing Plan/Strategy

Marketing is any business’s promotional voice, which means a strong marketing plan can make or break the profit margins. A food cart business marketing plan should be a part of the business plan and will include how to spread the word about the cart and the products offered through channels like word-of-mouth, social media, print, influencer marketing, and paid ads. 

Finding The Best Food Cart Equipment

The operation’s heart is the equipment that runs a street food stand. No matter the budget, a mobile food vendor should invest in the highest quality cart they can work into the budget. The initial investment in top-quality equipment will save costs over time in repairs or upgrades. It also protects the business from potential income loss from accidents, faulty gear, or functionality not up to code. There are also important factors to consider, like power availability for locations and the size of cold food storage. Newer street food cart models may offer better amenities like solar panels for power and larger storage areas. 

How to Sell Street Food 

After completing all the planning and paperwork, it’s time to find the perfect selling locations. Ideal locations will be available for vendor permits, cost-effective, and offer high traffic of potential customers. There are many ways to find the best spots, by exploring the local scene, researching online, or joining food vendor advocacy groups and social media forums.

New mobile food cart businesses need to get exposure to their brand and products as fast and cost-effective as possible. Joining the vendor list at local events like farmer’s markets, fairs, and festivals is an excellent way to get early exposure and sales. Participating in local events is a great way to get featured on more established social media pages and promotion sites. These events also allow food cart owners to meet and network with fellow street food cart vendors in the area who know their way around the local scene, which is invaluable.

Ferla Bikes Love: User Reviews that Win Hearts

“I was quite impressed with the customer service. I called in just to ask a few questions and Steven handled my call with expertise and in a friendly manner (no rush), this is a company I can trust. The support really gave me relief! The only thing I can suggest is to have extra bike accessories ready to ship. I’ll be glad to continue to with my purchases of my very own Ferla X soon. Can’t wait to launch my business.”

— Prince Awhaitey    ★★★★★

“I am a small business owner and currently own the Ferla Glacier X. We’ve had our bike for over 2 years now and just recently needed a replacement part. Steven at Ferla was efficient in helping get the part to me in time for my next event. Someone from the Ferla team went out of their way to hand deliver it to UPS and ship it over night. I appreciate the great communication and timeliness of this matter. Without their help I would’ve lost out on all of that weekends revenue.”

— Taylor Tinsley    ★★★★★

A few reviews from instagram:

          View this post on Instagram                       A post shared by BRAVO TOAST (@bravo.toast)

          View this post on Instagram                       A post shared by Amy Mucha | Chief Pop Artist at Daisy Pops (@daisypops_cakepops)

          View this post on Instagram                       A post shared by • Tizzy K’s Cereal Ice Cream • (@tizzykscerealicecream)

Benefits of Ferla Food Carts and Bikes

As discussed above, finding top-quality equipment is one of the best investments a new street food stand can make. Ferla carts are not only the most innovative, technologically advanced, sustainable options for sale on the market but are also affordable and offer a variety of benefits, including: 

• Temperature Controlled Battery-Operated Freezers
• Draft Or Ice Cream Dispensers
• Light And Flexible Solar Panel Systems 
• Pedal Assist
• Extendable Counter Spaces
• Customizable Grills
• Customizable Coffee Brew Set Ups
• All Terrain Tires
• Extensive Storage Space Options

At Ferla, we understand what mobile food businesses need and support them with our customizable food carts and bikes. No matter what street food stand is vending, Ferla will work with a company to create a unique cart that will fulfill every need for many years.  

• Sat. Jun 8th, 2024

Business Diary Philippines

Small business startup ideas and money making guide

How to Start Your Own Food Cart Business

Starting a food cart business is an ideal start up venture for young entrepreneurs because it doesn’t require a big capital. However, in order for your food cart business to be successful you need to have a good product that people will always want, a good location and you have to market it well.

But before starting a food cart business, here are 10 things you should consider according to Richard Sanz, director of the Association of Filipino Franchisers Inc. (Affi).

