Entering the food truck industry can be a very exciting time, and it can also be considered some people’s dream. With that said, food truck businesses fail all of the time, and there are plenty of reasons why.
Are you prepared to enter this industry? Are you more than just a chef? Can you handle the fact that you will be someone’s boss? Do you have an amazing business plan?
Nonetheless, here are some reasons why food truck businesses fail.
RELATED: How Food Truck Owners Can Stay Motivated. Staying motivated in this industry is more important than some people might think — because the daily grind can be brutal.
Some Common Reasons Why Food Truck Businesses Fail
- Owners Aren’t Business Savvy
- Work-Life Balance Is Way Off
- Marketing Is Nonexistent
- Not Unique Enough
- Folks Don’t Know The Industry Well Enough
Owners Aren’t Business Savvy
You were born to be a chef, or that is at least what people have told you your entire life. So, you decide to enter the food truck industry instead of starting up a sit-down restaurant because it is cheaper. Great choice! However, you get the money to start up your dream — which is being a head chef — purchase your mobile kitchen, and then you realize you aren’t very business savvy.
That’s a major issue in this industry — people think being a good cook is the only thing that matters. You also have to know how to operate a business, because a food truck business is literally a — you guessed it — business.
Work-Life Balance Is Way Off
Being a food truck owner is hard. You might be your own boss and have the ability to call all of the shots, but you are also constantly working. Entrepreneurs historically know how to pull off the feat that is having the ultimate work-life balance, and food truck owners need to take a lesson from that playbook.
Marketing Is Nonexistent
Do you know how to market? Are you a social media guru? Do you know how to promote your truck which could lead to a massive amount of growth?
If your kitchen truck is lacking in the marketing department, your sales could be as well. If you aren’t an expert at marketing, you need to learn the ins and outs as fast as possible, or hire someone who is an expert in this field.
Not Unique Enough
You might think your taco truck is flooding with uniqueness. However, there might be five other taco trucks near the location you were planning on conquering. These food trucks likely already have their customers down.
What makes you better than these other businesses? What makes you unique? Your food concept not only has to be otherworldly, meaning your recipes have to be amazing, but your brand also has to stick out as well.
Folks Don’t Know The Industry Well Enough
Everything comes down to this: Aspiring food truck owners don’t know the industry well enough. They enter the game unprepared and have way more questions than answers.
They don’t know that social media is a big part of the process. They don’t know how much everything is actually going to cost. They don’t know how brutal it is to own a business. They don’t know enough about their competitors. They don’t know their target audience well enough. They don’t know what to do once the colder months start rearing their ugly heads, and we think you get the point.
Needless to say, if you want to succeed as a food truck owner, you need to be more than just a great chef.
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