Are you about starting a concession stand? If YES, here is a complete sample food concession stand business plan template & feasibility report you can use for FREE.
A concession stand might look like such an easy business to start up, but like any other business, if not properly run or managed will fail. Before starting, you will need to decide what products you intend to sell, where you will sell these products and if you will need to lease or purchase a trailer for use.
The products you will sell will determine what equipment you should procure for your concession stand business. There are different kinds of concession stands such as hot dog stand, mobile trailer unit or permanent concession stand.
A Sample Food Concession Stand Business Plan Template
1. Industry Overview
While there are no companies with a dominant share market in this industry, the industry is however worth $2 billion and has been projected to have an annual growth of 3.7% between the periods of 2011 and 2016. This industry has more than 59,000 businesses that provide employment for more than 68,000 people.
The food service industry is one that relies on customer’s spending confidence and increase in disposable income to generate income.
The economic downturn of the past five years even though it affected traditional food restaurants did not affect concession stand owners and other food street vendors, and this was due to the fact that the food sold by these street vendors and concession stands were considerably more cheaper.
However, due to analysis from IBISWorld, customers’ obsession with buying food from the street is likely to decrease between 2017 and 2022. However customers from metropolitan areas were likely to sustain interest in this industry which will in turn present some growth opportunities for growth for businesses in this sector.
Concession stands are usually located in areas where there is a large population or likely to have a large influx of people such as stadiums, carnivals and fairs, movie theatres, and other special events, or those who are in transit to other places like the train stations and other such places.
However, according to statistical survey, two third of the revenue from a concession stand is usually from sale of hotdogs and peanuts, while on the other hand, drinks bring in an excess of 90% profit margin, making it a very profitable product to add to the menu.
Other profitable products that increase the margins for concession stands are snow cones, large popcorns, small popcorns, pizza and nachos.
While traditionally concession stands offered food products cheaper than that of a traditional restaurant, concession stands that operate at sporting events usually sell their products a bit higher than their counterparts in other places and this is due to the fact that they need to pay stadium fees, and also give the team a part of their profits, which increases their overhead costs.
Nowadays, concession stands have delved into technology as more people can now through their tablets and phones, see what concession options are available around them through an app, which is good for business as it allows concession stands cut down on physical waiting time.
Another recent add from technology is the fact that customers in some concession stands can pay for food and beverage via a wristband or key card which allow operator to collect vital information that is not only consumption based alone, but other information that will lead to better serving the customers and also having an accurate database.
2. Executive Summary
Jess’s Unit Concession Stand business is a standard concession stand that will be based here in Sherrill Blvd, Knoxville – Tennessee, USA and will cater to all our various customers.
We intend to retail food products such as salty munching snacks, frozen desserts, gourmet popcorn and caramel corn, sweet snacks, beverages, baked or fried snacks, and meat entrées from our different customized trailers that will be positioned in various strategic locations here in salty munching snacks, frozen desserts, gourmet popcorn and caramel corn, sweet snacks, beverages, baked or fried snacks, and meat entrées.
We also intend to offer consultancy and training services as well. Our aim of starting the concession stand business is so as to become a force to be reckoned with in the industry and also make a name for ourselves that can be able to compete favorably against other competitors in the industry.
We intend to go the extra mile by ensuring that we invest in the finest professionals here in Sherrill Blvd, Knoxville – Tennessee and around the united states of America. We also intend to acquire trusted trucks as well as the best equipment when setting up our concession stand business here in Sherrill Blvd, Knoxville – Tennessee.
Due to our desire for excellence, we have solid plans and processes in place as regards food packaging, hygiene and other structures that will ensure that we remain the preferred business when it comes to concession stands.
We have plans in place to ensure that we employ competent and trustworthy employees to help in running our business.
The employees we have in our employ are those that are have seen where we are going as a company and are determined to ensure that we get to our desired destination. All our employees from management staff to the least employee are attuned to our goals and objectives.