1. You should have a good concept. Sanz says the concept should always match the product you are selling. So, if the product is Italian, everything should be consistently Italian themed. If the product is Filipino, the concept should match.

2. Focus on the product first. “Even if the concept is good, but the product is bad, people will just avail at the start to try it out but they will not be coming back,” Sanz said. Making sure that you have a consistently good product will ensure the long term viability of the business.

3. Get a good starting location. This is one of the single most important factors of a food cart business. Make sure that the site is very visible with very high foot traffic. “Do your research, try to gauge the amount of people passing through a particular location, and also make sure that these people suit your target market for your product,” Sanz advises.

4. Come up with a good stall design to attract customers. As a marketing tool, having a good storefront is critical for any startup. “Ask yourself, how will I differentiate myself from competitors? To do this, you will probably need to hire a good designer and architect or visit other countries to get a good idea. Trade books and magazines could also help you decide what design will work for your line of business,” Sanz said.

5. Have an efficient operating system. Sanz said it is very important to install a good operating system in your business, especially if you’re a startup with limited resources. “Here is where the stall operation will revolve. This is important because in cart business, there is limited space. You should be able to store your product and prepare them with that limited space,” he said.

6. Don’t bank on credit to bankroll your business. Obtaining the needed capital for your business is a necessary step, but Sanz counsels it would be wise to use your own money, so in case the business doesn’t do well, no creditor will go after you. “The rule is “you only invest what you are prepared to lose,” he said.

7. Be a stickler for service. A food business is very dependent on a good reputation for success, maintaining a good service level, efficient systems, and clean products and workstations will go a long way in helping your longevity and increase help you build credibility.

8. Pay your suppliers, employees, and lessor (rent) on time to ensure continuity of operations. There’s nothing more annoying than having to stop operations for lack of supplies, place of business, or both. To avoid this, Sanz says entrepreneurs should set up an active payment system that is both efficient and timely. “Suppliers are the lifeblood of your company, and if they stop because of non payment, you will lose a lot money. Also, make sure to pay the right wages and give mandatory benefits to your employees, because a happy worker is a productive worker,” he said.

9. Secure all necessary permits before starting operations. Before the first day of operations, make sure to register your business with DTI, IPO, BIR, and get the necessary business permits in the barangay and municipal/city hall (mayor’s permit). Doing so will save you the hassle of processing it while your business is already under way.

10. Choose the right franchise. If you opt to get a franchise instead of starting your own business, make sure that the franchisor is a member of good standing with any (or both) of the two franchise associations in the Philippines, AFFI (Association of Filipino Franchisers, Inc) and PFA (Philippine Franchise Association). Do background checks, talk with franchisees, and consult a lawyer before signing the franchise agreement.

“People should be very careful before getting a franchise for food carts because there are already fly-by-night franchisers that are taking advantage of this to enrich themselves illegally. This is why the membership with the Affi and PFA is important because these two groups screen their members properly,” Sanz said.

Here are 4 things to know if you want to put a food cart business:

1. You can start a food cart business with a capital of P30,000 to P300,000

– With P30,000 starting capital you can have the following: a. Wooden cart with a signage – P10,000 – P12,000 b. Fryers and grillers – P10,000 c. Products (fishballs and squidballs, etc) – P10,000

2. Food carts are manageable and portable

– Food carts are easy to set up, requires low capital and is cheaper than putting up a restaurant.

3. With a simple 4 to 10 product menu, you can start up your own food cart business.

– In putting up a food cart business, the first thing to consider is the product you will be selling. It could be an exceptional product, a family recipe not known to many, an innovation or variation of an existing product, or a simple and affordable product.

– Your choice of product will also determine the equipment you need.

4. If the business does not work out in one location, you can easily move it to a new and better location.

– Best food cart locations are in malls and train stations, schools, terminals, and office areas. – Choose a location depending on your product and income. – Malls and train stations are expensive are expensive locations so make sure that you have enough budget for the space rentals.

Want to own your dream food cart business? Start today with the help of an  authorised money lender .

Click here on How to Get Business Permits and Licenses .

