The general consensus is that a food truck’s business decreases 50 percent during the winter months. After all, who wants to stand outside waiting for food in the cold? However, as the industry evolves, more owners are finding ways to turn the winter months into periods of growth.
Dean Medico the French Culinary trained founder of Pizza Luca (www.pizzaluca.com), a rapidly expanding Pizza Napoletana catering truck company, has found ways to grow his business during the winter and keep his loyal customers happy year-round.
5 Tips For Winter Growth For Your Food Truck Business
Five ways to overcome the winter and turn it into growth opportunities:
Work with Office Buildings and Have Record Delivery Time:
Partner with an office building and with their permission deliver menus to every floor. Hire delivery men to bring the food into the lobby or upstairs. Offering piping hot food in under 10 minute delivery time is a luxury that a brick and mortar store can’t offer. Take advantage of being mobile and play to your strengths.
Diversify into Catering, Corporate Partnerships, Weddings and Special Events:
If the weather becomes unbearable for street vending it is a good time to diversify. This is a great way to build your business and ideally launch more trucks, some of which can be dedicated to vending and some to catering.
Serve Hot Soup, Beverages and Give Out Promotional Freebies:
Offer free soup, hot coffee, tea or hot chocolate to customers who are waiting online for food. Distribute company-branded products such as hats or gloves to those walking by. Indeed, this is a marketing expense, but in addition to keeping folks warm and hungry, this is a great way to market secure new customers and build good will.
Win The Battle of Wills:
Bad weather can be to your advantage. By opening up shop, there may only be a handful of other operations up and running. You can have one of your best days of the month if you are open.
Follow the Birds:
If cold weather is just not your thing, you can always head down south. It is always warm somewhere, and the food truck industry is blossoming in the south.
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The Bottom Line
Don’t let the Winter cold get you down! Instead of sitting around and waiting for your busy season to start again, use this valuable time for marketing and Winter growth! That’s right, think long-term and use your off-season to help your food truck business grow. Use these suggestions to keep your food truck profiting year round.
Do you have any additional winter growth tips? We’d love to hear them. You can share your ideas in the comment section below or on social media. Facebook | Twitter
