EDDIE'S PORTABLE PIG-OUT: Thoughts On Vending at Festivals/Street Fairs
One Thing I'm NOT is a Vendor. Here's Why:
I occasionally get called to see if I have an interest in being a vendor for Festival, Street Fairs, etc. When the request is made, you can hear the excitement in the voice of the event planner. The fantasy is that the skies will be blue, the sun will shine brightly, the temps are 68 degrees with a gentle breeze, and throngs of cash-laden people are lined up at the gate to enjoy the event. The fantasy continues with visions of shattered attendance records. The event planner paints a picture that I'm being done a favor for the wonderful business opportunity. I mean, all I have to do is set up my equipment and collect Buckets of cash from all those hungry people! I should be THANKFUL for the opportunity!!! Sometimes it actually works out this way!
But sometimes it doesn't! More often than not, it's the complete opposite. And there's the problem!!
Reality is that vending is all about Risk, far more than I feel like bearing. I'm not a gambler. This is a business, not a game. There's far more risk than I NEED TO bear, especially when I have all the work I can handle as a standard caterer. I'm not a fan of working hard all weekend, only to have squat to show for my efforts. Or even worse, to have LESS THAN SQUAT (To take a massive financial beating!)! From my perspective;
Vending (High Risk):
1.) Headcount Guesswork: Food must be pre-purchased before the event, and it's always tough to "guess" how much to bring. You have no idea how many people you'll sell to. The investment can be on the order of $1000-$2000 or more, in anticipation of an expected customer headcount. Remember, that once I purchase the food, I can't take it back and I don't have the means to store it for future use. Produce and Breads are particularly unsalvageable and unmanageable. I'm still responsible to pay staff (they don't work on commission). An approach to limit over-purchasing is "just in time" shopping, with "runners" continuously poised to hit Costco/BJ's/Sams Club/etc. (More staff, more trucks). The farther away from home, the greater the headache.
Dynamic Factors that directly influence my potential customer base are:
a.) Inclement Weather: Gloomy forecasts keep people home, even if they paid in advance for tickets! Mother Nature is in Control.
b.) Other Vendors/Competition: The addition of each vendor and their menu offerings changes the equation. The pie is only so big. You're putting lots of faith into the hands of an event coordinator, who may surprise you with last minute vendor additions (despite promises that you may be the sole vendor!). Specific Location in the vendor area can have a dramatic influence too...a crappy spot is a crappy spot.
c.) Event Promotion & Event Conflicts: I place my fate into the hands of the event coordinator to do a competent job. Prepurchased Food Quantities are often based on the event promoter's best guess at overall headcount, which is very often a shot in the dark, and very often wrong. If the event isn't promoted well, people don't show up. (Especially true of young, upstart festival coordinators with inadequate advertising budgets). With only 13 weeks in the summer, it's also surprisingly common when several large events conflict with each other. The other event may draw far more than anticipated, leaving the festival "A Bust".
2.) Fees, permits, etc. Event Planners want a cut. Sometimes a VERY LARGE cut. Towns May demand special permits. Admin headaches. Dept of Health could shut me down on the spot over a missing document, even though I have $2K worth of fresh food ready to go.
3.) Time: Some of these festivals are multi-day affairs, which are tough for me to pull off with a full time job in the mix.
4.) Equipment. Although I have lots of the backline equipment necessary, I'm really NOT set up for it. Cash registers, Banners, service countertops...none of which I have. Granted, not a big deal to establish, but it's just more crap to store in already overtaxed facilities. Factor X: Several menus w/associated equipment sets may need to be maintained, to adjust to other vendor's offerings. Even more crap to store.
5.) Other. Muddy Fields & Vehicle Extractions, Poor Electrical/Water services, High Ice Prices, Drunken Idiots, Open Fields=High Winds, Stolen equipment. The multi-day festivals tend to be a few hours from home, so sustained foodservice can get logistically tricky.
Standard Catering (Low Risk):
1). Guaranteed Headcount. In other words, the host pays me for X amount of people, for Y amount of Food, For Z amount of time, per a contract. The host is responsible for full payment, regardless if the weather was good or bad, or if the headcount doesn't materialize as planned. This translates to the Host bearing all financial risks, not me.
2.) No Competition: Once contracted for my services, I'm the only game in town. I'm not in competition with other vendors.
3.) Profit: My profit is relatively predictable and plannable. Once I have the "near exact" headcount of a standard catering job, I can plan food quantities with accuracy. Food is not overbought on a dramatically grand scale. Overages are usually negligible and manageable.. All of this is directly linked to profit.
4.) Low Overall Risks: My risks are limited to the annoyance of food service logistics and the headaches of weather...which is already quite enough for my tastes. Private parties don't bring the scrutiny of the Local Dept of Health. Admin headaches are manageable.
5.) Time Commitment: Typically a shorter time commitment...one long day. Remember, I have a full time job.
6.) Equipment Base: My equipment is set up for catering, not vending.
7.) Logistics: Kind of nice to have a client bend over backwards to make sure we're well supported, on flat, level paved spots. Use of the garage, sheds, and rented party canopies during inclement weather.
Anyway, you get the idea. Vending is a Spin of the Roulette Wheel, whereas Catering is like performing a service call, much like an Electrician. The point here is I can avoid a ton of risk if I stay away from "vending" jobs and stick with what I do best: Standard Catering. There's other people out there who are professional vendors, who have stabile, profitable operations, and have it down to a science. Seek them out! They're out there.
That said, I do know that there's money to be made in vending. Like anything else, there's a huge learning curve to figure out how to capitalize on it properly. If I ever expand this operation to full-time status, and I have the warehouse to store crazy amounts of equipment for every possible situation, I may establish a vending leg of the operation. But I'm not ready for it yet. My operation is (barely) manageable as it is. It's a greater probability that I'll expand to handle additional concurrent standard catering jobs! See B Unit.
Please Call (973) 627-2722 to Discuss Your Event. Usually 6pm-10pm, Weeknights. Please leave a Message otherwise. Also be sure to mention the potential date(s), headcount, location, and the nature of the event. Thanks!