How to Start a Mobile Catering Business

If you’ve got a passion for great food and are eager to begin on a new career path, starting your own mobile catering business is a fantastic idea. The industry can be particularly profitable for successful businesses, but how exactly do you begin in the first place? In this complete guide, we cover what you need to start a mobile catering business, with advice covering everything from your first ideas to booking your first catering pitch.

What Is Mobile Catering?

Mobile catering is a type of business that involves preparing and selling food to customers from a vehicle, typically a truck.

This type of business has been consistently popular throughout many decades, and continues to grow today. There have been large advances in the types of food that are served from mobile catering businesses, as they now appeal to a diverse range of tastes and cuisine preferences.

But how do you get started on running a successful mobile catering business? Our essential guide below covers the main steps you need to take to get your plan successfully launched:

• Research

• Planning

• Costs for mobile catering businesses

• Registering and legal requirements

• Booking a pitch

• Marketing your business

Research

Before you get started, you need a solid plan as to what your mobile catering business will offer and how you will operate. You’ll need to research into what makes current catering businesses successful and how your business will keep up with the competition.

Starting off by doing some initial internet research is a good place to start, but it’s highly beneficial to visit your competition directly and see at food festivals and fairs what’s currently doing well. Speaking to those in the business and hearing their advice can be a big help in getting started.

It is important to strike a balance between ensuring that you cater to a broad enough audience while maintaining a distinct brand and offering. Incorporating a mix of popular, profitable food items while highlighting a unique selling point that sets you apart from competitors are core components of many successful mobile catering businesses.

Planning

Having a business plan ensures that you take all the necessary steps to establish your business while carefully considering how it will operate in the long term. It helps you develop strategies for success and balance your initial expenses against expected profits. Your business plan should include the following:

• Start-up costs (van, equipment, licences, stock)

• Running costs (fuel, pitch fees, staff, marketing)

• Pricing strategy and expected income

• Marketing plan to attract bookings and customers

Costs for Mobile Catering Businesses

There are various costs that you will need to account for when starting your mobile catering business. The main consideration and likely your biggest expense will, of course, be the vehicle from which you serve food. Whether you buy a new or used van will depend on your budget, and the consideration between buying a van with appliances preinstalled or purchasing them separately will come down to balancing convenience and costs.

There are many other costs involved that you should consider in your plan, with food stock, staffing, power, and many other aspects needing to be accounted for. For more information on what costs you need to consider, our blog on mobile catering costs and pitch considerations contains more information.

Registering and Meeting Legal Requirements

Let’s be honest, it’s not the most glamorous part of the job, but it’s the foundation of everything. Ensuring that your business is fully registered under the relevant authorities and that you are legally sound to operate is essential.

Being organised with all of these requirements ensures that later steps become a lot simpler, including booking a pitch. Once you’ve ticked off the essentials, you can focus on the fun part – serving up great food and building a loyal following.

What Licence Do You Need for Mobile Catering?

You’ll need to be registered as a food business with your local council to operate as a mobile catering business and, ideally, have a solid food hygiene rating to back it up. Most site organisers will want to see your hygiene certificates too, so keep them up to date and easy to access.

If you’re using gas equipment, make sure it’s covered by a valid gas safety certificate. Got electrics? They’ll need to be PAT tested. Some venues may also ask for a basic risk assessment — don’t worry, it’s not as daunting as it sounds. It just shows you’ve thought about keeping your setup safe for everyone involved.

When you’re booking a catering site, organisers will want to know the practical stuff too — what you’re selling, what kind of power or water access you’ll need, and how you plan to manage waste. Having clear answers to these questions makes you look prepared and can help speed up the booking process.

What Insurance Do I Need for a Mobile Catering Van?

Public liability insurance is a must-have — no two ways about it. If you’ve got staff, you’ll also need employers’ liability cover. And don’t forget: every team member should have at least a Level 2 Health & Hygiene certificate. It’s all about showing that you’re running a safe, professional operation.

Booking a Pitch

When starting in trading, it’s important to consider the pitch or pitches you will occupy. The area you conduct business in will have a large impact on your catering business’ success. When choosing your site, you should select an area with regular or high footfall where your target audience is likely to be found to maximise your potential earnings.

Your business model will dictate the types of pitches you trade on. For example, you may decide to regularly change your location and get on the show or exhibition circuit. Alternatively, you may choose to trade for a longer duration at a permanent site and build up customer loyalty. 

For further insights on what to look out for when booking mobile catering pitches and our most recommended venues to trade at, including Wickes, be sure to take a look at our guide on mobile catering costs and pitch considerations.

Pitch Booking Made Simple with Access Point

Trying to find the best pitch to get your business successfully trading can be tricky when you’re researching by yourself. At Access Point, we have a handy, specialised service that makes the process incredibly simple.

Our Venue Locator tool allows you to find pitches in populated areas that are ideal for attracting a great number of customers. This tool allows you to quickly and easily find nearby locations that meet your specific requirements and that offer great positioning to get your brand out there. Our list of clients is both large and diverse, meaning that you have plenty of options to select your perfect venue.

Marketing Your Business

Once you have all of the logistics in place, working out how you will market your business is key. This involves gaining a deep understanding of your target audience, determining the most effective ways to raise awareness of your business, and understanding how to appeal to them most effectively.

Our guide to marketing ideas for catering businesses contains plenty of useful tips to help you out, with ideas on how to sell your products, what promotional tools to take advantage of and how to best connect with both your audience and with people in the industry.

Mobile Catering Pitches at Access Point

We wish you the best of luck with your mobile catering business! Now that you know all of the steps you need to take to get started, you can make your fantastic ideas a reality!

To help you find the ideal starting location for your business, we make it simple to do so at Access Point. We offer a wide range of mobile catering pitches to help you attract many new customers and maximise your profits. Whether you’re interested in various short-term sites or are looking for a long-term location, you can find a wealth of options with us.

Don’t forget to take a look at our Snackbox case study to learn about their experience in using our services for mobile catering pitches.

If you have a fully operational mobile catering unit and are ready to trade, don’t hesitate to get in touch with our friendly team, and we’ll gladly help and advise you to find the right spot for your business.