Ice cream is probably the last thing on your mind right now. You’re most likely dreaming about the latest soup recipes that you’re going to cook in the stock pot. We totally get that. Summer seems to come faster than any of us think, and soon enough, people will be clamoring for the cold treats once more.
Last week, we talked about food trucks and some of the considerations which need to be made when thinking about the food trucks. Today, we’re going to talk a little bit about starting up your own ice cream truck.
There are several considerations which must be taken into account when opening up an ice cream truck business. The first is the sad fact that the business is seasonal, limited to the warm times when people gather. In the off months, the truck will have to be in the garage or repurposed for other foods.
When looking at any business, you have to examine the profit potential. According to SimplyHired.com, the ice cream truck vendor is around $25,000 for that seasonal work. The potential, however, for the truck itself is nearly limitless – that depends on the amount of hustle that you’re willing to put into the project.
If you’re self-employed, one of the biggest parts of sales is to have a dynamic and friendly attitude. There are so many folks who have the ‘nuts and bolts’ part down, but they don’t seem to have the other, less technical, skills.
In some cases, the initial costs of setting up a mobile eatery from scratch can rival that of your brick and mortar restaurants. There are equipment costs, license fees, costs for stocking your truck, and more. But, once those one-time costs for worktop freezers and glass display merchandisers have been accounted for, the price for running one becomes considerably less.
Running an ice cream truck takes persistence, passion, and patience, but it can be done (and quite profitably, too!).
Thanks go out to Clyde Robinson on Flickr for the Creative Commons use of the picture.