We intend to carry out an intense publicity regarding our business and will hire the services of a brand consultant who thoroughly understands the business and is experienced enough to proffer strategies that would boost our business and allow us not only penetrate the market but become the industry leaders that we desire.
Our clients are very important to us and due to this; we intend to ensure that we take excellent care of our customers by giving them the best experience when they come to our concession stands to patronize. Jess’s Unit Concession Stand is owned and operated by Mrs. Jessica Parker, who has several years of experience in the food service industry that will allow us get to our desired goals and objectives.
3. Our Products and Services
Jess’s Unit Concession Stand intends to deal in several food products and beverages via pour several trucks that will be strategically positioned in different locations.
However, in order to ensure that we boost our revenue and have a solid bottom line, we intend to add other sources of income. Our earnings will however be guided by the permissible laws of the United States of America and within reasonable ambition. Below are some of the products and services we intend to offer;
- Sale of salty munching snacks, frozen desserts, gourmet popcorn and caramel corn, sweet snacks, beverages, baked or fried snacks, and meat entrées
- Consultancy and advisory services
- Sale of franchise
- Trainings
4. Our Mission and Vision Statement
- Our vision is to make a name for ourselves in the industry and become the preferred concession stand for all our customers here in Sherrill Blvd, Knoxville – Tennessee.
- In order to achieve our vision, we have laid down strategies and a well planned business structure that are designed to ensure that we excel in the industry and become a force to be reckoned with.
Our Business Structure
Due to the fact that we intend to run a standard concession stand business, we have set plans in progress that will ensure that we get it right from the beginning by hiring only competent and hardworking employees to all the available positions in our company.
We are willing to use whatever amount it would require to ensure that we get only the best to work for us. The employees we intend to get will undergo continuous training in order to enhance their skills and increase productivity efficiency for our company here in Sherrill Blvd, Knoxville – Tennessee.
Due to the fact that we intend to offer more services and products than a conventional concession stand, we will need to employ more employees than we normally would to handle all the various services and responsibilities at Jess’s Unit Concession Stand.
Below is the business structure that we intend to build at Jess’s Unit Concession Stand;
- Chief Executive Officer
- Food Technologist
- Human Resources Manager
- Admin Manager
- Purchasing Manager
- Sales and Marketing Team
- Accounting/Cashiers
- Customer Service Executives
- Truck Drivers
- Cleaner
5. Job Roles and Responsibilities
Chief Executive Officer
- Drafts overall strategies and policies that would affect the direction of the organization
- Ensures that policies are properly implemented and that ineffective policies are removed or modified.
- Engages high-level clients on behalf of the company
Food Technologist
- Responsible for ensuring that quality standard is kept at all times regarding the food products
- Ensures that due process is followed strictly in producing and packaging the food
- Carries out mandatory inspections on all food dispensed by the organization
Human Resources Manager
- Sources for and recruits competent employees on behalf of the company
- Ensures that new employees are properly oriented and inducted into the company
- In charge of all the welfare packages on behalf of the employees
Admin Manager
- In charge of ensuring that the administrative tasks flows smoothly in the organization
- Ensures that organizational policies are adhered to and implemented
- Works with other departments to ensure that work flows smoothly
Purchasing Manager
- In charge of purchasing food products from reliable vendors and suppliers
- Ensures that the organization gets fair prices
- Drafts and reviews contract documents on behalf of the organization
Sales and Marketing Team
- Engages in direct marketing in order to increase sales for the company
- Retails food products to various customers when they make demands
- Conducts marketing research in order to determine new markets for the company
Accounting/Cashiers
- Handles all the financial transactions on behalf of Jess’s Unit Concession Stand
- Administers payrolls for all employees
- Ensures that the overall budget is properly implemented
Customer Service Executives
- Keeps abreast of company’s policies as well as industry trends in order to give consumers accurate information
- Handles all inquiries, orders and feedbacks on behalf of the company
- Keeps an accurate customer database and ensures that it is regularly updated
Truck Drivers
- Drives the concession stand trailer to and from different strategic locations on orders of the company
- Supervises and assists in loading and offloading the truck
- Carries out light maintenance on the truck whenever necessary
Cleaner
- Ensures that the truck is kept clean at all times
- Cleans the office facility and the convenience for both staff and customers
- Ensures that the cleaning supplies do not run out of stock
6. SWOT Analysis
In our bid to ensure that we start and run a standard concession stand business, we sought for a reputable business consultant here in Tennessee to look through our business concept and determine how we were likely to fare in the industry, and also if we would be able to compete favorably against other established concessions stand business here in Sherrill Blvd, Knoxville – Tennessee.