Sources: Sam’s Everything On Stick (453-5239-40), Christine Magno – Owner FoodBiz (09175652113) – Hanep Buhay, gmanews.tv, entrepreneur.com.ph

Related posts:

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Sizzling success: launching a beef pares overload business, brown rice: a comprehensive guide to healthier eating, bistek tagalog recipe, 22 thoughts on “how to start your own food cart business”.

Those who wants foodcart, kiosk and in-line fabricator. please visit our fb page Builder’s Choice Concept.

how to apply end how much it cost.

what is the maximum number of employees will we hire in a food cart franchise business? Do you have a basis on this number?

hi im interested, but im 46 yo already

Having small capital should not discourage the entrepreneurial spirit of Filipinos. Food is an essential and food carts attract foot traffic everywhere. Juan just need to look for a good location and a trustworthy franchising company to partner with.

If you are interested on starting your very own Food Cart Franchise business.

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If your location is in Metro Manila or nearby areas, we do orientation by schedule in our main office in Greenhills, San Juan by texting 0917-909-1116 for interested franchisee.

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I am interested,I wanna no how to apply,pls pm me, thanks..

Hello mam pwde magapply?

That was pretty interesting to know. Anyway, for those poeple who are interested, I have a food cart business for more details please visit this url : http://www.foodcartbusiness.net/

thank you for the helpful tips and I have a foodcart bussiness for more detail visit this link http://www.foodcartbusiness.net/

application process please

pano po mag apply?

Pano mag aaply dto? Add me nman or call me 09466976370

te how po to apply? im interested po

Franchise food cart business now. 52,500 lang you can start your business. Just call 093223140269/09358365517

how to apply?

I would recommend starting your online business at home, even while you have your employment. There are tons of ideas out there, which one can capitalize. Everything is actually going online. I am expecting that Philippines will also follow the trend of 1st world countries, wherein most shopping is now done via online. I do have an online e-commerce website myself and leverages through online free classified ads such as www.mybenta.com, OLX and AYOS.

Heirs Salvaña i messaged you on facebook. please check "other folders" in your inbox. 🙂

im interested..how to apply?

Junna Otayde Reyna i messaged you on facebook. please check "other folders" in your inbox. 🙂

food cart business is a good source income of many filipinos here in our country. . .it’s a good business

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How to Start a Food Cart Business in the Philippines

• by iMark Infotech
• May 14, 2024
• Online Business , Uncategorized

Starting a food cart business in the Philippines is a great idea for entrepreneurs. It’s a chance to join a market that loves new and convenient eating options. 

The food cart model is especially good because it’s affordable and flexible, making it easier to overcome business challenges and delight customers who are always moving.

As technology changes the way we do business,  Prosperna  is a great resource for food cart owners who want to grow online. Prosperna helps you build a strong digital presence, making it simpler to connect with customers online. 

Whether it’s your first cart or you are growing your business, Prosperna’s tools can help you reach more people, manage your business more efficiently, and increase your sales in this fast-moving industry.

Understanding the Popularity and Advantages of Food Cart Business  in the Philippines

The growing popularity of  food cart businesses  among Filipino entrepreneurs is due to many important reasons. The main appeal is that it’s more affordable, as starting a food cart needs much less money compared to traditional stores. Another advantage is accessibility; these carts, whether they move or stay in one place, can be placed in busy spots, making it easy to reach potential customers.

Here’s why food cart businesses are getting more popular in the Philippines:

• Affordability : It’s cheaper to start a food cart business. You don’t need a lot of money to begin, making it possible for many new entrepreneurs.
• Accessibility : Food carts can easily move around or be set up in different busy spots. This means you can go where the customers are, helping you get more visitors.

Running a food cart business has some big benefits compared to traditional restaurants:

• Smaller teams : You usually don’t need many people to help run a food cart, which means it costs less for staff and it’s simpler to manage.
• Simplified operations : Since you have a smaller menu and less area to look after, you can make things run smoother and concentrate on being efficient.

Even with these advantages, it’s important to remember that this business is very competitive. There are many success stories, like Mang Juan’s Siomai, which began as a simple food cart and now has many branches all over the country. 

