Published Date: 24th September 2024
Last Updated: 13 days ago
Starting a Streetfood Catering Business
Here at Gala Tent, we have extensive experience of serving and supplying to catering businesses, be they an established brand looking to freshen up their catering stall, or a fresh-from-the-box business start-up looking to inject passion and enthusiasm for food into the events industry with dazzling and fresh branding.
We also have a very enterprising Senior Leadership Team, including company co-owner and Managing Director Jason Mace, who has himself written and published the best selling entrepreneurship book, Event Industry Boss: The Secret to Becoming Successful in the Event Industry. With this pedigree and experience, we’re well placed to be able to offer some advice when it comes to starting up a street food catering business.
So, you’ve decided that you’re launching a new start-up in the street food game. You love food, but can you make a business from it? You love burgers, but can you make them different enough to stand out? You’re great at cooking, but can you cook quickly for the masses and keep it tasty? Here are some considerations you should put into your business plan before you cook your first taster.
You have to consider many things when it comes to selecting the food you want to make and sell through your new catering firm, such as existing competition, which events you’ll be trading at, and simply whether you can cook it to the high standard you’ll need to in order to retain business.
Existing Competition
Be sure to research thoroughly the kind of competition that’s out there. You might find yourself really struggling to make an impact on the burger scene, if there are dozens of other competitors touting for the same business.
The best and most successful kinds of street food vendors, in our experience, are those that offer something a little different. If you’re selling burgers, make your USP the inventive and delicious toppings you offer. If you’re a curry chef offering authentic cuisine from a family recipe then be sure to focus on the authenticity and mystery. Everybody loves a secret family recipe.
The Events
Think about the clientele you want to attract. If you want to appeal to the ladies day crowd from Goodwood with your artisan savoury crepes then attending an auto-jumble in Rotherham is unlikely to yield great results. Personally, we’d attend that auto-jumble just for a go on your delicious crepes, but the guy selling bacon butties next door will probably do a greater trade, because he knows his market.
As a street food caterer, one of the best types of event you can get yourself into, if you’re fortunate enough, would be a huge city centre food festival, or Christmas market. We love the smells that waft through Manchester Markets around Piccadilly at Christmas. The Indian food battling with the Vegan Mexican food, and the sizzling bratwurst cooking away beside the stall selling venison burgers. Dream living!
Food standards
Just because you’re a dab hand in the kitchen when it comes to feeding the family, have you got the skills and patience to master the art of mass production of your delicious home meals? Of course you do. You wouldn’t be here reading this if you didn’t have the confidence to believe you could make that step from kitchen impresario to culinary entrepreneur.
You’re bold enough to dream, so why not make it a reality? Get your friends and family to help you select your menu. Start small to begin with, of course. You’ve seen Gordon Ramsay harassing chefs across the world when their menu choice is too great. We understand and agree with it. Don’t be a busy fool, offering thirty different kinds of meal. Select a few, maybe five or six dishes, and master them. Become the best you can be at those six dishes, adding a ‘chef’s special’ now and then to mix it up. Eventually, who knows?
How to present your street food brand
Getting your branding perfect is a must when it comes to launching a street food business. The way you present yourself to passing eyes is equal to the way you appeal to passing noses and taste buds. It might smell utterly delicious, but if you present your brand half-heartedly then what’s to blame anybody assuming you put the same effort into your food?
Research other popular brands within the culture that your food is inspired by, or find images of the people, buildings and flags. This will help you to breed trust by adding authenticity and thought into your brand. Think about who it is that you want to appeal to. Remember the classic crepes? Would you be better served with elegant and appealing typography in your branding to pull in the big spenders, or are you the punks of pancakes, looking to bring the tasty treat to a younger crowd? Choosing the correct branding is imperative.
Our design team can help you to create something totally unique, if you’re stuck at that stage. Whether you just need some help with a logo, or you want a start-to-finish design service, give us a bell on 01709 242454 and have a chat to see if we can help.
A branded unit is an absolute must on the to-do list of every aspiring street food caterer that had a dream of starting their business. Whether it’s a converted horse box, a classic burger-van trailer, or a pop-up gazebo, all street food caterers need a ‘premises’ from which to serve. It needs to be something compact enough to transport easily, but large enough to stand out and fit all of your equipment inside. As we’re a marquee and gazebo retailer, you can probably guess which way we’re going to take the train of thought.
Custom Printed Pop-Up Gazebos for Catering
The most cost-effective way, and dare we say it, the best way, of presenting your streetfood business is by using a branded pop-up gazebo, ideally with dye-sublimation printed covers, which will enable you to really get creative with your unit.
The unit itself, if you went with, say, a 3m x 3m gazebo, would fold down to a relatively tiny 167cm x 35cm x 40cm, which can be stored away or transported in an optional heavy duty bag. A great benefit, we’re sure you’ll agree, but the main beauty for a caterer is in the covers. Food is intended to be celebrated with enthusiasm and joy, and liberally splashing that joy over your gazebo covers is a must. Your tent needs to be a visual representation of the flavours you’re selling, so go big!
There are of course plenty of combinations and styles of printing you can go for, so why not have a look at our Inspiring Designs page and see if anything takes your fancy. Alternatively, our team of experts are all very much happy to take your call on 01709 242454 if you’d like some in-person help and advice.
You can find more help on choosing the right commercial gazebo over at our Advice Centre. If you’re still not sure which is the correct tent for you then please give the team a call on 01709 242454, or start a Live Chat session. Alternatively, why not drop us an email here and one of the team will be back to you as quickly as possible.
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Ryan Bracha
Managing Director of GEM
Ryan Bacha is a passionate leader in marketing, with a strong enthusiasm for writing, creativity, and data analysis. His work is defined by a keen eye for detail and innovative thinking.