In view of this, the business consultant conducted a thorough analysis of our business using our strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats to determine how we would likely fare and succeed in the concession stand business here in Sherrill Blvd, Knoxville – Tennessee as well as in the United States of America.
Below is the of the SWOT analysis that was conducted on behalf of Jess’s Unit Concession Stand business;
- Strengths
The fact that we are offering a wide range of food products to our various customers means that we have an advantage in this regard over our competitors which could be regarded as a strength for our business. Also, we sourced for and hired competent and professional employees that understand the business thoroughly and are committed to ensuring that we achieve all our intended goals and objectives.
Also, we have well equipped trailers that will allow us meet with demands no matter how they might triple. Also, our location here in Sherrill Blvd, Knoxville – Tennessee is one that is very strategic and will allow us gain a large share of our target market.
- Weaknesses
The concession stand business we intend to run is in a saturated market and so we might not have it easy breaking into the market as we envisioned. Also, due to the fact that we are just starting our business and would need to massively advertise the business, our major weakness is that we are running on a tight budget and so might not be able to achieve this aspect as we wish.
- Opportunities
We have several opportunities open to us in this business which comes from the fact that we would be offering our customers different food products. Also, the fact that we would be sponsoring local sports or a team will increase the needed awareness we need for our business to grow.
- Threats
There are several threats that we would face in the course of starting up or running our concession stand business here in Sherrill Blvd, Knoxville – Tennessee. The threats that we would likely face are the arrival of a major competitor in our same location, also, we are likely to face the threat of the economy becoming bad and therefore allowing people to eat less outside, preferring to cook from home instead.
We however have strategies in place that will ensure that we act proactively to reduce the effects of whatever threats we are likely to encounter.
7. MARKET ANALYSIS
- Market Trends
As long as there are places where fans gather or a large number of people either gather or pass through, food and beverage will always play an important role. Concession stands are now taking these experiences and customizing it by infusing more food products and choices or mobile technology, in order to ensure that fans are further engaged. In order to achieve this, these concession stands gather and analyze data in order to better understand the fans.
The trends in the beverage segment have seen certain beers and spirit leap in popularity, which has led fans to seek for these options from concession stands that are more general in nature. Even though hotdogs, pretzels and peanuts will continue to be popular amongst those that patronize concession stands, there is now a more concerted effort to ensure that food sold are healthier and easily more accessible to fans.
This is so as to be able to cater to fans that have food allergies, special diets and other dietary preferences. Also, there is now an increase in ensuring that food served is not only fresh but that the visible preparation of this food can be observed by the customers that patronize the concession stand.
The internet has changed things as more concession stands are making use of the social media platforms to interact with fans, advertise and promote their business as well as market their food products. This has led to an increase in their revenue as this cost of promoting the business is not only cheaper but has the ability to reach a wider range of the audience, and also penetrate the target market better.
8. Our Target Market
The concession stand business is one that is patronized by a wide range of customers from different segments and so cannot really be restricted to a particular group of people. This is why we are not only restricted to a particular area here in Sherrill Blvd, Knoxville – Tennessee, as we have our trailers strategically positioned in order to gain a huge share of this market.
In order to be able to have a better knowledge of our target market and what they will be expecting from us, and also what our duties are, we have conducted a market research. We therefore are in business in order to retail our food products to the following group of people;
- Households
- Children
- Sport fans
- Corporate Executives
- Government Officials
- Business People
- Celebrities
- Sports Men and Women
- Students
- Tourists
- Every other person
Our competitive advantage
Our vision is to ensure that we make a name for ourselves and also become the preferred Business Name amongst other food stands for our different clients all over Tennessee and round the United States of America. However to achieve this, we have come up with several strategies that would allow us have a competitive advantage and allow us compete favorably against our competitors.
