Serve something delicious with your catering
business plan!
KEY CONSIDERATION
As you well know, people love to be waited
on. And catered to. The opportunities for catered affairs may
face a bit of challenge in tough economic times, but it doesn't disappear
entirely. There are always weddings, corporate events, and parties of all
sorts. The trick is to demonstrate that you are the chef to get the
job.
STRONGEST ADVANTAGE
Whether it starts small, or super sized,
this is a business that has proved its value again and again. There is
a lot of history you can draw upon.
STRONGEST DISADVANTAGE
Because the catering business is relatively
easy to start, a lot of non-professionals get involved with it. Your
lender will know this too, and will scrutinize your business plan to make
sure you've got the experience that it takes to succeed.
OVERCOMING THE DISADVANTAGE WITH YOUR CATERING
BUSINESS PLAN
Focus your efforts on a defined
geographic area.
No matter where your business is located,
it is imperative that you define who your clientele will be. Look
closely at demographic information to identify
- Number of people
- Income level
- Educational level
- Ethnic hubs nearby
- Family composition
- Number and location of competing
caterers
... and anything else you can dig up.
Prove that you have the marketing background and skill to make the
catering business
successful.
Hit the decks running with a full blown
marketing plan ready. More than anything else, this is what will
demonstrate to the lender/investor that you have what it takes to
successfully operate your catering company. Your lender may not especially
enjoy Taiwanese cuisine, but she will recognize a great marketing plan.
Devote a minimum of 5-8 pages of your
catering business plan to your specific marketing plan.
- Identify your core clientele.
- Identify the number of your core
clientele in your immediate area.
- Have some initial ads or promotions developed to demonstrate your skill
in this area.
- If you have any celebrity endorsements, flaunt it.
- Present menus that you have developed,
as well as photos.
- Detail how you will get free publicity
-- this will be essential for your success.
Base your projections of valid, provable statistics. No pie in
the sky here -- it just won't fly.
OTHER PLUSSES FROM YOUR
CATERING BUSINESS PLAN
This is a business that demands a broad
spectrum of knowledge and experience, from health department regulations
to parking and advertising issues. There is little on the job
training. If you are going to successfully operate a catering
business of
any size,
know your stuff before ever approaching a lender or investor.
A catering business plan can provide the outline. But you need to dig for the local rules and regs that will affect your business. Prove that you have done so,
and that your business plan takes these rules and regs into consideration.
Put particular emphasis on how you will
promote yourself as a caterer. It's fine to say that "word of mouth"
will make your business soar, but in truth you will need more. Print
advertising can be devilish expensive, so look to all the less expensive,
and free, marketing tools that you can find, like articles about your
business, promotion at local Chamber of Commerce events, business fair
events, etc.
FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
FOR YOUR CATERING BUSINESS PLAN AND YOUR MARKETING PLAN FOR YOUR CATERING
BUSINESS
For statistical information on the
catering industry for your marketing plan, go to BizMiner.
At the home page, look for the search
box and enter "caterer". You will be taken to a page where you can
choose between an Industry Financials and Market Research. You
would do well to get both.
These two reports compile information
from over 20,000 catering businesses, providing you with industry
averages for all size of caterer.
Be sure to look in the left hand column
of that
page for VIEW ALL REPORTS, then find LOCAL MARKET VITALITY SERIES. You will find a wealth of information on your area,
with age, income level, housing type, educational level, etc. --
everything you need to target your customer base in your catering business plan.
YOUR LIKELY
LENDER/INVESTOR
The SBA
is usually your best bet.
If, however, you are planning on regional
or national expansion, or if this is NOT your first restaurant, check out
appropriate venture capital groups in your area. And be sure to check out
the newest development in venture capital: venture
lending. For more adventuresome businesses, be sure to check out
angel investors.
YOUR ONLINE
PRESENCE
Odds are that you will want
to promote your business online. Potential guests, as well as
lenders/investors, want to see what you can do. So strut your stuff.
See the best web host for more information on my
preferred web host.
ONE STEP
FURTHER IN YOUR CATERING BUSINESS PLAN
|
Your 7-Step Business
Plan for Catering will take you step by step in creating your
business proposal. Using MS Word and MS Excel, your plan will
be finished in no time, and your business will be on its way!
Click on the book cover for
more information.
|
THE LAST
WORD ON YOUR CATERING BUSINESS PLAN
Catering is too often seen
as a part time business for people with time on their hands. It is
your job to demonstrate that yours is a very serious business, with very
real potential for success.
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Catering Business Plan
