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Starting aÌýhome food business can beÌýaÌýbig decision forÌýaÌýyoung entrepreneur. Aside from theÌýfact that theÌýsteps involved can beÌýtricky toÌýexecute successfully, theÌýfood industry isÌýalso strict onÌýwhat andÌýwho enters it. This isÌýdue toÌýtheÌýhigh regard forÌýsafety since whatever food item you sell can affect theÌýhealth ofÌýtheÌýpeople who eat it.

Despite theÌýchallenges inÌýfront ofÌýyou, ifÌýyou believe selling food from home isÌýtheÌýright business idea forÌýyou, then we’re here toÌýhelp! Let usÌýhelp you get toÌýknow some ofÌýtheÌýbasics onÌýhow toÌýstart selling food from home. This guide will discuss all theÌýsteps you need toÌýtake, from what toÌýnote inÌýyour business plan, toÌýgetting aÌýbusiness license, home/kitchen verification, andÌýmarketing even your food.

Let’s dive right in!

Step 1:ÌýHave aÌýSolid Business Plan

So, you’ve decided toÌýstart selling your food products from your home kitchen. Awesome! And getting started will beÌýaÌýpiece ofÌýcake, right? Well, whether orÌýnot you are actually selling cake, there’s more toÌýselling food than just deciding toÌýfollow your grandmother’s recipe andÌýmake millions onÌýaÌýbeloved staple. While most home food selling businesses are theÌýresult ofÌýpassion orÌýhobby forÌýcooking orÌýbaking, you still need toÌýhave aÌýsolid business plan toÌýbeÌýsuccessful atÌýtheÌýactual selling part. Below are aÌýfew things toÌýconsider when making your business plan:

Know what you are selling

Finding your food niche isÌýanÌýimportant part ofÌýselling food from aÌýhome kitchen. DoÌýyou have aÌýfamily recipe that you think can take theÌýmarket byÌýstorm? IfÌýnot, doÌýyou have aÌýfood product with theÌýability toÌýhave aÌýprofound effect onÌýtheÌýmarket, orÌýrevolutionize aÌýcertain niche? For example, food such asÌýaÌýsugarless cake that tastes asÌýgood asÌýanyÌýother? IfÌýyou fall into theÌýcategory ofÌýyoung entrepreneurs with aÌýrecipe that can take theÌýmarket byÌýstorm, you can move toÌýtheÌýnext step. However, ifÌýyou’re anÌýentrepreneur with aÌýpassion forÌýwhat you do, but noÌýproduct idea, below are possible food trends you can use toÌýjumpstart your creativity:

• Gourmet dishes
• Dietary restrictions e.g., allergen-free, gluten-free, nut-free.
• Vegan, vegetarian
• Candy, Packaged snacks
• Baked good ingredient kits
• Coffee andÌýtea

After gaining some understanding ofÌýwhat you want toÌýsell, you should focus onÌýtheÌýspecific food product you want toÌýstart making. This isÌýbecause, inÌýyour food niche, you (and your coworkers ifÌýyou have them) should beÌývery familiar with your product andÌýniche. And theÌýbest way toÌýbecome anÌýexpert isÌýtoÌýstart ²õ³¾²¹±ô±ô—w¾±³Ù³ó only one product toÌýlearn about. Being anÌýexpert will give you anÌýedge inÌýtheÌýmarket.

Market research

Now that you have that perfect food product inÌýmind, you shouldn’t test its viability before rushing into theÌýmarket atÌýfull force. ToÌýdoÌýthis, you need toÌýresearch your market toÌýknow how your product will fare inÌýaÌýreal-life situation where it’s being sold. Possible questions you should look toÌýanswer include:

IsÌýthere aÌýmarket forÌýthis product?

Having theÌýright recipe isÌýnot enough. You have toÌýknow whether there are people out there that will buy your food.

The market might beÌýsaturated. How isÌýyour product different?

