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COVID-19 hitting food truck operators hard on financial front

The coronavirus pandemic, which is prompting the closing of public events and outdoor festivals, is prompting the shuttering of food trucks and big loss of income for those striving to stay open and in business across the country.

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March 17, 2020 by Judy Mottl — Editor, RetailCustomerExperience.com & DigitalSignageToday.com

Washington State is a big hotspot for COVID-19 infections as the coronavirus pandemic expands throughout the U.S., and the impact is being felt well beyond resident health concerns.

Food truck operators are feeling big pressures, with some temporarily closing down operations. as state officials order the public to stay home and are discouraging events that lure crowds in order to stem virus  transmission. Workers have been told to stay home and work and limit social interaction -- New York City, Kentucky, Indiana and many other states have ordered the closure of all dine-in options, forcing restaurants to do take-out and delivery only.

For the food trucks who service office workers that means little to no business. For one food truck, Charlie's Buns N Stuff, it's changed business dramatically, according to a Komo News report. Just a month ago the truck was busy with a full work week, doling out lunch five days a week. Now it's one or two days at best, according to owner Veronica Weaver.

"I go to a lot of the big corporations like Microsoft and Expedia and now those locations are shut down to us," Weaver told the news outlet, estimating she's lost nearly 90% of revenue at this point.

In California, the scenario is similar. The Pita Paradise food truck is moving into take-out and delivery only at this point, according to a Turn To 23 report. Its fare can now be ordered via Uber eats and Postmates and will be available via Grubhub as well.

A mother-daughter food truck operation in Phoenix has closed operations due to the coronavirus pandemic as authorities ordered the cancellation of big events, such as the Scottsdale Arts Festival, where food trucks do big business.

The Eur Haus truck,  run by Anna Mineer, has also had to lay off workers given the loss of sales, according to a Fox 10 Phoenix report.

"We've lost over $20,000 in projected sales which is a huge chunk of money in our industry," she told the news outlet. "We wait for this time of year. This is when everybody is here, this is when the weather is beautiful, this is really when we get to make our money and show what we can do," she said.

In Ohio one local food truck owner is striving hard to survive in light of public event cancellations and workers no longer seeking lunch outside the office but now making that lunch while working at home.

Alan Franco, a chef who's been running his A Taste of N'awlns truck for five years, told WKBN it's one of the hardest seasons he's had.

"When all the warnings came out and everything, I've noticed we got a lot of events that were canceled. We had a big Myrtle Beach food truck rally that was supposed to happen the first of April, and it was anywhere between $16,000 to $20,000 worth of revenue in sales and we lost that," he told the news outlet.

But he's busy trying to find business, such as small catering events, and customers via his Facebook page and vows to remain open at least for the next five weeks.

For more insight on how COVID-19 is impacting the food truck industry click here.

About Judy Mottl

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Judy Mottl is editor of Retail Customer Experience and Digital Signage Today. She has decades of experience as a reporter, writer and editor covering technology and business for top media including AOL, InformationWeek, InternetNews and Food Truck Operator.

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