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Yes, food trucks are all over the place around the country and the world but have you noticed the junked food trucks that are also piling up? Aside from non-compliance, the most common reasons for food trucks closing shop are mismanagement, poor flavors, and duplication of a better product.
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Just like start-up restaurants, there are food trucks that flop and close shop. In Canada, Calgary city government has made major changes to its licensing rules that a number of food trucks have not been able to comply with. In the United States, many city authorities are also feeling the pressure from brick and mortar restaurants who complain of a considerable drop in their profits blaming food trucks for their losses.
Yet, many food truck owners are reporting robust sales and a friendly relationship with authorities. How then can it be reconciled for some food trucks to work tremendously well while others give up? Continue reading
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Anything that is trendy in the market is like a short story. It has a definite beginning, peak, and end. If you are planning a new food truck business, or you have a food truck business, one of the most nagging concerns should be about becoming irrelevant or rejected by customers. This is nothing unusual with trends. People get tired of the old menu or get distracted by new food ideas and quickly shift their attention away from your business. How then can you stop this from happening? The dream obviously is to be the reliable and delicious food truck in the area with a loyal following and an unsolicited, market-propelled word-of-mouth phenomenon that brings in new customers daily. You can start with food costs. Continue reading
There are several stories being spread about food trucks that either deter or mislead anyone thinking of opening their own food truck business. Here are a few of them so that you can recognize them for what they are: discouraging talk and negative reactions.
It’s a Sure Way to Earn Money Today
This is a half-truth because it is harder to start and maintain a business nowadays so most business experts would recommend “going with the trend.” The food truck industry is reportedly earning a billion dollars a year. However, there is no business that comes with guaranteed revenue. There’s a load of work that will have to be done aside from proper marketing, a great food concept, and sufficient funds.
In addition, one of the key elements in running a business is being able to adjust to the market. For instance, you have to be in the right location and close to the kind of people who would want to buy your food product. If you feel you can earn more in another place, try it! The beauty with the food truck business is that you are mobile so take advantage of this.
There’s No Money in Food Trucks – The Market is Flooded
The person who would likely tell you this is someone connected to the food business and would not want a new competitor around. The market is not flooded. Two years ago, an irresponsible news article came out online saying that the country was flooded with 3 million food trucks. It may seem that way because food trucks are mobile but according to latest official count by the Census, the entire food industry consists of only 600,000 businesses.
Only People On-The-Run Buy from Food Trucks
Again, this is quite obvious to anyone who buys or watches a food truck in operation. Their customers are usually a mix-match of people on-the-go, curious bystanders, Twitter and other social media followers, and loyal customers. As a matter of fact, the more personable the staff behind the food truck counter, the more likely they are to bring more new customers.
It’s Easy to Run a Food Truck Business
Unfortunately, it’s just as hard to run a food truck business as it is to run a restaurant. One would have to wake up very early in the morning to buy the fresh produce. After marketing, there is food preparation (which should be done onsite), finding your location, making sure you have everything ready to go because customers want their food quick, and then clean-up. It’s important that you enjoy being in the kitchen and food business if you want to have a food truck. This is so that the work will not be burdensome to you – and you will have fun doing it.