Street food is becoming big these days. People love to eat street foods because they are tasty, fresh, affordable, convenient, and delicious. How about starting your street food stall then?
Starting a street food stall isn’t as simple as cooking some dishes from time to time. To succeed, you should invest enough time and effort into creating a unique brand identity, developing a strong customer base, implementing marketing strategies, and managing operations well.
There’s no denying that street food has become very popular. The reason why is that the combination of taste, convenience, and affordability beats anything else out there. If you want to start a successful street food business, follow this guide.
How to Start a Street Food Stall
Step 1: Decide if You Want to Be Self Employed
If you plan on running a business without employees, the first thing you will need to decide is whether you want to work for yourself or hire others to serve customers. If you choose the former option, it makes sense to create a solid logo and website for your new project since the success of your business depends entirely on how people perceive it online.
A good way to make sure people know what you sell is by developing a catchy slogan. Think about what you would like to say to potential clients. Would you rather focus on the benefits of your product? Or would you rather talk about its downsides? Write down your thoughts and see which ones feel better to you. Once you find one you rather “Let us take care of your needs!” or something more fun?
You will also want to think about the type of menu items you want to offer. Will you offer one-off dishes, which means that you prepare everything that your customer orders before they leave? Or will you offer pre-made meals, where you will provide them with everything needed to cook their meal, except the ingredients? Either way, you must decide what kind of products you want to offer.
Step 2: Research Your Market Sector
A lot of businesses fail because entrepreneurs didn’t research properly. Before launching your street food stall, do extensive market research to decide if your idea is viable.
The best way to gain market share and profit is by offering more variety in your menu items. To attract more customers, focus on developing a wide range of different foods that are inexpensive but still delicious. As long as your food tastes great and you offer something that most people want, your business should do fine.
If you go down this route, you can get started right away by offering free samples to friends, families, and colleagues. Once you gain their trust over time, ask them to refer clients directly to your stall.
Step 3: Choose the Location
The best way to start a street food business would be by finding a location where many people gather. This location could be a park, a corner in front of a supermarket, or even a vacant lot. However, if possible, consider choosing a place that is already equipped with facilities that allow you to cook and serve your food such as a restaurant or coffee shop. You could also set up a temporary stall in a shopping mall while working on upgrading your existing space.
Step 4: Get Permits
Before you begin construction, check local laws and regulations regarding your location. Make sure that you have permission from the owner of the land to build on it. When looking for a spot to open a street food stall, look at a map to determine how big an area you need to cover. Make sure that you can fit all the necessary amenities inside your space and have enough room for parking. Remember to always keep safety in mind when planning a location.
Step 5: Build Facilities
After you secure a building site, you will need to construct some basic infrastructure. For example, you will need tables and chairs to serve your customers. You may also want to invest in a refrigerator that you can use to store drinks and other perishable goods.
When building any new facility, make sure that it meets city codes. If there is no official codebook to follow, make sure to consult the Building Official or Architectural Review Board (ARB) in your town to ensure compliance. In addition, make sure your design is approved so that you don’t end up wasting money on unnecessary permits.
Once you complete these steps, you will be ready to launch your own unique street food business.