BusinessHABTips to Start Road Side Pastry Making
Tips to Start Road Side Pastry Making : Pastry making: Among the easiest-to-market food products today, especially across the Internet, are pastries. But be reminded, that pastry making is not as easy as it seems. However, if you make good at it, you would surely open numerous doors of income opportunities.
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Select the kind of pastries you’d like to open
One of the first decisions you’ll have to make is the kind of shop you want to open.
To do this, you’ll want to assess your talents, budget, and goals.
Be sure you’re not making this decision in a bubble—you will want to have your ear to the ground on national trends in the industry—remember the cupcake shop craze (and the cupcake-focused reality TV shows) a few years back?
But don’t simply take your findings at face value either.
It’s equally important to do local market research to figure out how national currents will affect your particular location and demographic.
From there: take a look at the list below and decide which one is right for you.
- Online. You don’t need a storefront to open a bakery. You can start out online. With a killer website, pictures of your work, and a way to place an order, you can run it from your home.
- Counter service. With a small commercial space, customers can walk in and pick up baked goods from an employee-managed counter.
- Specialty service. If you plan to specialize in a certain kind of baked good, a specialty service is your best option. Whether you run the business from your home or rent a space is up to you.
- Sit down. More owners are trying to capitalize on the sit-down and dine option. It’s a growing trend in the bakery industry right now. Picture a space that has both an area to order baked goods and spot to sit and enjoy them.
1. Write a business plan
Once you know what kind of bakery you want to open, you need to create a business plan.
This will force you to look at the business from every angle.
It will help you define your business, set goals, find ways to generate revenue.
List expenses, identify your customer base, and examine your competition.
2. Assess your startup funds
As part of your business plan, you’ll dive into finances.
One of the numbers you’ll need to generate is startup cost.
You’ll need to compile a list of equipment, from appliances like ovens and refrigerators, to smaller items like utensils and pans. Make sure you create a full list of tools.
The equipment will be a one-time hit, but you’ll also need money to live on while the business gets established.
Your capital would depend on the pastry you want to produce and your target market.
You can start small if you’re targeting the CDE markets. Set aside a budget for equipment maintenance because baking equipment no longer come cheap these days.
You won’t make profits overnight, so you need to sit down and figure out when you’ll break even and how much money you’ll need to survive until that time.
3. Shop for space
If you’re running a bakery from your home, you’ve already got your space figured out. If you plan to invite customers into your shop, you’ll need a formal spot with a kitchen and an area for the public. Some bakers decide to rent out commercial kitchen space only. It’s a good option if you don’t want customers to walk through your shop, and just need a bigger, more equipped kitchen.
Whatever your needs, be picky. Shop around, compare prices, talk with neighboring businesses, and research the area to make sure you find the right space. It’s never a bad idea to look into small business incubator programs that might offer space and business training or mentorship at a reduced rate. Do not forget to consider the legal necessaries—which will vary state to state—such as obtaining a license to bake out of your own kitchen.
Roe says that following some simple guidelines laid out by the USDA lets her earn an income, develop wholesale relationships with local restaurants, independent hotels, and coffee shops, but still enjoy the benefits of being a stay at home mother. “Baking from home at sometimes can be a challenge, Mainly in the realm of time management and little fingers wanting to try all the frosting. I am also limited on certain ingredients that I am allowed to use depending on their acidity ratio and their storability because I am not a commercial kitchen,” she says.
Wherever you decide to run your bakery, be sure to think through the pros and cons and their related costs.
4. Materials:
You would need an oven, mixers (electric and manual), baking pans, spatulas, measuring cups and other baking utensils, and enough supply of flour, sugar, milk, eggs, nuts, fruit glazes, and other ingredients for bread or pastry making. You would also need nifty boxes, ribbons, and plastic containers, among other accessories, for packaging. Check out supermarkets to buy nuts, wine, and fruit glazes—special ingredients you may need. Also try sourcing supplies from neighborhood stores from where you could possibly get hefty discounts.