Our first competitive advantage is going to be the fact that we would be purchasing and stocking at least two trailers that would offer customers in different strategic locations, the options of availability.
Also, we have in our employ, competent and professional staffs that are highly experienced in this kind of business and know therefore what it would take to ensure that we achieve our intended goals and objectives and become a force to be reckoned with nationally.
Another advantage to our business is that we are strict in the quality and type of food that we offer our customers because we understand that this is a sector that would need us being careful so as to avoid being branded in a negative light and therefore chasing off our customers.
Finally, our employees are well paid with a welfare package that rivals that of others within the same category. We are also willing to ensure that our employees undergo continuous training in order to not only enhance their skills but improve their productivity efficiency.
9. SALES AND MARKETING STRATEGY
- Sources of Income
Jess’s Unit Concession Stand is one that has been established with the aim of generating revenue and maximizing profit in the food business industry here in the United States of America, hence we are going to go all the way in ensuring that we do all it takes to make our business attractive enough to our target market, thereby boosting revenue for our business.
Jess’s Unit Concession Stand will therefore generate revenue by engaging in the sales of the following products and offering of the following services;
- Sale of salty munching snacks, frozen desserts, gourmet popcorn and caramel corn, sweet snacks, beverages, baked or fried snacks, and meat entrées
- Consultancy and advisory services
- Sale of franchise
- Trainings
10. Sales Forecast
Due to the various products and services that we would be offering our various customers, we are confident that there will always be a demand for our food products.
Our location here in Sherrill Blvd, Knoxville – Tennessee is very strategic as we are well positioned to penetrate and gain a huge share of the target market, thereby meeting our goal of generating enough revenue and making profit under a year and growing our business.
After critically examining the food industry line of business and analyzing our chances of survival in this market; using information and data gathered from verifiable sources and similar start-ups here in Sherrill Blvd, Knoxville – Tennessee, we have been able to come with a sales forecast of how we are likely to fare and what we are likely to achieve.
Below therefore are the sales projection for Jess’s Unit Concession Stand based on several factors and assumptions;
- First Fiscal Year-: $300,000
- Second Fiscal Year-: $450,000
- Third Fiscal Year-: $800,000
It should be noted that the above sales projections were done based on what was obtainable in the industry as at the time. Several assumptions that were used were the non-arrival of any major competitor during the defined period as well as a stable economy. However, should any of these factors change, it would affect the sales projected figures and might cause an increase or decrease.
- Marketing Strategy and Sales Strategy
In order to generate revenue, every business involves itself in marketing. Marketing is a very essential aspect of a business either new, growing or already established. In order to correctly anticipate the needs and peculiar characteristics of our target market, we conducted a thorough market research, that will not only allow us penetrate the market but also ensure that we position our business in the way that would be of utmost benefit to us.
Also, the detailed data we would get from the market research will help us not only to attract the customers but also to allow us compete favorably against competitors that are either new or already established.
In order to ensure that we get the correct information from our conducted market research, we will deploy several strategies such as asking far away concession stands how they were coping with competition close to them and what strategies they have deployed in order to ensure that they stay on top and have a competitive advantage over their competitors.
We will also watch how our nearby competitors run their business and how they tackle certain issues that might likely crop up.
To ensure that we conduct an accurate market research, we intend to engage the services of a reputable marketing consultant that not only understands the market but what marketing strategies would best fit our concession stand business. The strategies that would be proffered for us by this expert will see us winning a large percentage of the available target market here in Sherrill Blvd, Knoxville – Tennessee.
To ensure that our business continues to grow and sustain itself through increase in sales, we will ensure that we empower our marketing and sales team to not only draft effective marketing strategies, and create new markets for our concession stand business but we will empower them to be enable to deliver on corporate sales and marketing goals.