These stories show that not only can food cart businesses work, but they can also grow big.

To stand out in this busy market:

• Find a unique selling point (USP) that makes your food cart different from others.
• Highlight what’s special about your food cart, whether it’s the unique tastes, creative ideas, or great customer service.

By focusing on your USP, you can make your business noticeable among the many others trying to get customers’ attention in the busy streets of the Philippines.

Choosing the Right Path: Franchise or Build Your Own Food Cart  Business? 

When you start a food cart business, you need to decide if you want to franchise a known brand or set up your own from scratch. Each choice has its own benefits and challenges:

If you choose to franchise:

• Brand Recognition: Customers already recognize and trust the brand.
• Proven Business Model: You get a system that’s already working well.
• Training and Support: You receive detailed help on how to run your business.
• Initial Investment: Starting costs are higher because of franchise fees.
• Ongoing Costs: You pay monthly fees for royalties or marketing which can lower your profits.
• Less Control: You have limited freedom to make changes as you need to follow the franchisor’s guidelines.

If you decide to create your own brand:

• Full Control: You have complete freedom to decide on your brand, menu, and how you operate.
• Customization: You can tailor your offerings to fit your specific customer base.
• Potential Cost Savings: There are no franchise fees and you can choose your own suppliers to possibly save money.
• Brand Building: You need to invest time and effort to make your brand known from scratch.
• Trial and Error: There’s a higher risk as there’s no guaranteed successful formula.

The best path for you depends on your resources, how much risk you’re willing to take, and your desire for independence. If having a well-known brand is important to you, then franchising might be better. 

However, if you prefer to be independent and have unique ideas for your food cart, then starting your own brand could be the right choice.

No matter which option you go for, Prosperna is here to help with your online presence. We provide tools to create an attractive digital storefront that matches your brand’s values.

Key Considerations for Starting a Successful Food Cart Business 

When starting a food cart business, it’s essential to have a clear and detailed business plan. This plan serves as your roadmap, helping you outline your vision, attract investors, and manage your business effectively.

Business Plan Components:

• Executive Summary: Provide a snapshot of your food cart business, including your concept and objectives.
• Market Analysis: Learn about the market by checking out customer demographics, needs, trends, and competitors.
• Organizational Structure: Describe how your business will be set up, including who owns it and the roles of employees.
• Product Line: Talk about the unique dishes or products your cart will offer.
• Marketing Strategies: Explain how you will promote your business to draw customers.
• Financial Projections: Offer realistic estimates of your expenses and potential income.
• Funding Request: If you need start-up money, mention how much and what it will be used for.

Steps to Launch Your Business:

• Start with Research: Understand the food cart industry in your area.
• Define Your Business Concept: Pinpoint what makes your cart different.
• Conduct Market Analysis: Look at what competitors do and what customers like.
• Plan Your Operations: Decide on suppliers, equipment, team size, and daily tasks.
• Develop Marketing Strategies: Build your brand and choose promotional activities.
• Prepare Financial Projections: Calculate potential costs and earnings.
• Compile Documentation: Put all your plans and information into a clear document.
• Review and Refine: Get feedback to improve your business plan.

By customizing these steps for the food cart sector in the Philippines, you can develop a strong business plan that prepares you for future success.

Ensuring Quality in Your Food Cart:

• Source Fresh Ingredients: Always check the quality of supplies from your providers.
• Implement Strict Hygiene Practices: Train your team in food safety and keep your space clean.
• Conduct Regular Quality Checks: Regularly check your food’s taste and presentation to ensure consistency.
• Listen to Customer Feedback: Use customer comments to better your food and service.

Focusing on quality not only meets standards but also builds trust with your customers, encouraging them to come back.

Choosing the Right Location:

• Busy Street Corners: These spots have lots of people and activity.
• Near Offices or Schools: These areas provide a constant flow of potential customers.
• Popular Markets or Fairs: These venues are ideal for attracting people interested in food.

