Important facts before starting a catering business.

It is an exciting time, there is such a buzz about food. Not only in terms of taste and style, but also in terms of health and nutrition. Unfortunately both do not always go hand in hand. We have all gone to wedding receptions, business meetings or birthday parties and sampled catered cuisine. Most people just scoff and critique the food, while people like myself and you see it as a business opportunity. You have probably thought 'I could do a better job than that!' , 'virtually anyone could do this' and ' how much? I could do it cheaper and still make money' and that's probably why your reading this article.

There are two important key factors in building a successful catering business.

Firstly, you will require culinary skills, not surprisingly, as customers tastes are becoming more discerning. It does not mean you have to be the next Gordon Ramsey, or a creative genius but to be able to produce and serve quality tasting food.

Secondly, you will need good business acumen. You must have good organisational skills, be able to implement proper budget management and have excellent interpersonal skills. Without them you will be another catering business that fails in the first year.

If you are lacking in skills, don't panic, you can obtain them through training and reading, one of life's best investments in yourself.

Ok, you have still decided on starting up a catering business. Your next, and fundamentally an important one is what type of catering business are you going to have. Unless you have worked in the industry or have a large amount of capital to invest, I would recommend starting a home based catering business. This will reduce the initial capital outlay and reduce your running costs.

Quite amazingly a lot of emerging catering businesses get carried away with grandeur about what they are able to supply and produce what they feel the customer wants rather than meeting the customers desires. So, initially stick to what you are competent of producing in the kitchen. A lot of successful home catering businesses have started with a single product, for example a cake, jam, chutneys etc, and built there reputation up before introducing new products. What I'm trying to say is become proficient at what you are good at before taking on new ideas and products.

Next, you will need to research your market, look for who would be customers, where are they likely to be found, how big is the competition if any, and what would be your unique selling point (i.e. why should customers buy your product than anyone else's). At this point it is easy to get swept away with new ideas, nothing wrong with it as long as you keep it in context. Start small, aim high as the business will grow if your good at what you do.

Once you've done your research, it's time to start costing out your business. Firstly, what equipment are you going to require. At this point it would be worth having a chat with your local environmental office. They will be able to advise you on what improvements and safety requirements you will need to your kitchen and to the running of your business. At this point it would also be advantageous to enrol on a food and hygiene course to obtain your certificate, if you have not already got one. Shop around for the best deals, there are many catering suppliers that sell second hand and reconditioned equipment. You will save a fortune by doing this!

Next, source out your food suppliers. The aim here is to find the best quality at the lowest price, be aware at this point if buying fresh produce (which I would recommend) there will be seasonal variations in price.Once you've decided on your suppliers build up a rapport with them, and don't be frightened to ask for discounts on larger orders, you will be quite surprised how readily they will give you discounts. Also it is worth costing out your food items, for example if you are making a sandwich, look at the cost of the slices of bread and the filling. Once you've looked at the cost you now know what price to sell it at. Ideally the cost should be 30% of the price, so if it costs 60p to make you sell it at £2.00. Obviously, it all depends on your market and it might be worth making less profit per item which enables you to sell more and therefore a greater profit overall.

You are now ready to start your catering business. So what is the best way to market your business? The best is through recommendations from customers who have used your services, that is why it is imperative to give your customers a great unique experience and go that extra mile, as people love to talk about their food experiences. You could use flyer's, advertising in local directories and papers, place advertisements in shop windows and the internet. One of the best methods is to actually get out amongst your customers and let them try free samples, not only do you get great feedback there and then, but also a potential sale. Also use the local papers for a news story about your business, you have to be clever here, it can be that you are doing something for charity (always a good one) or maybe helping out the local community, what ever it is there is nothing like free publicity!

Great your up and running, your business is growing, your getting orders in, this is where your financial and organisational skills come to the forefront. It is totally necessary to keep accurate accounts on your suppliers, your running costs, your sales/ invoicing, bookings and orders. If you do not you will soon find you will loose control of your business, and the business will be running you rather the other way round.

I would like to say that having a catering business is very rewarding if run correctly, not only in terms of being your own boss, but can be very financially rewarding and very satisfying seeing your customers coming back for more as they love what you have to offer.

For more information and detailed guide on setting up a home based catering business visit Starting a Catering Business.. Are you interested in learning how to keep accurate accounts click here!