Do you have skills in baking? Then you can make money running a shawarma stand. Below is a sample shawarma stand business plan that will teach you how to start a shawarma stand business.
Kayode and Brown both studied Engineering in College. After College, the both parted ways; Brown went looking for a 9 to 5 day job; and was lucky enough to get one in the Island earning approximately N160k monthly and doing well in his company, but his pay was low enough to help him cater for his family.
While Kayode at the other hand, started a Shawarma business and in little over 2 months, his monthly income grossed over $1,500 His Shawarma business was one of a kind. People were already flooding it in the first day.
This is a real life story of how a young man: Kayode Oluwamotemi; a university graduate started a cool, Shawarma joint (the amazing thing is that, he had a lot of competitors but what singled him out from the rest was that he made his joint appealing by adding a mini lounge and drinking bar where people can cool off, listening to good music under a clean, conducive environment).
Today, he controls 2 established Shawarma business in the richest city in Nigeria—Lagos. Don’t allow the economy of the country determine your progress in Life. You can make a lot of money starting small scale businesses like Shawarma. All you need is hard work and planning.
You don’t have to start eatery joints like that of KFC, Mr. Biggs, Mr. Fans, Tantalizers, Crunchies, etc to make it right here in Nigeria or anywhere else. You can actually start a Shawarma business and still make a lot of money! Are you a graduate currently looking for a white collar job?
If you answered YES to this question, I’d like you to know this: You don’t have to chase the 9-5 day life, you can actually become your own boss–employing other graduates like you, and expanding until your business becomes a Multimillion Dollar company.
That was how Apple started. Apple started from the garage by two young dudes; and today, Apple is worth billions of Dollars. Don’t be afraid to take the plunge. If you fail in business, that doesn’t mean you are a failure. You only become a failure when you give up!
Why You Should Start a Business Making Shawarma
Most people out there like Shawarma because of the meat, vegetables, lettuce and tomatoes it contains. In fact, almost all female folks in Nigeria love shawarma. I remember few years when I was always wondering what the fuss was about shawarma. Whenever I asked any female friend of mine what she wants during our time out; I get the usual scream: “Shawarma and Ice cream.”
That was when I know that shawarma is a winning product, but unfortunately, I have no passion for the business and that is why I am sharing it with you today.
You can quit your day job or even run this business part time by selling Shawarma at night parties or joints. It’s quite easy to start; but if you are clueless on how to start and manage a Shawarma stand effectively, then here’s how to go about it:
Starting a Shawarma Stand – Sample Business Plan Template
1. Get the needed knowledge
The first step to starting a shawarma stand is to learn how to make it. That means you must have baking skills. If you don’t, then you need to spend some time developing the skills; or you can take a smarter approach by partnering or hiring someone who can make delicious shawarma.
2. Get experience
After learning how to make shawarma, or getting someone who can; you need to build your experience. Do you how to serve customers with a smile? Do you know how to handle rude customers? Are you social? Can you sell? Can you approach a potential customer and convince him/her to try your product?
If your answer to any of the questions above is no, then you need to gain some experience in customer service and the best way to do that is to take a short time job in a fast food joint.
3. Write a Simple Business Plan
Despite the fact that you are about starting a small scale business “shawarma stand”, I still advice you write a business plan especially if you have a dream or goal to grow big in the future. Your business plan will help you plan and execute your strategies and goals.
While writing your business plan, you must ensure it contains some important things such as marketing plan and strategies, financial costs and future projections, risks and rewards, competition analysis, location analysis, etc.
4. Get the necessary equipment
The equipment you need to start a shawarma stand is not that expensive and it can be sourced or fabricated locally. Examples of such equipment are:
- Shawarma Making Machine (Stainless) a new machine goes for about N110,000 (approx. $1200). Note: it must have 4 BURNERs, STAINLESS STEEL, AUTOMATIC IGNITION GAS, and INBUILT ROTOR.
- Cooking Utensils
- Furniture (if you are going to operate from a shop)
- Uniform + Apron for branding purposes
- Interior decoration (if you are going to operate from a shop)
- Electricity + Gas
- A mobile cart of truck
- A big umbrella
How to Market and Position your Shawarma Stand
a. Make Yours the Best
The only way to stand out from the crowd is by making the finest quality Shawarma. People don’t want to eat the same old thing. They want something different. Add spices and do all you can to make yours SUPERB so that people will start recommending your shop to their friends and Colleagues at work.
b. Get a Good Location:
In Lagos, there’s a population of round 30 million people which makes it the largest city in Nigeria. If you start your business in high trafficked areas like Oshodi, Yaba, Shomolu or Victoria Island, you will make it REAL quick.
You can also site your stand close to high institutions, as these places have a high traffic of young people; who are most crazy about shawarma. The key here is to position your shop, in an area where there’s endless flow of customers. Use teenagers in most of your promotional campaigns:
Shawarma is more eaten by teenagers and youths; so, it is advisable to use youngsters in most of your promotional campaigns. It would pay off real QUICK, if you use them because they have the tendency to attract other teenagers to your Shawarma shop. Target ladies, too.
c. Offer excellent customer service and keep improving
I’m Scared, Will People Come and Patronize Me? What If they don’t like the Taste? These are some of the questions people ask before venturing into this business. Well, the truth is that there is no perfect shawarma anywhere in the world as there is always room for improvement.
So try to improve at any giving opportunity. Test out new recipes (beef, chicken, etc) and get feedback from your customers. Stop asking questions. Start the business, and you will be surprised by the number of people that will stroll into your shop the first day!
In conclusion, you don’t have to work in all Oil and gas company before becoming a Millionaire. Just find a need, and meet it! That’s the secret of most successful entrepreneurs!