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Pros and Cons of Food Trucks

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Food trucks have been on the rise over recent years and more established eateries are embracing food trucks due to various reasons. A food truck can act as a pop-up restaurant that helps in looking for more customers in a new market.

Before you start shopping for your truck, consider the following pros and cons of operating a food truck.

 

Pros:

1. Expansion of business: Some restaurants use food trucks as a way of expanding their business. They can introduce a specialty menu through portable food trucks to convert new businesses or customers over the lunch hour in a new location.

2. Active community: Having a food truck enables you to establish your business in the heart of the action. Attending community events like sports, theater, or trade fairs will help build your customer base and many customers may visit your restaurant because you’re a member of the community.

3. Advertisement of the business: Food trucks offer you an excellent opportunity to advertise your restaurant. The vehicle has the restaurant name thus acting as a mobile billboard.

4. Mobile restaurant: Food trucks provide quick bite, fusion dishes, and some American favorites on the go. It enables you to take your restaurant where the customers are.

5. Customer relationship: Constant face-to-face interaction with the customers helps you understand your customer’s needs better and create a food truck culture.

6. Less investment: Food trucks provides you with a great platform to expand your business with less investment and also give you constant option to relocate the business.

7. Long-term profits: You can maintain your profit margins if you own a food truck compared to renting a house. You only pay the parking fee whereas the landlord can raise rent fees.

8. Unique spin: Food trucks offer quirky and exciting menus. It gives customers an opportunity to experience a unique and unusual twist of flavors in the food, keep them excited as well as have fun. Food trucks enable you to show your personal style and uniqueness of your food.

9. Flexible: The trucks give you a lot of freedom in terms of menu items, hours of operation, the location of your mobile restaurant, and the schedule for events. This gives you the ability to scale up your business.

10. Large customer base: You can attract more customers from different locations as you focus on delivering high-quality food at a less marginally price.

 

Cons:

1. Maintenance cost: To keep the truck running to and from increases fuel cost and maintenance of the vehicle. The cost of insurance and licensing is also very high.

2. Limited storage: Many restaurants save more by buying foodstuffs in bulk and storing them in the refrigerator. Trucks have limited cold storage space and you may spend a lot of time and resources for the truck to run to and from your base of supply.

3. Tough to run: It is difficult to run food trucks. You have to comply with various food truck codes and laws, manage people, and cut down the food costs to attract more customers.

4. Competition: In some big cities, you may experience a lot of competition from other well-experienced food truck businesses.

5. Legal restrictions: Different towns have different rules and regulations on food trucks. You also need to consider other legal restrictions pertaining to food safety requirements, business tax laws among others.

6. Weather conditions: Heavy rains and a massive amount of snow may prevent people from going out for food affecting your business. Earthquakes and hurricanes can also affect your business.

7. Long work hours: For you to succeed in your truck business and get decent profits you need to work for long and odd hours.

8. Pricing limits: Customers expect food prices to be low compared to restaurant prices, therefore, you have to be creative with the prices of supplies and increase your profit margin.

9. Small space: Food trucks provide you with a very small space to add your kitchen and the basic equipment you need in your kitchen.

10. Truck remodeling: It is time-consuming and costly to remodel an old truck and construct a food unit. Repairs for an old truck may be costly.

This Post Has One Comment

  1. Luke Smith

    It’s great that you mentioned how food trucks give you a lot of freedom in terms of menu items, hours of operation, the location of your mobile restaurant, and the schedule for events. My aunt would like to get into the food service industry, however, it seems she is having some trouble getting a good location for it. I think going for a food truck would be a good alternative so I should probably suggest that she talk to food truck consulting services.

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