papadad111
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
- Joined
- Oct 4, 2007
- Messages
- 1,135
Been contemplating what a second act might look like.
Can probably FIRE in 5 years but suspect I will be bored without some part time work. Plus with kids in college at that point, the disposable/discretionary cash that a small business will toss off will come in handy....... so Act 2 is important to me. My dad is 77 and working part time, so maybe it's in the genes too.
I have a couple of options but the one that I'd like to toss out here is a part-time (part of the year) business that can be "packed away" during summer months and/or travel time (planning to spend some ER time in other countries since living overseas has been a part of my life for the past 25 yrs or so).
Anyway, I am from the west coast originally and the "food cart" craze took off during the economic downturn of 2008 when many restaurants closed and chefs had no choice but to cut overhead and pedal their wares on the streets of major west coast cities (Portland Oregon now has a strong food cart culture). Selling quality food for low prices in a "to go" environment.
I am not a chef, but i would like to bring this concept to other locations of the USA...namely the mid-west. Thinking college towns are ideal for this - seasonal work when school is in session, game days, weekends, late nights after bars close, etc.... also these types of places tend to be where people are more open minded to new foods and dining concepts, are on a budget, and looking for healthy choices.
Just wonder how the "food cart" culture resonates with the readers on this list, who tend to be educated and have time on their hands to try new things and are occasionally on budgets.
Not thinking hot dogs .... more gourmet and/or international cuisine. Market research under way to determine popularity of that cuisine and selling price points (and profitability). I think i can clear $40K profit before tax for a 1-cart operation per year (operational for 8 months/year) ...but that is dependent of course on many factors but an estimate none the less.
I would be owner and Chef (i very much enjoy cooking as a hobby ) and have a menu and concept in mind. Investment would be my time, necessary licenses for food cart and health inspections, and of course the vehicle/food cart. I would be sole proprietor. DW and kids might help man the operation, or i will more likely hire some well-deserving and hard working college kids.
Anyone in this business? What are local laws governing food trucks, carts, places to park/set up? I've even considered sub-leasing parking lot space from a retail location to park my food cart/truck regularly, so as to have a few "regular/reliable" locations around the city. Is it as flexible as they say, or, as soon as you go on vacation, you lose brand equity and thus this suddenly becomes a 24x7 business vs a seasonal business. Portability of a cuisine truck is also attractive -- maybe allows me to operate in a few towns vs just a few locations in one town.
I realize this is way off topic for FIRE but the folks on here are smart and i've been toying with this idea in my head for a couple years now and ready to take next steps to get things going, so what questions would you ask if I came to you for financing (as an owner), or if you were going to do this business, or if you were ..... me.
Can probably FIRE in 5 years but suspect I will be bored without some part time work. Plus with kids in college at that point, the disposable/discretionary cash that a small business will toss off will come in handy....... so Act 2 is important to me. My dad is 77 and working part time, so maybe it's in the genes too.
I have a couple of options but the one that I'd like to toss out here is a part-time (part of the year) business that can be "packed away" during summer months and/or travel time (planning to spend some ER time in other countries since living overseas has been a part of my life for the past 25 yrs or so).
Anyway, I am from the west coast originally and the "food cart" craze took off during the economic downturn of 2008 when many restaurants closed and chefs had no choice but to cut overhead and pedal their wares on the streets of major west coast cities (Portland Oregon now has a strong food cart culture). Selling quality food for low prices in a "to go" environment.
I am not a chef, but i would like to bring this concept to other locations of the USA...namely the mid-west. Thinking college towns are ideal for this - seasonal work when school is in session, game days, weekends, late nights after bars close, etc.... also these types of places tend to be where people are more open minded to new foods and dining concepts, are on a budget, and looking for healthy choices.
Just wonder how the "food cart" culture resonates with the readers on this list, who tend to be educated and have time on their hands to try new things and are occasionally on budgets.
Not thinking hot dogs .... more gourmet and/or international cuisine. Market research under way to determine popularity of that cuisine and selling price points (and profitability). I think i can clear $40K profit before tax for a 1-cart operation per year (operational for 8 months/year) ...but that is dependent of course on many factors but an estimate none the less.
I would be owner and Chef (i very much enjoy cooking as a hobby ) and have a menu and concept in mind. Investment would be my time, necessary licenses for food cart and health inspections, and of course the vehicle/food cart. I would be sole proprietor. DW and kids might help man the operation, or i will more likely hire some well-deserving and hard working college kids.
Anyone in this business? What are local laws governing food trucks, carts, places to park/set up? I've even considered sub-leasing parking lot space from a retail location to park my food cart/truck regularly, so as to have a few "regular/reliable" locations around the city. Is it as flexible as they say, or, as soon as you go on vacation, you lose brand equity and thus this suddenly becomes a 24x7 business vs a seasonal business. Portability of a cuisine truck is also attractive -- maybe allows me to operate in a few towns vs just a few locations in one town.
I realize this is way off topic for FIRE but the folks on here are smart and i've been toying with this idea in my head for a couple years now and ready to take next steps to get things going, so what questions would you ask if I came to you for financing (as an owner), or if you were going to do this business, or if you were ..... me.