NoÌýmatter how well-executed your dish is, theÌýlikelihood that someone already has such aÌýbrilliant idea like yours andÌýisÌýselling theÌýexact food/food product isÌýfairly high. Therefore, you should expect some level ofÌýmarket saturation. However, quality can give you anÌýedge inÌýanyÌýhome food selling business. Therefore, you should consider theÌýdifferences your product has from other products onÌýtheÌýmarket, its potential, andÌýhow you might make itÌýeven more unique.

IsÌýthere anÌýuntapped niche?

IfÌýyou think your niche isÌýtoo saturated forÌýyour product idea toÌýmake aÌýsplash, you can either improve onÌýyour food product orÌýfind aÌýdifferent, untapped niche. Before you consider this option, you might want toÌýnote that different products perform better inÌýfront ofÌýdifferent audiences andÌýthat expanding your marketplace, say, through using anÌýecommerce platform, can open you upÌýtoÌýaÌýwider range ofÌýpotential customers.

Get toÌýknow your competitors

Another part ofÌýeffective market research isÌýgetting toÌýknow your competitors. The level ofÌýengagement you will get forÌýyour store depends onÌýtheÌýquality you offer, andÌýtheÌýcompetition you have. While it’s true that theÌýhigher your quality with respect toÌýprice (aka theÌýbetter value forÌýmoney that your customers perceive), theÌýbetter your engagement will likely be. However, theÌýmore competition you have, theÌýfewer people will notice andÌýultimately choose your product. So, toÌýbeÌýeffective here, you must beÌýable toÌýanswer theÌýfollowing questions:

• Are there other people selling theÌýfood you sell from home orÌýare there big enterprises selling theÌýsame food products inÌýyour area?
• Will competition affect theÌýdemand forÌýyour specific food?
• What will set your food item apart from other products inÌýtheÌýmarket?

Knowing your competition will help you inÌýyour business plan. You can use their mistakes toÌýbuild upÌýyour game andÌýupÌýyour plan toÌýbeÌýadvantageous.

Step 2:ÌýGet theÌýNecessary Permits

One ofÌýtheÌýpopular questions young entrepreneurs ask isÌý“can you sell food online without aÌýlicense?” The answer depends onÌýtheÌýcountry you live andÌýwant toÌýsell in. However, inÌýmany major developed countries, you need toÌýget aÌýpermit orÌýtwo before you can start aÌýhome-based food-selling business. Therefore, after setting upÌýtheÌýright business plan, theÌýnext thing toÌýdoÌýisÌýtoÌýunderstand theÌýpermits you’ll need toÌýdoÌýbusiness. For people living inÌýtheÌýUnited States, you might need three: aÌýbusiness license, aÌýfood handling license, andÌýaÌýkitchen inspection.

Business license

AÌýbusiness license isÌýtheÌýpermit toÌýget toÌýfirst beÌýable toÌýsell food items toÌýpeople inÌýtheÌýUnited States. You can check more onÌýgetting aÌýbusiness license byÌýchecking theÌý.

Food handling license andÌýkitchen inspection

ToÌýapprove your business, food inspectors must check three areas ofÌýyour home business:

Hygienic food handling

They will check forÌýsafe food preparation, cooking, andÌýstorage. They will also try toÌýfind out whether you cool and/or reheat food items.

Home physical condition

They will check your home based onÌýtheÌýfollowing criteria: cleanliness, ventilation, andÌýpest control measures.

Food safety management

They will check forÌýevidence that you adhere toÌýfood safety precautions. For example, they will check ifÌýyou have aÌýHACCP (Hazard Analysis andÌýCritical Control Points) system inÌýplace.

ToÌýmake sure you doÌýnot encounter anyÌýissues, everybody working with you will require training toÌýanÌýappropriate level. However, ifÌýyou feel unsure about anything, you should check out our article onÌýgetting aÌýbusiness license.

