Discussion
My dream is to own and run a food van. I know it is not much to a lot but I like the idea.
The problem I see is the UKs not like America where you can park up and sell your wares.
Besides selling at events is it possible to buy pitches or park up and sell on the street in the uk?
How do laybys work?
The problem I see is the UKs not like America where you can park up and sell your wares.
Besides selling at events is it possible to buy pitches or park up and sell on the street in the uk?
How do laybys work?
rev-erend said:
I am pretty sure they are controlled and licenced by the local council.
Correct. I knew somebody who did this 10+ years ago, even then a pitch on a nearby B road was £thousands. His days seemed to be leaving at about 5 am and home for 3pm, when it was then a couple of hours cleaning, shopping and restocking for the following day. He also had a garage full of freezers & stock.
Certainly was hard work. He made it pay but not big bucks. Lots of weekends at events were a good way to top up.
markcoznottz said:
Don't forget the burger wars
There was some TV programme about these things at events many years ago and all the best pitches were tied up by large companies with long term contracts. OP, what about as staff in a market for starters? Or even something like a small sandwich shop? Do you really want to spend your life in a portable trailer in a lay by?
High end like the Pizza van suggestion above is the way to go.
You can make money selling bacon and egg baps but its hard. I have an office in a small industrial estate (couple of garages, builders and plumbers merchants etc). There is a fixed (portacabin) in a layby which the Romanian chap running it now bought from the previous owner for £5kish. Council inspect and issue licenses which I think is quite expensive and they also dictate to quite a large extent the style and type of food they can sell.
In my area there is a pizza van which pitches up in different towns each night Does a great trade and they also do weddings / parties etc. Don't know how difficult it is to clear with the councils and find a pitch.
You can make money selling bacon and egg baps but its hard. I have an office in a small industrial estate (couple of garages, builders and plumbers merchants etc). There is a fixed (portacabin) in a layby which the Romanian chap running it now bought from the previous owner for £5kish. Council inspect and issue licenses which I think is quite expensive and they also dictate to quite a large extent the style and type of food they can sell.
In my area there is a pizza van which pitches up in different towns each night Does a great trade and they also do weddings / parties etc. Don't know how difficult it is to clear with the councils and find a pitch.
trickywoo said:
High end like the Pizza van suggestion above is the way to go.
You can make money selling bacon and egg baps but its hard. I have an office in a small industrial estate (couple of garages, builders and plumbers merchants etc). There is a fixed (portacabin) in a layby which the Romanian chap running it now bought from the previous owner for £5kish. Council inspect and issue licenses which I think is quite expensive and they also dictate to quite a large extent the style and type of food they can sell.
In my area there is a pizza van which pitches up in different towns each night Does a great trade and they also do weddings / parties etc. Don't know how difficult it is to clear with the councils and find a pitch.
Depends which side of bed the pen pushers fall out of. Ice cream vans were in the radar a few weeks ago. Food is hard, over saturated and boring. Program on c4 yesterday two friends in Spain paid 25k euro for a bar plus savings etc. Guy who made the signs said it was the third time it had a new name ie new owner. I don't if to feel sorry for such folk or not, it's such a big gamble. You can make money selling bacon and egg baps but its hard. I have an office in a small industrial estate (couple of garages, builders and plumbers merchants etc). There is a fixed (portacabin) in a layby which the Romanian chap running it now bought from the previous owner for £5kish. Council inspect and issue licenses which I think is quite expensive and they also dictate to quite a large extent the style and type of food they can sell.
In my area there is a pizza van which pitches up in different towns each night Does a great trade and they also do weddings / parties etc. Don't know how difficult it is to clear with the councils and find a pitch.
markcoznottz said:
Depends which side of bed the pen pushers fall out of. Ice cream vans were in the radar a few weeks ago. Food is hard, over saturated and boring. Program on c4 yesterday two friends in Spain paid 25k euro for a bar plus savings etc. Guy who made the signs said it was the third time it had a new name ie new owner. I don't if to feel sorry for such folk or not, it's such a big gamble.
I know a lot of new businesses fail but often its because of this, they don't look at why the bars failed before but are still willing to put £25K+ into something which has failed multiple times before. Of course it might not but do they know why it did fail and so they can work out what to do differently??Frimley111R said:
I know a lot of new businesses fail but often its because of this, they don't look at why the bars failed before but are still willing to put £25K+ into something which has failed multiple times before. Of course it might not but do they know why it did fail and so they can work out what to do differently??
And usually bought with no experience in the given field either.markcoznottz said:
Don't forget the burger wars
Chatting to a colleague in the south about this and one bloke has a 'selection' of layby vans on 'concession', one guy supposedly handed over £35k cash in a bag for a pitch that wasn't the sellers to sell, those 2 seem to have a habit of fisticuffs with lump hammers and regular plod attendance now 
Frimley111R said:
markcoznottz said:
Depends which side of bed the pen pushers fall out of. Ice cream vans were in the radar a few weeks ago. Food is hard, over saturated and boring. Program on c4 yesterday two friends in Spain paid 25k euro for a bar plus savings etc. Guy who made the signs said it was the third time it had a new name ie new owner. I don't if to feel sorry for such folk or not, it's such a big gamble.
I know a lot of new businesses fail but often its because of this, they don't look at why the bars failed before but are still willing to put £25K+ into something which has failed multiple times before. Of course it might not but do they know why it did fail and so they can work out what to do differently??The Spruce goose said:
My dream is to own and run a food van.
Possible/probable realityCrazy early morning starts, parking up in a wet layby, standing in a cold van in all weathers, constant passing traffic noise, smelling of food everyday, ditching stock when business is poor and maybe not making any money?
Each to their own and I wish you well but I don't get the 'dream'
Id try getting a pitch in a busy shopping centre etc one of the we stalls and try opening a "fried ice cream" place. You choose what you want, anything from oreos to gummy bears, they pour the cream on the circle things, and chop away for 1 minute while it suddenly becomes ice cream, infront of your eyes! Scrape it up, and off you go. Place in thialand was doing a roaring trade. (obviously we are not in a hot country but im sure the novelty will make it busy for atleast the first few months)
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