In summary, we will adopt the following marketing and sales strategy at Jess’s Unit Concession Stand in order to sell our wide range of food products;
- Throw a mind blowing launching party in order to generate interest and increase awareness about our business
- Ensure that we are listed in offline (yellow pages) as well as online directories
- Engage in direct marketing and sales
- Use our various social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat to market our concession stand business and increase sales
- Advertise our business in local newspapers as well as on radio and television stations here in Tennessee
- Encourage our customers to help refer our business to their colleagues, friends, and family members
11. Publicity and Advertising Strategy
Having the right publicity is very crucial to our business and so in this regard, we intend to ensure that we apply the right publicity strategies that will not only make us stand out in the industry, but will also penetrate the target market and allow us gain a huge share of our target market whilst positively promoting our brand to our existing and potential customers.
To however gain much more publicity than we would be able to achieve on our own for our concession stand business, we intend to hire a publicity consultant who not only have the right knowledge about this industry but is also reputable with giving businesses such as ours the certain strategies aimed at ensuring the business becomes a leader to be reckoned with.
These strategies will ensure that our brand is positively and effectively communicated. Below are the publicity strategies we intend to engage in to promote and advertise Jess’s Unit Concession Stand Business;
- Ensure that we pass out our handbills and fliers at certain strategic locations
- Use relevant social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat to actively promote our concession unit business
- Position flexi banners in various strategic locations here in Sherrill Blvd, Knoxville – Tennessee so as to increase the awareness about our concession stand business
- Ensure that our trailers are well branded with our logo and contact information and that our employees always wear our customized tee-shirts
- Sponsor a local sporting activity as this would increase the awareness for our concession stand business
- Write a monthly column for the local newspapers highlighting facts about the concession stand business
12. Our Pricing Strategy
Deciding the prices that will be attached to the different products and services we intend to offer will depend on a whole lot of factors, such as the size and packaging, our overhead and running costs, our location and what our competitors are offering as well. While there might not be any need to carry out a detailed strategy on how we intend to fix our prices, we will ensure that we try to make our products affordable without causing a price war.
In order however to increase awareness for our products and attract the customers we might need to our concession stand, we intend to offer a discount in the prices that we will sell our products and offer our services. Because of this decision, we intend to put in strategies that will allow us attract and encourage people to buy from us even though we might run on a low profit margin for the defined period.
- Payment Options
Jess’s Unit Concession Stand Business will ensure that there is a payment policy that covers all the different preferential payments that our client will require in order to conveniently do business with us. Therefore, the payment options we intend to use to run our business and that will be available in every outlet includes;
- Payment by cash
- Payment via Point of Sale (POS) Machine
- Payment via Credit Card
- Payment via check
- Payment via online payment portal
In view of the above, it should be noted that we carefully chose payment options that will not be only convenient for our business and clients but will run without hitches of any sort.
13. Startup Expenditure (Budget)
Every business requires capital in order to start up; and the capital gotten usually goes into purchasing the bulk of items that will be needed in starting the business and running it successfully. Therefore, the bulk of what we will spend our start-up capital on will take a huge part of our capital.
We would be purchasing a trailer in which to do business in, use part of the capital to pay employee salaries and utility bills for at least 6 months. Therefore, the bulk of what we would spend our capital on are;
- Total fee for registering business in the United States of America – $750
- Obtaining vendor’s license, location seller’s permit, accounting software, and several other legalities – $1,250
- Cost of hiring a business consultant – $1,000
- Insurance coverage (general liability, workers’ compensation, property liability) – $3,000
- Cost of start-up inventory (food products, straws, ketchup, mustard, cotton candy machine, warming units, grill, microwave oven) – $50,000
- Other start-up expenses (computer, printer, cell phone, packaging materials) – $10,000
- Storage hardware (bins, shelves, racks) – $3,000
- Marketing promotion expenses (concession launch grand opening promotional activities as well as general marketing promotion activities) – $3,000
- Operational cost for the first six months (salaries of employees and payment of utility bills) – $100,000
- Cost of purchasing two trailers for concession stand – $60,000
- Cost of launching a website – $500
- Cost of throwing a launching party – $3,500
- Miscellaneous – $4,000
From the above analysis, we would need an estimate of $240,000 in order to successfully start-up and run our concession stand business successfully here in Sherrill Blvd, Knoxville – Tennessee. It should be noted that a huge part of the capital will go into paying employees and utility bills for at least six months, buying the various equipment we would need as well as purchasing two trailers with which to run our business.
