- First things first we need a name? here is a quick fun link that gives you some ideas. https://fun.namerobot.com/name/food .
- Registering your company, there are two types of options you can go for either a private ltd company or a sole trader. Whats the difference, A sole trader is essentially a self-employed person who is the sole owner of their business. A limited company is a type of business structure that has its own legal identity, separate from its owners (shareholders). Here is a link on how to get registered as a private ltd company https://www.gov.uk/limited-company-formation
3. Experience, we have got our cool name registered, our shiny new company formation, now we need experience. Street food traders are always looking for a helping hand in their market stalls around the UK. This experience will give you a very good understanding to what it actually takes to running a street food business.
4.Feedback .Time to get some feedback on your new menu, Round up all of your friends get them round the table and lets start to get some real feedback on your new amazing idea. Do not forget this is a business so lets get them to pay! now you have had your first taste of success and more iterations made on your amazing dishes its time to apply to some markets.
5.Applying to the markets. There is two types of markets you can apply for. firstly you have the council run markets such as exmouth market in angel which has a different approach of taking applications. Each council has there own criteria on acceptance within their market. This could include if there is free capacity, genre of food sold etc.
The second type is private run markets hosted by Kerb, Clever Creations Events etc. These market operators usually have a website in which you can fill out an application which involves questions around the type of food you are selling, social media handles, and bit about yourself and your story so far etc. We always recommend having a good quality photo of your dish always helps. A good picture always tells a better story. The other option is to pound the pavement and turn up to the market your looking to get into and speak to the market manager or operations director directly. They will tell you the best way of applying or first hand information about the market you are trying to approach.
6.Experience gained now lets test this hypothesis. Finding a place to pop up and let the wider public trial and taste your food. This will show you crucial data on how people interact with your menu, brand, customer service, operations and finally taste of your food. You could even set up and eventbrite page hosting sales of tickets directly to your home kitchen. Another way could be finding a community centre that has a kitchen and hosting directly out of there for a short period. This is definitely a more low risk option than buying a food truck for a lot of pounds and ending up to find the market did not reciprocate to you.
7.What do I buy and what do I need?, dependant on your needs and wants its always good to buy new as these things do have wear and tear and do break after much commercial use. here is a link to NCASS which provides commercial use products for sale. http://www.ncassequipment.co.uk/. We understand that cash flow is tight when initially funding the company however we personally would say to get things new where possible.
8.Join NCASS, They are huge help when trying to navigate the tasks of keeping your business legal and safe. They provide you with health and safety documents and give you the right tools and information on getting setup. These include training documents and updates on different legislations.
9.Sign up to YUMXYZ, we are on a mission to digitise the street food market. Giving traders the best tools on getting discoverable to more customers, receiving payments digitally and finally giving you more exposure to your target market. This will come in the form of a mobile app that allows you to open your stall/truck to our hungry foodies, update current menus and take payments.
10. Have fun and enjoy this journey, street food is a market that is growing and we are so privileged to be a part of this. If you found this information useful please give it share and comment bellow with your suggestions or stories.
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