Please help me xx mobile catering xx

penny_pincher_7

i am looking for someone who can give me the a-z of opening my own mobile catering bizz, i have the perfect plot for the van and i just need any tips any one can give me, eg....cheapest place to purchase a used mobile catering van, any licences that may be needed, just any info atall please would be gratefully recieved thanks in advance xxx :beer:

moneymakestheworldgoround

Local council is the best bet to start.

They sent me a list of all places I could trade, licenses needed, and other useful information.

Ebay was a great place to look for vans etc.. but view before bidding as people dont describe honestly sometimes.

Exchange and Mart have new vans of every description advertised - great place to start getting ideas.

I didnt proceed with my idea, otherwise I might have been able to offer more advice, but the council were great with regarding to sending out information which I received the following day.

Business Link can give you factsheets and info on this particular type of business.

Good luck

penny_pincher_7

thanks moneymtwgr xx im so excited about the prospect lol, if im not being too cheeky, can i ask why u didnt go any further with your idea xx

nexuss

You will have a lot of competition so be very wary.Someone in my area spent £12,000 of her redundancy on a catering van and began to operate before she even applied for a licence.The council got back to her and told her to move the van as the road it was near was too fast flowing and also a few other problems.She is now stuck to find a decent plot that the council will agree to.You need to check if the council will let you set-up on this 'perfect plot' you mention.
Is it near any industrial estates or sports stadia ?

moneymakestheworldgoround

I'm excited for you !!

With regards to me, well I have a new idea every day. My nickname isnt Del Boy for nothing.

I investigate all ideas, get info, etc.. then I move onto the next one :mad:

I am a whole ball of pent up energy and enthusiasm that seems to subside at the first chance of success !

I am not entirely sure why I didnt proceed with the idea. Great sites available, easy to get license, had vehicle lined up, babysitter arranged....

Possibly finances were a factor, but I have no idea !

Just make sure you are not as flaky as me !!!! ( I dont have a skin condition, just meant I'm easily distracted)

penny_pincher_7

lol, im glad its not a skin condition heehee, the plot that i am intrested in is someone`s carpark that is used by day but i would be using it at night :rolleyes: only for hot food tho lol xx

Becles

My husband looked into this once. He got a load of information from the Food Standards Agency(?) connected to the government.

They sent masses of stuff about food handling, food hygiene and the records you need to keep about food storage, batch numbers used, cleaning records etc. In any food handling business, there is masses of paperwork to do.

Jacka87

My dad has a similar business but insetad of a permanent site he attends events. Though I also have a number of other family members that have been in the permanent site trade.

The first thing I would say is its a long slog! My Aunt is up everyday to open up at the back of 6 and doesnt get finished until late afternoon. Its 6 days a week for her and it takes 2-3 of them being in the van at anypoint of time just because of the way the work is. Quite when nobody is on lunch then lunch time hits and she is qued up! Its also very hot and tiring being that you are essentially in a box with lots of kitchen equipment!

In terms of buying a unit for the job, well I know of units for a coupe of grand but they would not meet many peoples food standards, and that means some customers would be turned away before you get close to getting them to buy off you. The other end of the scale is they can cost upto 50k and above, quite easily. For example my dads last unit dis not require any hot food requirements, so with the reduced cost of not having the kitchen appliances you would think, cheap right? Well let me say he was past half way to the 50k top end and he had no kitchen type equipment inside except from a fridge!

The local council will tell you where you can get suitable locations and can even pass you on the the local food standars authorities to see what they require of you. Make sure you speak to them before looking into a unit as you dont want to splach out then be left unable to open due to legal stuff.

Also remember as with any business there are all the costs, acountants etc and not to mention where will you park the unit at nights? If it cant stay on its site (most cant) then you will need to pay to park it. Also remember that the transport police will want to see the drivers license that says you can tow one of them and you may need to buy a van/4*4 to tow it. I just recently sat th etowing test to tow my dads as I help him out occasionally, that was a week off work and a few hundred quid right away! Though if your a little older than me your license may cover you already, but another thing that needs checking out.

I am here for anyother questions, sorry for the long post, but good luck whatever you decide!