Labeling

Another important requirement forÌýselling food from home involves theÌýneed forÌýfood labeling. Any pre-packaged food must beÌýlabeled. What isÌýrequired toÌýbeÌýonÌýtheÌýfood label depends onÌýyour state. However, theÌýrequired information may include best-before dates, nutritional information, allergen warnings, andÌýcountry ofÌýorigin.

Knowing food hygiene, safety systems, allergens, andÌýlabeling can help you inÌýbeing legally compliant. Consequently, you would not have anyÌýproblem legally.

Step 4:ÌýMarketing Your Home

Marketing your home food delivery business isÌýanother important thing you should consider before getting off theÌýground. But have noÌýfear! We’re here toÌýhelp you get theÌýbasics down. One thing about selling food from home isÌýyou cannot rely onÌýtaste testing asÌýaÌýmarketing tool. Therefore, you have toÌýconnect toÌýyour customers inÌýanother way. Below are two important ways toÌýmarket your home food delivery business.

Offline marketing

Your home food business will possibly kick off through offline marketing. Although theÌýsuccess ofÌýoffline marketing will depend highly onÌýtheÌýquality ofÌýservices you offer. You can also generate buzz locally byÌýdoing theÌýfollowing:

• Participating inÌýfarmers markets
• Partnering with restaurants toÌýhost aÌýtasting event.
• Hosting aÌýprivate dinner/dessert forÌýfood influencers.

Social media

Social media isÌýtheÌýeasiest way toÌýmarket your home-selling food business. You can use social media platforms such asÌýFacebook, Twitter, WhatsApp, etc., toÌýget your brand out toÌýyour local environment.

The best thing about using social media isÌýthat itÌýisÌýfree. Therefore, you can easily andÌýcreatively put your business out. However, toÌýintroduce your home business using social media, make sure theÌýsocial media account has your business name andÌýcontact details.

Step 4:ÌýMaking Sales

After spending soÌýmuch time planning, theÌýmost important part isÌýhow toÌýmake sales from your newly founded food-selling business. There are two main ways toÌýmake sales with this type ofÌýbusiness model. You can leverage your food quality andÌýfreshness andÌýmake sales locally. However, forÌýtheÌýwidest access toÌýpotential customers, ecommerce isÌýyour best bet forÌýmaking your business really work forÌýyou. Below are aÌýfew important ways ecommerce will help you.

Gaining access toÌýnew customers

Using theÌýtool ofÌýecommerce can expose your business toÌýmultiple locations all over theÌýworld wide web. But you shouldn’t consider your business andÌý“either or.” You can sell toÌýcustomers both through aÌýphysical storefront andÌýonline.

Review system

According toÌýstatistics, before buying aÌýproduct, . Therefore, byÌýusing ecommerce, you can enjoy theÌýreview features that itÌýhas. Consequently, you can easily get reviews from your existing customers toÌýconvince your potential customers that you can deliver quality services

Delivery

Another thing you have toÌýconsider with anÌýecommerce orÌýphysical ordering system isÌýhow toÌýdeliver your products. You can make use ofÌýdelivery companies, courier services, etc. However, choose theÌýdelivery service that assures theÌýfast delivery service needed inÌýtheÌýfood industry. You can also utilize theÌýoptions such asÌýpre-order, pickup from your location, local delivery toÌýboost your sales.

Final Thoughts

The food industry isÌýaÌýchallenging business idea due toÌýits regulation ofÌýwhat andÌýwho enters it. Therefore, starting aÌýhome food business can beÌýaÌýlittle tricky forÌýmany people. ToÌýenter theÌýbusiness space, you need toÌýconsider aÌýlot ofÌýthings. Therefore, this article discussed every step you need toÌýtake toÌýbeÌýsuccessful asÌýaÌýhome-based food selling business owner. Follow theÌýsteps above andÌýyou will beÌýable toÌýadapt seamlessly toÌýtheÌýhome-based food selling industry.

Ìý

• How ToÌýStart Selling Food from Home
• What Permissions DoÌýYou Need toÌýSell Food From Home?