David Weber 
The Food Truck Handbook 
Start, Grow, and Succeed in the Mobile Food Business

How to start, grow, and succeed in the food truck business.

Food trucks have become a wildly popular and important part of
the hospitality industry. Consumers are flocking to these
mobile food businesses in droves, inspiring national food truck
competitions and even a show dedicated to the topic on The Food
Network. The relatively low cost of entry as compared to
starting a restaurant, combined with free and low-cost ways to
market them to the masses via platforms like social media, are just
two of the reasons that food truck business are drawing in budding
entrepreneurs.

Author David Weber, a food truck advocate and entrepreneur
himself, is here to offer his practical, step-by-step advice to
achieving your mobile food mogul dreams in The Food Truck
Handbook. This book cuts through all of the hype to give
both hopeful entrepreneurs and already established truck owners an
accurate portrayal of life on the streets. From concept to gaining
a loyal following to preventative maintenance on your equipment
this book covers it all.

* Includes profiles of successful food trucks, detailing their
operations, profitability, and scalability.

* Establish best practices for operating your truck using
one-of-a-kind templates for choosing vending locations, opening
checklist, closing checklist, and more.

* Create a sound business plan complete with a reasonable budget
and finding vendors you can trust; consider daily operations in
detail from start to finishname=’_Toc300439970’>, and ultimately expand your
business.

* Stay lean and profitable by avoiding the most common operating
mistakes.

* Author David Weber is Founder and President of the NYC Food
Truck Association (NYCFTA), which brings together small businesses
that own and operate premium food trucks in NYC focused on
innovation in hospitality, high quality food, and community
development.

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Foreword xiii
Matthew Geller

Preface xvii

Acknowledgments xi

Introduction 1

Plan: Preparing for Success 7

Is the Trucker’s Life for Me? 9

Foundations for Success 18

Playing by the Rules 25

Picking a Concept 31

Assembling a Winning Team 49

The Business Plan 51

Raising Money 63

Start: Making It Happen 67

Administrative Necessities 69

Finalizing the Menu 78

Lay Out Your Kitchen 82

Procuring a Truck 87

Picking a Commissary 99

Branding Fundamentals 103

Hiring 109

Picking Vending Locations 112

The Opening Schedule 117

Succeed: Doing One Truck Right 121

Responsible Vending 123

Vending Locations 126

Managing the Team 132

Put It on Paper 135

Watching the Numbers 137

Refining the Menu 142

Social Media 145

Connecting with Customers 150

Seasonality 153

Maintenance 155

Grow: Moving beyond the Truck 157

Growth Opportunities 164

Contract Packing 171

Building the Right Infrastructure 174

Technology 176

Exiting the Food Truck Industry 179

Afterword 183

Appendix A Templates and Worksheets 185

Appendix B Food Truck Regulations, by City 205

Appendix C Social Media Guides 229

Appendix D Interviews with Food Truck Entrepreneurs 233

Notes 263

About the Author 265

Index 267

Über den Autor

David Weber is a food truck advocate and entrepreneur. He is founder and President of the NYC Food Truck Association (NYCFTA), which brings together small businesses that own and operate premium food trucks in New York City. David is also a cofounder of Rickshaw Dumplings, a growing fast casual chain that operates multiple food trucks. Prior to his experience in hospitality, David was a technology and business consultant. He holds an MBA from New York University’s Stern School of Business and a BA in English literature from Yale University.