Generating Funding / Startup Capital for Jess’s Unit Concession Stand Business
Jess’s Unit Concession Stand business is a business that is fully owned and operated by Mrs. Jessica Parker. Jessica who has always had the dream of running the concession stand business is not willing to take on external investors in order not lose any stake of her business, which is why she is restricting the sourcing of her start-up capital to just three sources.
Therefore the three areas where start-up will be generated are;
- Generate part of the start-up capital from personal savings
- Source for soft loans from husband and close friends
- Apply for loan from bank
N.B: Mrs. Jessica Parker was able to generate the sum of $30,000 from her personal savings, while she got the sum of $45,000 from her husband, Mr. Michael Parker and close friends. She is at the final stage of obtaining the sum of $165,000 from the bank. All the necessary papers and documents needed to approve the loan have been signed and the money will hit the account before the end of the month.
14. Sustainability and Expansion Strategy
Ensuring that we sustain and expand our business into becoming the force we intend it to be and also making the business pay for itself is very vital, and like any other business, we have laid down strategies that we intend to follow strictly in ensuring that we achieve our sustainability and expansion plans.
Some of the factors we intend to implement in achieving this purpose includes providing quality product and services to our different customers, building the best business structure and also ensuring that we retain a high number of our customers.
Providing quality products and services is a must for us as this is the core reason why we started this business. We will ensure that all the food products that our customers buy from us are of the highest quality.
This is because we know how important it is not to cut corners when it comes to food matters and so to preserve and cement our status as industry leaders, we intend to hire a food quality inspector that will ensure that all that we produce go through the highest available standard laid down by regulatory authorities and aided by our own core policies.
Building the best business structure is very important to us and as such we are willing to go the extra mile in ensuring that we hire professional and competent employees that not only understand the industry but are also committed to ensuring that they help us attain out intended goals and objectives because they strongly believe in our core values as a company.
We will ensure that not only will our employees receive high quality training continuously to help them better at their jobs. We will also ensure that our employees are well paid so as to also continue to motivate them in putting in their best for the business.
Finally, due to the fact that we value our customers, we intend to ensure we treat them well. We will sometimes give special recognition to our customers who always come back and will give discounts to those who bring a customer with them to buy from our concession stand. We believe that carrying out these different measures will go a long way into ensuring that we are able to sustain our business and eventually expand it.
Check List / Milestone
- Business Name Availability Check: Completed
- Business Registration: Completed
- Opening of Corporate Bank Accounts: Completed
- Securing Point of Sales (POS) Machines: Completed
- Opening Mobile Money Accounts: Completed
- Opening Online Payment Platforms: Completed
- Application and Obtaining Tax Payer’s ID: In Progress
- Application for business license and permit: Completed
- Purchase of Insurance for the Business: Completed
- Conducting feasibility studies: Completed
- Generating capital from family members: Completed
- Applications for Loan from the bank: In Progress
- Writing of Business Plan: Completed
- Drafting of Employee’s Handbook: Completed
- Drafting of Contract Documents and other relevant Legal Documents: In Progress
- Design of The Company’s Logo: Completed
- Graphic Designs and Printing of Packaging Marketing / Promotional Materials: In Progress
- Recruitment of employees: In Progress
- Creating Official Website for the Company: In Progress
- Creating Awareness for the business both online and around the community: In Progress
- Health and Safety and Fire Safety Arrangement (License): Secured
- Opening party / launching party planning: In Progress
- Establishing business relationship with vendors – wholesale suppliers / merchants: In Progress
- Purchase of trucks: Completed