Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 15, 2015 19:16:28 GMT
What do you think?
I found a commissary to prepare and store items when not running it. I figure ...3 days a week and a few special events.
My daughter ( 17) said she'd help. Flyer, my border collie, said he'd hang with me if I have his veggie dogs.
Not looking to make a killing. Looking to have some fun with it this Summer.
Anyone have experience or know someone who did this?
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val2525
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Post by val2525 on Apr 15, 2015 19:19:26 GMT
Can't help but it sounds like fun. Might check with your county/city board of health and see what permits are required, and with the county/city tax deparment for their permit requirements.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 15, 2015 19:34:56 GMT
I've already checked into that. Not too much brain damage. Found a commissary, have thought about a few locations with foot traffic.
I'm thinking of selling Sabrett dogs with the casing. A New York dog in Colorado. They already said they'd send me an umbrella for the cost of shipping.
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Post by denise15601 on Apr 15, 2015 22:29:54 GMT
I think it is a good idea.
Exhole knew a guy who would travel to fairs selling food and made enough $$ in 3 months to live on for the next 9 months.
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val2525
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Post by val2525 on Apr 15, 2015 22:56:19 GMT
What do you mean by "found a commissary"?
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Post by Deleted on Apr 15, 2015 23:11:38 GMT
Do you go to a lot of these type of events so that you know what type of competition you have? We go to a boardwalk art show every year around Memorial Day. Since everything is in a straight line for 15 blocks, they do have food vendors selling the same thing and doing well at both ends, and the middle, of the show . One of our other favorite events is a TGIF party in a park downtown. All the food vendors are grouped together in a central area. You could walk from one to the other without walking any significant distance. So 3 people selling funnel cakes, for instance, wouldn't be necessary and would probably only hurt each others business.
But if everything lines up for you, it could be a lot of fun.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 16, 2015 0:07:51 GMT
A commissary is a commercial kitchen that can be inspected. I would have to base out of it.
I don't want to do the huge events. Maybe some of the small town ones and do some car dealer events. Many of them offer free hot dogs for everyone who goes to their dealership. We know some dealer owners, so I may already have my foot in the door.
I'm only going to do it max 2-3 days a week. Maybe park somewhere, teach my daughter and get her going on it. It could be a good Summer job before she goes to college that I can hand over to her. I really want her to learn how to start up and maintain a small business.
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Post by SA on Apr 16, 2015 1:23:22 GMT
Funny--when trolling craigslist for a car, I saw a food truck for sale and had a crazy thought that it might be fun. Then it sounded like too much work LOL!
Some people do it, love it and are successful at it!
Things to think about:
Business license
Food handlers/ServeSafe training
Health inspections
Parking/sales license/permits
If only 2-3 days a week, will you be dealing with expired inventory that could spoil during down time?
Insurance
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Post by SA on Apr 16, 2015 1:40:42 GMT
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val2525
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Post by val2525 on Apr 16, 2015 2:56:02 GMT
Wow. I only read the first few posts - GREAT article, Liz!
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 16, 2015 5:57:49 GMT
That is a great article. I thought about a food truck because of the creativity, but it's way too big of a commitment.
I'm going to go with a small stand that I can tow behind my SUV.
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Post by SA on Apr 16, 2015 10:54:48 GMT
I think a cart vs a truck would be less overhead/maintenance.
But there are still all of the permits/license/food handlers/health inspections/insurance you have to deal with. One person gets sick that might be able to be traced back to you--and that's a possible lawsuit.
Please, do not take my posts as being Debbie Downer sort of posts, but I'm the one that always plays devil's advocate to help get the real, round picture. My kids hate me for that LOL!
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Post by Deleted on Apr 16, 2015 13:16:51 GMT
No worries, Liz.  I've looked into all that, and I fully expect to comply with the rules. I'm not against the health inspections. I'm also purchasing insurance just in case someone does get sick. The majority of the hot dogs are fully cooked, so it's a matter of warming them up a certain way. I will be practicing safe food handling. |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 16, 2015 13:36:51 GMT
I have a good friend and her husband who have an ice cream pop up business. They do the College World series here in Omaha & a couple of state fairs. It's a little more than a food cart but not long term like a food truck. They only do maybe 3-4 events a year. They make a killing! Good luck! We want to see pictures of your food cart when you get it all put together!
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 16, 2015 14:48:48 GMT
That sounds like a fun little enterprise for you and DD and it'll be GREAT experience for DD to be involved in the start-up of a business at such a young age.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 16, 2015 15:35:30 GMT
Hi Debbie, I'm a Debbie too! I'm a Libra so I weigh both sides of everything anyway, but I'm always the one who says, 'have you thought about....' My family kind of hates it too, but they always make a decision with the big picture in mind, pros and cons. As they're getting older and have witnessed some of their peers making poor decisions, and the results of those decisions, I think my way is looking not so bad.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 16, 2015 16:29:40 GMT
Hearing the downside is important...no surprises.
My focus is that everything needs to be clean and look appealing.
We live 5 miles outside of a small town. Not too many choices for food, so we went into this one little Mexican restaurant. I did NOT want to eat there, but DH pushed ahead on it. The place just looked trashy and dirty. The food was worse. A huge grease bomb - gross mess. I couldn't eat it.
Then - there was this Mexican food truck. The woman running it had fresh food and everything looked clean. She definitely had high standards. Not sure what happened to her as one day she was just gone.
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Post by mupcycledcouture on Apr 16, 2015 16:44:14 GMT
Both the Lowes and HD near me have hot dog carts. And they are always packed!
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Post by jellybeanscloset412 on Apr 16, 2015 17:21:39 GMT
A college I went to had them lining one street. Every single cart did well. I used to go to this little coffee one. All they had was coffee and homemade cookies and brownies. They always had a long line!
Good luck! People love food. People + food = $$$
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Post by Emerald_Door on Apr 23, 2015 14:16:28 GMT
Sounds like a fun venture. I've been involved in organizing a small arts and crafts festival for a couple of years. We have two food trucks each time. It's limited to two so that each will get enough business. Both of them said they did very well at last year's festival and plan to come back this year. The only reason I'm mentioning this is that you might want to consider something like a small event (about 500 people), but only if they limit the number of food vendors.
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