Independent Operators

How to: Launching a meal kit business

Food truck operators striving to stay in business during the pandemic are being creative and expanding their options. One strategy is establishing a meal kit business as dine-in options are still restricted in many areas of the country.

Photo by istock.com

March 8, 2021 by Richard Traylor — Writer, WebstaurantStore

As people continue to fill their lives with busy work hours, hobbies, and family obligations, all amidst COVID-19 lockdowns, the time for creating a weekday dinner starts to dwindle.

For the food truck operator this presents a potentially lucrative business: a meal kit business option that not only helps local residents with dining choices but can boost food truck revenue and brand.

Here are the steps for launching a meal prep business.

What is a meal kit?

A meal kit is a collection of pre-portioned ingredients that make up the components of a recipe. Food service operators assemble meal kits, place the recipe card alongside, and ship it to the customer for them to cook the recipe at home — for the food truck operator delivery can be right from the truck as well. Sometimes the ingredients are partially cooked, the vegetables pre-cut, or the whole meal is assembled and ready-to-bake. The idea behind meal kits is for customers to save time in the kitchen and cook something new while ensuring it's a delicious meal they'll enjoy.

1. Choose your meal prep concept

Now that you're interested in starting a meal delivery service, it's time to choose the concept. The below points outline key questions to ask yourself about how you'd like your meal prep delivery service to run in terms of the food being prepared and who it's for:

Types of cuisines

So, what are you cooking? Are you an expert in a certain global or regional cuisine? If so, this could be an exceptional way to introduce traditional recipes and ingredients to potential customers that may be unfamiliar, but want to learn. You can also create a fusion concept where you take different aspects from two or more cuisines and blend them together into new recipes.

If you aren't an expert in a specific international cuisine, try framing your concept around ideas like healthy meals or comfort foods. Your meal prep business could also be about experiencing specialty ingredients that your customers have possibly never used in their cooking. Or, if your meal delivery service is centered around making the recipe from scratch, maybe your recipes can bring in various cooking applications so customers can try out different techniques in their own kitchen.

Dietary restrictions

Whether it be allergies, lifestyle changes, or following various weight loss methods, millions of people have an altered way of eating in some form. To really target all people and demographics, catering to specific needs is a smart business move so you never have to turn down a potential customer.

Target market

With all of your concept ideas in tow, think about who would benefit from this meal kit delivery service. Whether it's everyone and anyone, busy families with kids, people who want to learn how to cook, or those who have no interest in cooking at all, make sure you keep this person in mind. If you're making premade dinners that just need to be heated, market to the families or busy people that don't have time to cook an extravagant meal at the end of the day.

When choosing your meal kit delivery concept, it's important to find your niche. There are both small businesses and national suppliers that offer delivered meal kit subscriptions or fully meal prepped dishes right to a door. So, as you think about the three points above, think about what your niche will be so you can stand out from the competition.

2. Write a meal prep business plan

Whether you're starting a food delivery business from home or beginning a meal prep business in a commercial kitchen, you'll need to write out a business plan. A business plan lays the foundation of your business and can help you get loans from investors, forecast your sales, stay organized with the tasks you need to complete, and map out any gray areas about operating your business. Your business plan should include the following:

Executive summary.
Company description.
Concept and menu.
Management and ownership structure.
Employees and staffing needs.
Market and competitor analysis.
Advertising and marketing strategies.
Financials.

3. Obtain funding for your meal prep business

Now that you have the financial projection from your business plan, you'll know the amount of funding you'll need to get started. Even if you're starting a food delivery business from home, you'll need startup supplies to begin your meal kit business. If you're working with a bigger operation, add up the costs of supplies, rent, utilities, salaries, and any other operational expenses you have. From there you can create a budget and forecast how much money you'll need to apply for loans.

4. Find a meal prep workspace

The next step to starting your meal prep business is determining a workspace — can you do it on your food truck or do you need to tap a ghost kitchen. If you're planning to operate a meal prep business on a larger scale, you will most likely need a workspace that has enough square footage and professional equipment to keep up with the demand. A ghost kitchen may be the best fit for your operation as you won't need to worry about impacting your daily food truck operation.

