Catering questions *****

This is for anyone that has their own catering business. I'm looking to start my own, and have some questions. I intend to start small (at least at first), and do this as a weekend thing, while I continue to work full-time at my day job. My plan is to do smaller events in my local area, catering to 20-50 people ideally, mainly with pulled pork (my best dish).

I've been doing some research online and I have some questions. Every place I've seen says not to skip the business plan, but I have no idea how to write one. Does anyone know of anyplace that might provide good sample business plans for a catering business? Also, I figure I'll need to report my earnings to the I.R.S. if this pans out. Does anyone have any experiance with this? Do I just list it on my year-end tax form that I fill out early every year, or do I need to do something special?

As for advertising, does anyone know how much this might run? I'm hoping to do a few free events in my neighborhood soon (like the 4th of July) and mention to my neighbors I'm looking to start a catering business and see if they could mention me to people that are looking for that kind of thing. But I figure I'd like to have a website at least, and I have no practice with making websites. Any idea how much that might run?

Is there some database somewhere of company names? I've got one kind-of picked out, but if there's another company with that name I don't want to get slapped with a copyright infringement lawsuit. Any idea how to go about checking on this?

For those of you that run your own businesses, do you use any specilized software for accounting, or do you use something like Microsoft Money?

I figure I've got the biggest portion of my expenses covered - the smoker. But, depending on whatever job I get, I will likely have to buy some meat warmers, and probably get some bulk plates and silverware from Sam's Club, all of which will run me a pretty penny.

I plan on calling local BBQ joints in the area to base my pricing on, but I also need to create my own menu. Does anyone know if there's specilizied software for that, or do I use Word or something similar?

Also, will I need any kind of insurance for this? I'd hate to get a bad piece of meat that made alot of people sick and be faced with multiple lawsuits.

Sorry for the long post, but I'd like to get this stuff figured out before I really begin to seriously think about doing this. Thanks in advance!

Chris, I'm sure others will weigh in here, but I'd start with going to the Small Business Administration site for background on a business plan. (http://www.sba.gov/smallbusinessplanner/plan/writeabusinessplan/index.html)

What you are looking to do is put a little unbiased observation into your passion with this plan. You'll answer questions like 'Who's my competition?' 'How much do I really need to charge to make a profit (you're going to need to cover things like auto depreciation and a food handler's permit that you haven't worried about before)? What's my break even? How do I promote this? and How do I determine I'm a success here?

Probably the biggest issue for new ideas is that they are undercapitalized (in non-MBA-speak, they run out of money too soon before the business becomes successful). I'd suggest starting small...maybe offering on local bulletin boards, passing out business card, listing on CL, as a way to test the waters before going deeper.

Business naming is done at the state level. Maybe your local chamber of commerce can give you a pointer.

Good luck.

Chris,
With advertising, websites can be a low cost expense. There are a number of relatively cheap and easy setups on the Net. If you are a Mac owner, iWeb is a great option if you have a Mobile Me account. I think your on to something with the free events - have business cards available to give a name to the caterer.
If you aren't ready to establish a website, I would still buy a domain name of your choice once you have a business name. You can buy a domain name for under $10/year on Go Daddy.
As far as catering equipment goes, I'd check CL in your area. You'll find quite a bit of people leaving the food industry selling off trays, chaffing dishes, etc. Most of this stuff is in good shape and can save you some $$$.
Good Luck!
Donny

Here is a BBQ spreadsheet planner I have used in the past to help get my numbers right. You can add your own numbers in a number of cells and it will auto adjust.
http://www.smokymtbarbecue.com...catering-planner.php

You do need insurance. And you might want to look into getting a commercial cooler or deep-freeze since it's unlikely your residential fridge can safely handle the capacity of meat you'll be putting out.

The menu is something you can write by hand or by MS Word, but you may want to get someone with an eye for graphic design to put it together for you.

Your state's secretary of state will have a database of registered businesses you can use to check out name availability. You're gonna have to do your own research, though, to figure out the state of your competition. Pound the pavement and maybe you'll get some good BBQ under your belt along the way. Though you'll probably be surprised at the low quality of most BBQ establishments...

Donny's suggestion of buying used foodservice equipment is a great one.

Regarding your question about tax, I would advise you to consult with a CPA or a tax attorney. Business ownership isn't as simple as putting your net profit/loss on your 1040 at the end of the year. There's many elections, deduction concerns, estimated taxes & etc. that you'll need to take care of to avoid penalties and save yourself some money.

Thanks for the great advice, guys! Keep it coming. I'll certainly look into used stuff on CL, and will likely use Donny's spreadsheet.

Dave, your comment about "you'll probably be surprised at the low quality of most BBQ establishments" is actually what really got me thinking about this. The idea's been kicking around in the back of my head for awhile now, but I always thought my BBQ wasn't up to snuff. Then the other day I was at a meeting at work over lunch, and lunch was ordered from a local BBQ restaurant that has a really good reputation around here. Alot of people really like the meat from this place, and they had pulled pork (the dish I do the best with on the WSM), and I thought "Here's a great opportunity for me to test my stuff against a professional places'". I tasted it, and my first thought was "They sell this?" It was not very good at all, and I know I can turn out better stuff, so I started thinking about a small catering business.

The more and more I think about it, the more and more I'd like this to work out, but I'm definetley starting small. I'd like to eventually have enough business so I can quit my day job and simply smoke for a living, but I'm not about to put all my eggs in one basket just yet.