catering

Posts Tagged ‘catering’

Email from a Concession Vendor

January 28th, 2011 |

This is part 2 of the email I received from the concession vendor who sells everything from donuts to ice treats. He gives some advice on where to respond to ads and mentions a website that he uses and had success with. If you are interested in the selling your donuts concession style, you really owe it to yourself to check out the site mobile catering business... don't let the word "mobile catering" confuse you, it is just another way to say concession business.

Here is part 2:

Another event I did my first year with the ice trailer I saw an ad for in the newspaper "Vendors wanted" for some fall festival. I called about it, and they wanted $500 for the weekend. I thought "wow, $500... this must be HUGE!" I was all excited. I paid the $500 and secured myself a spot. What a disappointment that turned out to be. I think there were about 30 vendors, all set up in a semi-circle, and I doubt if 100 people came through there all weekend. I did $180 in business over two days after paying $500 to get in there. Plus, I took time off from my regular job so I could do this. A huge waste of time and money. So that was a costly lesson for me... do not respond to newspaper ads looking for vendors! If the event is any good, they won't need to be advertising in the classifieds for vendors.

I also placed an ad on this website:

http://www.festivals-and-shows.com/vendors.html

I have actually gotten calls from this ad from various organizations wanting to hire me to do events. The ad listing on that site is free by the way.

So now it's 2006, and I had varying levels of success in 2005 with the Italian ice trailer, and being the entrepreneur I am, I was itching to expand. I had been selling plants at a local flea market for the garden center I work at for a couple of years, and noticed that they had several places selling egg sandwiches, but nobody selling mini donuts. There was also no brand name coffee there, no ribbon fries, no smoothies, no clam chowder, and no soft serve ice cream. So, I figured I'd start a trailer selling just that. This is New England's largest flea market by the way... we have 400+ vendors on a typical sunny summer day. It has been in operation since 1975 and is very well attended. When I first approached the market manager with my idea, he told me he was not allowing in any more food vendors. But I was persistent, and finally he asked me to submit a menu. He approved it. So now I had to find a trailer, and buy all my equipment. After all the trouble I had buying that used Italian ice trailer on ebay, I decided I wanted one that was brand new. I found a guy who built new trailers and sold them on ebay for pretty cheap. I drew out a plan, and sent it to him. He did a lot of hair-brain things, didn't wire the circuits how I had specified, gave me a 30 amp service when I specified I needed a 50 amp, and improperly installed my roof top AC so the roof leaked before the first year was even over. He is going by the name AFFORDABLE CONCESSION TRAILERS on ebay now... out of Huntingdon, PA. I'd steer clear of him. This was all back in the day when credit card companies were giving out credit cards like candy, so I would get 0% balance transfer offers in the mail, and would just keep taking out new credit cards and transferring balances. And if the 0% time would run out with one card, I'd simply take out another card and transfer the balance to avoid any interest. I drove myself into about $25K worth of debt with this second trailer, all on credit cards, and because of the way I juggled my balances, I ended up paying less than $100 interest on all that borrowed money.

I use a Little Orbits donut machine. The other brand you might get is a Belshaw. The main difference is that the Belshaw is belt driven (donuts brought through on a belt) and the Little Orbits is current driven (donuts float on oil, and flow through the machine on current). The main problem I find with the Little Orbits machine is that, if the oil level gets too low, the donuts will not go into the flipper baskets, and things will get backed up. They call it a fully automatic machine, but in reality, you can't take your eyes off it for too long.

Here's a video of me making donuts, and you'll see one donut that doesn't quite make it into the flipper basket, and I have to help it along with my wooden stick:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fUjktIoIfS0

Thanks Dave for all the first class advice you have given to me and our readers. Looks like you really know this business! Be sure to visit tomorrow for Part 3 of his email. Yes, it is quite an extensive email, thanks again Dave!

Posted in Uncategorized |

Tags: business, catering, catering business, Concession, concession business, disappointment, donuts, egg sandwiches, event, flea market, ice, italian ice, name, semi circle, time, time and money, trailer, waste of time, way, weekend |

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How to Become Self Employed

August 10th, 2010 |

Author: Concession Business

Most people, at some point in their lives, have the dream to become self-employed. There are a huge number of benefits of being self-employed such as control over your own schedule, having no boss and the sense of accomplishment of creating your own future. However, if you want to become self-employed, you must also understand that there are a few disadvantages including not having a guaranteed paycheck and no paid vacations or health insurance.

To become self-employed, you need to really think about if it is the right choice for you. Are you self-motivated, driven and goal oriented? If so, you are probably a good candidate. However, if you are someone who needs guidance or cannot figure things out for yourself, self-employment is not a good idea.

You will need to decide what you want to do to become self-employed. The most popular approaches are opening a small business such as a concession stand or a catering business or offering your services as an independent contractor or freelancer. Make yourself a list of way to become self-employed by doing something that you would love and that you are good at.

Then, once you decide on your niche, do as much research as you can on the topic and create your own business plan. You will need to explore financing options unless you have a substantial amount of money saved up for start-up costs like equipment and supplies. Most people choose personal loans, small business loans or home equity loans for financing their new business.

If you really want to become self-employed, go for it and do not listen to anyone else. Start with something small that you can turn a huge profit with like your own ice cream or hot dog concession and then work up to a concession trailer with other food options and highly profitable venues like fairs and festivals. Your opportunities are truly endless when you want to become self-employed.

Posted in become self employed, catering business |

Tags: business, candidate, catering, catering business, choice, Concession, concession stand, concession trailer, creating your own future, food options, guidance, home equity loans, idea, independent contractor, insurance, opening a small business, paycheck, personal loans, Self, small business loans |

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Tips on buying a food concession trailer

June 2nd, 2010 |

Author: Concession Business

When you are in the process of looking to buy a food concession trailer, you need to understand that they range from mobile catering trucks to stationary concession stands. You will need to decide the size and type of food concession trailer that you will need according to the food choice you are going to sell and if you are going to sell only at one location or travel to several different places.

Each food concession trailer is going to have its own features. Some may have freezers, refrigerators, fryers, ovens and sinks. So obviously, if you are selling ice-cream, you will not need a food concession trailer that has a fryer and an oven. This is why it is important to have any idea of what foods you will sell. Choose a food that you will be comfortable working around. If you are scared to cook with oil, clearly you will not choose to sell french fries.

The next thing you will need to decide is if you want a new or used food concession stand. A used one is going to save you a substantial amount of money however, there is probably little or no warranty left on it. However, if you do not have the out-of-pocket money available to spend on a trailer to start your own business, you may want to choose a new one. Many vendors will offer financing on a new trailer so you will only need to make monthly payments and you get the peace of mind of having a warranty.

When possible, take the time to inspect the trailer in person and ask the seller plenty of questions if it is a used item. You will want to know how old it is and how long that they had it for? Did they buy it new or used? What did they use it for? How old are all of the appliances? Is there any warranty left?

Do not rush into your food concession stand purchase. You are probably excited to get started on reaping the rewards of havingyour own business but picking the right trailer can ultimately make or break your business.