When looking for your workplace, find a suitable establishment that has separate areas for the following:

Kitchen: This is the most important room of your business. There should be enough room in this kitchen for the size of the operation you will handle, as well as all of the necessary amenities to recipe test or prepare your meal kits.
Packaging station: A specific place for packaging and putting together your meal kits is needed for proper organization, handling, and keeping track of orders.
Shipping and distributing: Make sure you have optimal refrigeration storage space to keep your meal kits cold before loading them onto the truck or taking it to a shipping center.
Office space: A designated place for desks, computers, and phones for your accounting, marketing, and customer service teams.
Meeting rooms: If you would like to host potential clients or business investors, having an on-site meeting room to conduct business is a great investment. It's the perfect place to start or end your tour of the facility.

5. Obtain permits if needed

Starting a meal prep business from home or in a facility typically requires special permits. Below we've outlined which potential permits you will need to get your business off the ground and running:

Employer identification number.
Seller's permit.
Business license.
Food handler's license.
Catering license.
Health department permits.
Zoning permits.
Dumpster placement permit.

6. Order supplies for your meal prep business

To make your product, you will need the correct supplies to start making meal kits or meal prep food deliveries. Below are a few necessities you'll need to get started on your meal kits:

Ingredients: Based on your projected sales, figure out how much ingredient inventory from your recipes you will need to make your meal kits. Buying in bulk is a great way to keep costs down, but throwing out spoiled food at the end of the day is throwing money in the garbage.
Portion packaging supplies: Before purchasing your meal packaging supplies, think about how you would like your partially cooked meals or pre-prepped ingredients to be presented when your customer opens up the box. Keep that presentation image in mind when you choose the size, material, and shape of your containers. If you're not changing up your menu too frequently, consider buying this type of container in bulk to save on costs.

7. Create a meal prep business ordering platform

Your website is one of the most important customer channels for food truck operators. Therefore, your website needs to be top-notch and performing at its best. Investing in a great website that's user friendly is the best way to obtain sales. You can create websites for free by using Squarespace, Weebly, or Wix, and you can pay a small amount for domain names and cool business features. These types of websites also provide pre-made templates, so you can browse and select one that speaks to your business's aesthetic.

When choosing your template and creating your website, think about the colors, pictures, and fonts you will use to target your key demographic:

If your concept prioritizes simple ingredients that make the meal easy to put together, try to keep the website minimalist.
If your concept prioritizes plant-based eating, use bright, fun colors that match the hue of fresh vegetables.
If your concept prioritizes omnivore eating, studies have shown that warm colors such as red, orange, and yellow make people hungrier rather than cool tones. You could also put drawings of animals and vegetables together in your design.

Try to implement these six tabs into your website:

The meal plans: Show off all of your meal kits that you have to offer, as well as any set meal plans that allow customers to buy two or more meal kits for their week's meals.
How it works: Explain how the process goes in case your customer is new to purchasing from a meal prep business: pick the meals, get them delivered or picked up, and how to cook them. Help your customer see how easy it is to use your service.
Pricing: Whether you're showing the price per meal or your set meal plans, it's important to be upfront about your cost. Use this page to help your customers understand that they can save on the price per meal when they shop in a bundle.
Gifting: People love to give gifts that share a moment and make memories, and that's exactly what your meal kit does. Providing this option to gift a meal or week's bundle can drive up your sales. When someone buys the meal(s), provide a printable e-gift card option or a scheduled email.
About us: This is where you can describe the story of your business and convince your customer to pick your meal prep delivery business over the competition. Show the faces of the people that made it happen so your customers can have a more personable relation to your business.
Contact us: Give customers the ability to voice questions, comments, or critiques, which can help to improve your meal prep business in the long run.

8. Advertise your meal prep business

Once you have your target demographic identified and found ways to market yourself to be different from the competition, it's time to take that information and start advertising. Below are some great, and oftentimes free, ways to market and advertise your meal prep business:

Utilize social media.
Create an email list.
Offer promotions to new customers.
Create a loyalty program.

About Richard Traylor

Richard Traylor graduated from Temple University in the winter of 2014 with a degree in Strategic Communications. After graduating, he taught English in South Korea for two years, during which he was fortunate enough to travel and see the world. In October 2016, he returned home and started to work in SEO Content at Webstaurant Store. This blog previously ran on Webstaurant Store.

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