Location Research Tips:

• Conduct Market Research: Gather info about the area, like who lives there and when it’s busiest.
• Evaluate Accessibility: Make sure people can easily get to your cart.
• Negotiate and Obtain Permissions: Talk to local authorities or property owners about setting up your cart.
• Analyze Competition: See what other food options are nearby and think about how to stand out.

Careful research and strategic location choice lay a solid foundation for drawing and keeping customers.

Menu and Branding:

• Highlight Your Specialties: Focus on what you do best, whether it’s a unique local dish or a creative new idea.
• Incorporate Local Flavors and Trends: Use fresh, local ingredients and keep up with what’s popular.
• Strategize Your Menu: Choose items wisely based on cost, prep time, and what people like.

Building Your Brand:

• Tell Your Brand Story: Share your unique background or concept that connects emotionally with customers.
• Create Memorable Experiences: Consider themed designs or special settings for your cart.

Prosperna can assist you in building an online presence that reflects your food cart’s identity. Consistent branding across all platforms enhances your visibility and impact.

Smart Marketing on a Budget:

• Use Social Media: Platforms like Facebook and Instagram are free and popular places to engage with customers.
• Work with Local Influencers: Find local figures who can authentically promote your cart.
• Join Community Events: Participate in local gatherings to get your cart noticed.
• Encourage Customer Reviews: Positive reviews from happy customers can be very persuasive.

With Prosperna’s affordable eCommerce tools, you can set up an attractive online store and manage your digital sales efficiently, keeping your marketing costs low.

Starting small in your marketing doesn’t limit the effectiveness of your strategies. Use your creativity and initiative to expand your brand’s presence and achieve long-term success in the vibrant street food market of the Philippines.

Navigating Legal Issues and Ensuring Compliance for Your Food Cart  Business 

Starting a food cart business in the Philippines means you need to know and follow several legal rules to ensure your business meets local regulations. This is a crucial step in creating a trustworthy brand that customers can rely on.

Before you begin selling your tasty dishes, you must get certain permits and licenses:

• Register your business with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) if it’s a sole proprietorship, or with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) if it’s a corporation.
• Obtain a Mayor’s Permit from your city or municipality.
• Check for other local requirements as different places may have their own rules.

The Philippines Food and Drug Administration (FDA) sets strict food safety guidelines to protect your customers and your business:

• Keep high sanitation standards to ensure a clean cooking and serving environment.
• Follow the right food handling procedures to avoid any health risks.
• Regularly check the health of your team members to maintain a safe food preparation area.

While Prosperna can help boost your online presence, it’s also vital to show that you meet offline regulations:

• Display your FDA certification or Mayor’s Permit on your website to reassure customers about your commitment to safety and legality.

By focusing on these legal details, you lay the foundation for a successful food cart business that earns customer trust for its high-quality food and commitment to safety standards.

Expanding Your Reach Through Online Platforms: The Role of  Prosperna 

Prosperna is a great tool for food cart entrepreneurs who want to make a mark in the online marketplace. This platform offers easy-to-use features, including website templates that are perfect for food cart businesses. Here are some standout features of Prosperna:

• User-Friendly Website Templates: These are designed to be simple, allowing even those without much tech experience to set up a professional-looking website.
• Multi-Channel Selling Capabilities: This feature lets food cart owners sell their products on various online channels, helping them reach more customers.
• Secure Payment Integrations: With this, customer payments are safe, which builds trust and promotes repeat customers.
• Pre-Integrated Shipping: With Prosperna, merchants can save time and money with our pre-integrated shipping partners like Lalamove, J&T Shipping and more. 

Having a professional website does more than just show your online presence; it also builds credibility. In today’s digital world, where people often look online to find places to eat, a well-crafted website is essential.

Food cart entrepreneurs should really use what Prosperna offers to boost their online visibility. 

By using Prosperna’s online tools along with strong offline strategies, they can market their business effectively and draw in more customers without losing the personal touch that makes food carts popular.

Remember, for anyone starting and growing a food cart business, focusing on your online presence is crucial.

Conclusion: Starting a Food Cart Business in the Philippines

Starting a food cart business in the Philippines is a great opportunity. You now know why this business type is popular and useful, have decided whether to franchise or start your own, and have learned key strategies for success. 

