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If you possess the ability to work under pressure and create visually attractive dishes that taste great, then you probably would be perfect for starting your own catering business? The possibilities of becoming a self-starter in catering are endless as the career field is well rounded – offering both full-time and part-time opportunities. All at once, a catering business is entertaining, financially fulfilling, as well as a challenge. When considering entering this field of work, consider the following factors when establishing a plan for your new business:

Getting a License

Each state possesses a set of rules, guidelines, or laws pertaining to working as a food service provider. Usually, the Board of Health must give a seal of approval when food is distributed and sold to the public, which reviews preparation, handling, sanitation, and preservation. Some states require that food operation is kept separate from the kitchen within a home, such as using solid, self-closing doors. Separate sinks for food, washing utensils, and cleaning is another common prerequisite. Your local Health Department can provide additional details.

Products and Market

When developing a catering business plan, it is important to settle on the type of market you wish to serve. A few ideas include providing and organizing picnic lunches, seated dinners, children’s birthday parties, dinner for two, specialty cakes, business meetings, dessert trays, or hors d’ oeuvres. It is important to choose an existing market where demand surpasses supply in order for you to claim a niche. Checking out the local competition also helps new business owners shape their own plans.

Staff Considerations

In the beginning, some self-catering businesses involve relatives and friends, but often times, there is a need to figure in the possibility of hiring staff to help with service, production, and cleanup.

Start-Up Costs

Some people starting out in the catering business use rented supplies and items in order to keep primary costs at their lowest. Cutting costs may include renting kitchen facilities, tablecloths, tables, utensils, and serving equipment. Your savings can then be spent on building a reputation, developing capital, or figuring out if this is what you really want to do without putting too much money into your plan. Typical start-up costs range between $1,000 (work from home) and $80,000 (professional kitchens).

Menu Planning

Depending on your catering focus, creative menu planning is a must, as you will not serve the same thing to children at a party as you would for a 50th wedding anniversary celebration. For each specialty menu, you need to take into account the type of event, time of day, number of anticipated guests, equipment needed, and estimation of how much it will cost. Before selecting a caterer, customers like to see varying colors, shapes, sizes, flavors, cooking methods, and price alternatives added to menus. Another desirable feature includes a balance of the food groups.

Contracts

Professional caterers need to create contracts, which clearly state the terms of an agreement. Some of the main details include time of event, location, room set-up, duration of event, estimated attendance, and pricing arrangements. A deposit is also required, which ranges from 25% to 50% of the total event cost, which is due when the contract is signed.

Additionally, when starting your own catering business – remember to include insurance costs (product and personal liability), record keeping, and food safety. In order to gauge final charges for your catering business, you will need to incorporate materials (cost of food and drink), overhead expenses (variable and fixed expenses), labor costs (food preparation and service), and anticipated profit in order to come to a suitable figure. In the end, final prices should reflect the amount you need to charge so you can maintain your business, as well as reap benefits.

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The first step in operating a catering business is starting it up. You might consider getting a franchise so that you can reap the benefits that the franchise may already have such as a good reputation. You also get help in training management and free advertising because in most cases for a franchise people should already know and hear about the company.

However for a franchise, every year you must give a certain percentage of your sales and revenue to the franchisor and you must follow their standards and rules. If you decide that you do not want to do those things and that a franchise is not your thing. Then you may want to start your own company, but you must remember that marketing, advertising and good public relations is key to help the success of a catering company.

Depending on how big your market is, things that you may want to consider are either flyers, advertisements in the newspaper, television radio and even on the internet. Just remember that a satisfied customer is advertising right there because they will be sure to tell their friends and family about their pleasant experience. Also if your company has a website make sure to have hours of operation, telephone numbers, fax numbers, and any other information that maybe valuable to the customers.

Preparing menus and setting the right prices is the next step, things to consider are operating expenses as well as competitor’s pricing. Licenses and regulations should also be considered, they are the rules that all business need to follow and comply with. It is mandatory for the entrepreneur to contact the municipality that is involved as well as the provincial and federal governments.

Other things that are a must are insurance which varies from business to business, accounting, furnishings, equipment, cost control to control, inventory and costs. Education and training is always important to make sure that your employees are up to par and know exactly what they are doing.

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Catering is a business that many people are starting to get involved in, and if run your business efficiently there is a lot of money that can be earned. One thing that’s for sure is you must have a business plan. If you take initiative and have a business plan your business will be that much easier to run.

There are two things you can do when starting a business. You can start your own which is what many like to do, or you can purchase an already opened business which ever seems to work best for you. Something that you need for sure is the proper paperwork permits and licenses.

If you would like to know everything that you will need, you can go to Health Department and they will let you know about everything that you will need to start your own personal business. You definitely don’t want to pass anything up because the government agency will be making inspections to insure that you are following all of the regulations.

Other items that you will need is equipment, utensils and apparatus. Some of these things might be a car so that you can drive the items to the clients, you’ll need forks, knifes, plates, cups, and many other things might come to mind as your going along. You will also need things that will appeal to your clients such as props, decorations.

But just remember to think about the items that you are buying and how beneficial they will be and if they are actually needed.For example why buy a Van for 20 000, when you can get a van that will do the exact same job for less money. The point of a business is to make as much money as possible not lose money. Just remember the better the job that you do is, the more likely they will tell their friends, family, co-workers to ensure that business keeps flowing for you.

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