5 Tips on Starting a Small Food Business

So you want to get into the food business? You love to cook or bake and have mama's secret recipe

that's been handed down from generation to generation You have a great product and you are wondering how to bring it to the masses. Here are a few tips from someone who with her sister is doing just that.

1. Where are you producing your product? Is this something you can make in your kitchen at home and sell or do you need a commercial use kitchen? Call your local health department and find out licensing and inspection requirements and restrictions on what you can legally produce and sell from your kitchen at home. If you do need a commercial use kitchen look for a "shared use kitchen" or a "community use kitchen" in your area to start. These generally have a small monthly fee and you pay by the hour when you use the kitchen. This is a great way to keep costs low while you grow your business.

2. Determine price point. Break down what it cost to produce your product and comparison shop. Purchase a similar product through a local speciality food store or market and through an online competitor. Ask yourself can your product command the same price, more or less. What will it cost to put your product in a customer's hand?

3. Labelling. Check with your local state health department and the FDA for labeling requirements. There are federally regulated guidelines you need to follow and there may be local state, city or town labelling requirements. Check on these and make sure you are adhering to them before you hire someone to create your labels. This could be a very costly mistake if you need to reprint your labels or pull your product from a shelf because the labels are incorrect.

4. How are you packaging your product? Wherever you intend on selling your goods, you need to test, test and test. You can't just put perishables in a box and send them. When you order from your competitors pay attention to how you received the goods. Did they include an ice brick or was it vacuum packed for freshness. Is this something your goods would need to arrive in edible condition? Test your packaging in a variety of climates. Send samples to your Aunt Betty who lives in Arizona and ask her to leave the sample outside all day to see how the contents hold up. Remember, when shipping to a residence someone may not be there to immediately take the package into the house and refrigerate. You need to plan for this. If you intend on selling in a store how will your packaging differentiate your product from the rest. Separate your product from the clutter.

5. How many products are you selling? If you are selling more than 1 item, don't be afraid to cut from your list of items, those that don't sell or no one is interested in. Do not get attached to products because they're one of your favourites but no one else is interested in them. When it's something your offer on your website or business, you need to have on hand the ingredients to make it. Never use old ingredients to make a product, it will affect the taste and ruin your reputation. Cut out what is not working. Think of your inventory as money with an expiration date sitting on a shelf just waiting to be thrown away.

There are a lot of other considerations before you start your business such as business name, web address, getting a trademark, business certificates, getting insurance, hiring a lawyer and so on. Make a list and work your list. It all starts when you implement. Remember you can have a great product or idea but if you do nothing about it it's nothing more than a great idea or product.

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How to Start a Business - The First Steps in Starting a Business

The internet has made starting a business from the comfort of your own home more possible now than ever before. Although there is nothing easy about being an entrepreneur, it is common knowledge that the outcome of starting a venture is very rewarding. The most difficult part is actually getting started. Some people have business ideas that never leave their notebook. Others just want to own a business but don't know where to start. Here are some steps to take in your early planning stages.

1. What are you good at? Not referring to what you would like to do but what are you good at now? Do people like your pumpkin pie? Are you a really great accountant? Do you have team building skills that are out of this world? Sometimes we take our own talents for granted because we use them everyday. However, talents can turn into marketable skills that people will pay for.

2. How do you intend to fund your business? Nothing in the world is free. It takes money to make money. Starting a business will need investing. Don't let having a small amount of capital or not having any capital at all stop you from moving forward. You will invest lots of time when there is not that much money. Having large amount of money to invest still requires time in due diligence to make sure you are hiring the right team to get the job done.

3. Dead set on becoming an entrepreneur but don't think you're good enough at anything? Everyone has a skill set, you just haven't identified yours yet. Think about things that you like and consider start a home based business that offers these things. Home based businesses, also known as direct sales or network marketing, link personal development and growth directly with success. With a small investment, usually less than $500, you can have a ready-made business and become profitable in days. The hugely successful in direct sales usually venture off and start businesses of their own after discovering their hidden talents, learned how to run a business, and now have earned enough money to invest in themselves. Direct sales is a great place to start.

Becoming an entrepreneur is not a journey for the faint at heart. It all starts with an idea, just like anything else. Figure out what your skill set is and focus on turning something that you're good at into a business. Decide how you can invest into your business. Be it time or money, you will have to invest something. If you do not think you have any business ideas, start with a network marketing company to jump-start your business juices.

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Do I Have What It Takes to Be an Entrepreneur?

Looking into a viable business opportunity, many young potential entrepreneurs have the same

question in mind. And, you're probably thinking, do I have what it takes to be a successful entrepreneur? Is this a good time to quit my job and invest all my time into this exciting proposition that I have chanced upon. Before you get into the in-depth details about how good the business is, maybe you need to do some soul-searching and explore your personality. Read ahead to find out about the important traits of successful startup owners.

To begin with, entrepreneurs are passionate about what they do. They'll are truly committed to making their enterprise work and when you meet them, they come across as dynamic, energetic people. Above all, you yourself need to completely believe in the product or services you intend to produce and sell. In addition, you're going to face situations and people who most likely will shoot down every idea you have. It's going to be a tough road. And, you're going to have to struggle all the way and for every aspect of your startup. Whether it is garnering the finances you'll need, looking for suppliers for raw materials, or convincing marketers and buyers, to name a scarce few.