5. Workforce:
When the orders pile up and you need more hands in the kitchen, you’ll have to make your first hire.
Don’t hire anyone immediately and put new hires on a probation period.
You want to make sure they are trustworthy and have the capability to learn.
Really delegate the way you want your business [to run] and how you want your food cooked and baked. Set the bar really high.”
You can do most of the work yourself when starting out. Hire temporary help only when orders are pouring in.
6. Process:
You go into this business because you love and already know how to bake. But knowing how to make bread shouldn’t stop you from honing your skills by taking additional baking lessons or courses. You should also research other complementary recipes by poring over baking books and magazines or by surfing the Internet. You would also do well to observe competitors in your area so you would determine what they don’t have that you could offer.
7. Marketing:
You can start selling your products in your neighborhood and at village bazaars. Make sure your pastries are delicious because repeat orders would come as a result of a favorable buzz from satisfied customers. It would also help if you lend an air of professionalism to your home business by having business cards made. Everybody you meet is a prospective customer, supplier, or business partner.
Tips to Start Road Side Pastry Making in Nigeria
8. Price your goods
Most pastries base their retail price points on the cost of supplies and the time it takes to make the goods, but Green says this formula is flawed.
“Your prices should include things like clean up time, packaging, and time spent promoting your business on social media,” she says. “The biggest hidden cost in a bakery is time. It’s easy to forget the time you spent making flowers because you were watching TV while you did it. There is nothing worse than realizing afterward that you earned 50 cents an hour on a fabulous creation.
9. Have a defined friends and family policy
Before you sell your first goods, be aware that friends and family will probably ask for a discount.
When you’re selling as a side gig, it’s fine to give the neighbor a discount.
But when you start your business, it’s different. “All those wonderful people who previously bought cakes off of you for the cost of ingredients are going to need to be re-educated about what you’re doing now,”
Those who really love and support you will also understand your need to feed your family and pay your rent.” If you want to offer a 10 percent discount to friends and family, that’s fine, but whatever your policy is, make sure it’s consistent.
10. Find support
Speaking of friends and family, a support system is crucial in the pastries business.
Opening a business is time-consuming. Time spent baking is only half the commitment.
You’ll need to market your business, take orders, help customers, and do an array of administrative tasks.
If you don’t have someone cheering you on, it can be hard. Whether it’s your spouse, a colleague, or business mentor, you need someone in your corner.
Tips to Start Road Side Pastry Making in Nigeria
11. Be the best, the first, or the only one
Be original. These two words might seem like generic advice, but to survive, you can’t be a carbon copy of your competitors. “Be the best, the first, or the only one baking the kind of treats you make.
If you can be all three of those things, that’s even better.”
Know what kind of competition you have in your area and work to set yourself apart.
12. Focus on your customers
Your customers are your key to success. Happy customers become repeat customers, so work to make each customer experience memorable,
Ask your customers for feedback, talk with them at the counter, and ask for product suggestion once in awhile.
Make the customer experience count.
That’s the best way to get repeat customers and money in the register.
Tips to Start Road Side Pastry Making
13. Grow your bakery
Once the bakery is up and running, you can start thinking about growth. We’ve got a few tips to make sure it continues to thrive.
Most pastry business are busy during the warm months. Shoppers that are out and about are likely to wander into your shop on sunny summer days.
Plus, summer is full of parties like graduations and weddings. The end of the year will be busy too.
To even out your revenue stream, you might consider diversifying your business.
Of course, adding products could increase your expenses and change your workflow, so make sure you weigh all of your options if you plan to branch out.
14. Plan for retirement
When you’re first starting out, you’re thinking about breaking even.
Putting away money for retirement is usually pretty far down the list of things to accomplish, but you shouldn’t let it linger.
Once the business is functioning, you should sit down with a financial advisor and talk about saving for retirement. As a business owner, it’s your responsibility to make long-term financial plans.
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