Here are some important points to remember:

• Having a good business plan is key to growing your business.
• To win customer loyalty, you need to consistently provide high-quality food.
• The location of your cart can greatly affect your business success.
• It’s important to stand out with an appealing menu and a strong Unique Selling Proposition (USP).

Ready to start your food cart journey with Prosperna?

Prosperna is an all-in-one ecommerce platform for philippines businesses and digital creators. we are on a mission to empower 1 million filipinos with simple and affordable ecommerce solutions..

In fact, we are so passionate about helping Philippines businesses and digital creators that we’re giving you a free account forever!

Want to start selling online?  Create your free-forever Propserna account  now!

FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)

Food cart businesses are popular in the Philippines because they are affordable and accessible. Starting one requires relatively low capital, making it an easy option for aspiring entrepreneurs to jump into the market with a manageable investment.

The food cart industry offers benefits like easy-to-manage operations and lower startup costs. These factors help new business owners set up their ventures and try out their ideas in the market. Success stories and statistics also show that food cart businesses can thrive in the Philippines.

Food cart owners in the Philippines need to get the right permits and licenses from local authorities. They also must follow food safety rules from the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) to keep their operations clean and safe. Meeting these legal standards is essential for compliance and gaining customers’ trust.

Prosperna helps food cart owners go online by offering easy-to-use website templates, tools to sell on multiple online channels, and secure payment options. Having a professional website through Prosperna boosts credibility and draws customers, which is increasingly important in today’s digital world. Using Prosperna along with offline strategies provides a balanced approach to marketing.

Considering a food cart business in the Philippines is a good idea because of the ongoing opportunities in the industry. With the right understanding and tools like Prosperna for online growth, entrepreneurs can confidently start their business journey and tap into the potential of the food cart market.

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Dennis Velasco

Dennis Velasco is the CEO and Founder of Prosperna, an all-in-one eCommerce platform for Philippine businesses. As a technology evangelist at heart, Dennis is super passionate about helping MSMEs "level the playing field" with technology. Feel free to connect with him on Facebook and LinkedIn .

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I've worked on cruise ships for years. I always see passengers make these 13 mistakes.

• I've worked on cruise ships for over six years, so I've seen many passengers make mistakes.
• Missing the ship at port or booking excursions with outside operators could be costly and risky. 
• If you don't set your phone to airplane mode, you may rack up overseas roaming charges.

After over six years working on ships for a major cruise line , I've witnessed tons of travel blunders that prevent guests from having the best possible experience.

Here are 13 common mistakes I see travelers make:

Not reading the fine print can lead to conduct issues later

Passengers usually come on the ship excited for a good time, and for many, this involves a drinks package . And with lots of drinks can come rowdiness. 

I've come across a few troublemakers who had no idea that smashing Champagne glasses in the hot tub could get you booted off the ship.

Every passenger consents to a hefty conduct policy when they book the cruise, so make sure to read through it to know what's prohibited on board.

Make sure to put your phone on airplane mode to avoid expensive roaming charges

Cellular rates at sea can sneak up on you, and you can easily rack up a $500 roaming bill. 

Even if you're not actively on your phone, most are still using data, so make sure to put yours on airplane mode to avoid roaming charges.

Really, just turn your phone off unless you're using it to take photos or access the ship's WiFi.

Many passengers don't take advantage of the different dining options on board

I often see passengers eat all three meals at the buffet every day. I know some people just really love the self-serve option, but it surprises me how many guests have no idea what's included with their trip.

Many times, the biggest shock to most first-time cruisers is that the dining room is included on most ships. Yes, this means a sit-down meal where you can order seven appetizers, five entrées, and 12 extra cookies for a midnight snack.

There are also so many spots with free food around most ships, like a pizza station, 24-hour ice-cream machine, and small cafés. Just be aware that specialty dining, like the steak house , might cost extra.

Leaving your room key behind is more of a hassle than you'd expect

It is not just a room key — it's your onboard credit card, ticket on and off the ship, and identification for the week.

