Setting Up A Corporate Catering Company

By Shirley Evans


Human beings eat at least three meals a day. This need is what makes the food business a good choice to invest in. If you derive pleasure from preparing exquisite meals for your family, you might want to consider delving into corporate catering. This will ensure that you still get to do what you like, and also earning a living. If you are seriously thinking about getting into this line of business, here are some pointers.

All startups require a business plan. This will help the owner put their ideas down in order, and can be very useful if you ought to look for additional funding. The first thing you should do is decide what kind of meals you will be serving. Determine this by identifying a niche in the market, or focusing on what you are good at. Once you have your menu, making a list of the things you require, will be a lot simpler.

You will realize that running a catering company is not all about cooking. You will need to handle the money sector as well, to ensure you can stay in business. You can choose to hire a manager during the initial stages, but it will be important to understand the basics of how the business works. This way, you know how to handle your accounts, pay your taxes, and also pay the employees.

Marketing and networking will be necessary, in order to get clients. There are other companies offering the same services in Tucson, Arizona and therefore, you have to compete for customers. You have to make sure your prices are reasonable, and your food samples are exceptional, to boost your marketing pitch. You should also think of offering incentives that other companies do not provide, to win over the target market.

This is not the kind of job you can handle single-handedly. You will need someone else to help you set up, serve the meals, and even to pass things around. This might mean that you need to look for permanent employees. These should be people who you trust, and whose work ethic is in line with yours.

In most cases, you will not only be expected to supply the food, but also the table linens, cutlery and the decorations. Talk to your local vendor, in order to know what to get from whom. When starting out, you may not have enough money to buy all these supplies. You can get a loan to buy them, or choose to rent them. The second option will give you adequate time to save the money you need.

In order to sell food to other people, you are required to be licensed and certified by the state. You might also need additional documents for your employees. This is an important part of setting up a business and when overlooked, can be very problematic. In this light, make sure to sort it out before you start.

Once you have done all this, you need to learn how to take everything in your stride. This will mean both the good and the bad. You should learn how to take criticism and use it to grow your business. You should also consider advancing your skills to allow you to offer your clients even better culinary experiences.




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