But, the bottom line is that true entrepreneurs are persistent and determined. They don't let the answer, "No!" get them down. There will be days when people actually laugh at you for the concept you have. And, there will be friends and family members telling you not to quit the security of your job to plunge into a venture that may or may not eventually succeed.

Then there is the competition you're going to have to deal with. As you begin exploring your business idea, chances are there are other people out there that are trying to make the same idea work. You have to be able to add that special USP that will make your products stand out from the rest. When your customer asks you, "Why would I want to buy your product as against the many others out there in the market?" You need to be prepared with the right answers.

Which is why; one of the key skills that a successful entrepreneur needs to nail down is - great communication. You'll need strong people skills to sell everything you have in mind - your business concept to your stakeholders, getting support from family, and then convincing customers.

Success does come at a price. And, that price most certainly is hard work. You have to have the drive and determination. And, you need to be prepared to put in long hours at work. This is especially true in the initial stages of your business when you're still finding your feet. Are you prepared to put in 48 hours worth of work each day? If you do then you're on the right track. But, there's one other factor you need to remember. Success can be elusive. And, you're going to face setbacks all the time. Do you have the resilience to stand firm in adverse,e situations and forge ahead no matter what?

If you feel that the person this article is talking about is you, then YES!, You do have what it takes to be an entrepreneur. So, what's stopping you?

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How to Overcome Challenges of Starting a Small Business

Challenges are a part of human life: some face it in education, some in professions, and some in

relationships. However, what distinguishes us from others is the way we deal with those challenges. Giving in to hardships is easy; standing up to them with a positive mindset is the mark of true courage and trustworthy leadership.

Challenges are a big part of entrepreneurship. Just like a plant requires a lot of care to grow into a strong tree, a new business also demands constant effort, dedicated hard work and, of course, the ability to overcome challenges. Find out a solution to your business problems by going through the following list we've prepared specifically for your ease!

Build Healthy Peer Relations

If you have recently started your business, it means you have hired many new people to fill in various job roles. For a successful running of your business, it is extremely important to build an ambience of trust between you and your employees. Build healthy peer relations with them; arrange weekly meetings not only to keep them updated with company news and plans but also to get their ideas and feedback. Listen to what everybody has to say and offer help in their work-related problems. Be considerate to your employees and they are sure to return the favour.

Utilize Social Media to Attract Customers

If you are managing a small business, your resources are limited and you cannot spend a lot on extensive promotion and advertising campaigns. This is where social media come in handy for making your company known. Initially, promote your business through social networking sites and get help from your friends by asking them to share the link. Once you feel you have got enough clientele, go for wide-scale marketing. It would definitely work!

Handle the Budget

The real challenge a small business faces is the division of resources for various projects. Some projects are likely to return high profit while others might fail. The best solution to this obstacle is to devise a strategy and estimate the time and expenses needed to carry out a project before implementing any plan. If you calculate the approximate cost of projects, it will help you distribute your budget by giving priority to projects with higher effectiveness and a lower cost.

Promote Unique Features of your Product

You need to keep one thing in mind: yours is not the only company with the product you are offering; there are various competitors out there in the market. Gaining advantage over competitors is a big challenge for new companies which can be overcome by promoting the unique features of your product. Be proactive and find influencers that will help you advertise your product and increase your social media presence. Make your product information easy to find and make sure customers are aware of what distinguishes you from the others.

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Dream Big, Start Small

When starting a business, every entrepreneur dreams of the time the business will grow to be successful and bring in all the big bucks. However, it is not as easy as it sounds. The reality of starting a business is that there will be times of despair, when business is slow and you feel all hope is lost. There will be times when you will have doubts about why you got into business. Entrepreneurship is glamorised and the psychological price of entrepreneurship is rarely ever discussed.

You have to view entrepreneurship or building a business like a child learning to walk. The child will initially fall and stumble, likely graze his knees before he gets the hang of it. Gradually, he can walk and even run.

Business is the same way; in the early days your services may not gain traction in the marketplace and sell quickly, or you may make mistakes along the way that will threaten the existence of your business, or you may have days when you would have to chase after customers before things begin to pick up and move smoothly.

So what is the best way to go through this trying period?

Start small

Start as small as possible. In other words, establish what your minimum viable product (MVP) is. This refers to the most basic version of your product or service that you can offer. It gives you the opportunity to understand what your market wants and improve from there.

Move fast and break things

This simply means, "don't be afraid to try new ideas and be disruptive". Try new ideas and fail fast. If you fail, learn the right lessons and move on fast. In fact, it is one of the advantages to being small - you can implement new ideas quickly.

Secure cash flow quickly

Contrary to belief, profits aren't the key to sustaining a business. It is cash flow. How consistent is your revenue? If you are able to achieve consistent cash flow, profits are not far off.

Treat your customers like king

This is more than just a cliché. It is very important that you offer the best customer service possible. Doing this will make them more than just customers; it will make them your ambassadors.

Fine-tune your company culture and leadership skills

Your company culture means how you do things as a company, your processes, and your interactions among you, your staff and suppliers, among others. If you are unable to get it right when the company is small, it will even be harder as the business grows.

Learn as much as possible about every aspect of the business at this stage

The times will come when the business will be too big for you to micromanage like this, and if there are aspects of it you do not understand, you will have a management crisis waiting to happen.

Implementing the above will able to you to build a structure to enable you to dream big, but start small to help the company grow well.

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