Everything is connected to that card, so make sure to set up your information online ahead of time so you can start swiping the moment you get on board.

Security will scan it when you pass through the gangway to know who is on or off the ship, so it's especially important to have it on port days.

If you lose it, report it to the service desk immediately to ensure that no one else spends your money.

Many guests don't know they can bring their own wine on the ship

While many people think no outside alcohol is permitted on the ship, many major cruise lines allow passengers over the age of 21 to bring a bottle or two of wine on boarding day, so you can stop smuggling drinks in empty mouthwash bottles.

Some terminals will even sell wine to boarding travelers. If you buy alcohol in a port, you'll usually have to check it upon reentering the ship, and it'll be delivered to your room on the last night.

Missing the all-aboard time on port days is an expensive mistake

In my years of working cruises, I have seen more than a handful of guests miss the ship.

Although this is a huge fear for most passengers, it usually happens to avid cruisers — people who have been to the port many times before sometimes assume the all-aboard time is always the same.

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But this time varies by cruise, and it's stated on multiple signs at the exit gangway, in the daily planner, and in the captain's announcement.

Also, always triple-check whether the all-aboard time is based on the ship's clock or the local time.

If you miss the ship, you'll often have to get yourself to the next port, which can be very pricey.

Passengers miss out on discounts by not booking their next cruise while still on the ship

Booking a future vacation while on a ship can get you bigger discounts on cruises , access to new itineraries not open to the general public yet, and a lot of onboard credit.

These booking appointments are usually filled up by the last few days of the cruise, so head there at the beginning of your stay for more deals and no wait.

Booking a tour with an outside operator can be risky

Although it might be a lot cheaper to book your tours independently, it's also a lot riskier. 

Excursions booked through the ship are with verified operators. Most cruise lines will wait for the ship's tour to return before leaving the port, even if it's hours late. 

But this is not the case if you book on your own, and running through the port to find the ship sailing away is probably not the excursion you're looking for.

Immediately removing the automatic gratuity affects many staff members

On most cruise ships, there is a preset daily gratuity charged per passenger unless it's removed at the guest-services desk.

I see so many people come on board and immediately remove the charge, but this fee is usually split between your housekeeping, dining, and cleaning staff. It is essential to their jobs and affects their livelihoods.

I'd recommend waiting until the end of the cruise to make sure you're happy with the service instead of removing it on day one. You can also increase or decrease the amount instead of cutting it. 

Packing prohibited items can lead to a headache

As confident as you are that you can sneak on your portable iron, I seriously advise against packing anything that's not allowed on board. 

Security scans your bags on embarkation day, and if a prohibited item — like an iron, a bottle of vodka, or a candle — is found, they will hold your bag.

Your luggage won't be delivered to your door, and you may have to wait several hours until security contacts you, brings you to the holding area to search the bag, and confiscates the item until the end of the cruise.

Prepare your necessary travel documents to avoid trouble at ports

Cruise ships travel all over the world, so check if you need specific visas or documents based on your nationality.

You are responsible for knowing and bringing your own paperwork. If you don't have the right documents, you might not be able to get off at a port or, even worse, be allowed back on the ship.

I saw this happen when traveling to India with many American guests, a handful of whom didn't realize they needed a visa.

Dressing down on formal night can limit your dining options

Even though walking through the promenade in shorts is your choice, many guests aren't aware that there's usually a formal evening on most cruises.

Most passengers don evening gowns and suits on formal nights, and I've met cruisers who wished they would've packed at least one nice item — besides their Margaritaville shirt, of course.

Passengers not formally dressed on this evening usually aren't allowed to eat in the ship's main dining rooms, though the buffet is open to everyone.

It's worth learning the difference between port and starboard

Different announcements will direct passengers to either the port side or starboard side of the ship, so it's best to brush up on the jargon before your vacation.

Port is the left side of the boat and starboard is the right, always configured facing the front of the ship.

Just remember that "port" and "left" are both four letters. You'll thank me later.

This story was originally published on June 28, 2021, and most recently updated on June 7, 2024.

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