Food is an essential part of any celebration, whether it’s a wedding, a birthday party, or any other important event. However, people rarely have the time to prepare large quantities of food on their own, and that’s why a catering business exists. Find out how to start catering business in Nigeria right now!
Explore the world of catering in Nigeria on Jiji
1. What is a home catering business
If you’re considering starting a catering business, the first thing you should know that catering business includes much more than just preparing the food. A modern catering business for weddings and parties consists of three main elements:
- Cooking. This part can be done by you personally if you’re only beginning your career in catering, but later you will need to hire experienced and skilled cooks. In order to make your business succeed, your cooking needs to be of the highest quality, and you should follow every hygienic standard required today.
- Table setting. It’s not enough to bring the food to the venue – you also need to set the tables. You’ll need big sets of plates and cutlery, but there are even more things you can do to achieve a classy-looking table: fancy napkins, flowers, table decorations are a must-have.
- Waiters. Party planners and hosts rarely go for the self-serving kind of catering, which is why you’ll need a team of skilled waiters to serve the food and drinks. The waiters need to be polite, neat, and excellent at social situations.
2. Catering business plan
No matter how great your catering business ideas, they will never come to life if you don’t have a business plan to back them up. Here are some things that should be in your business proposal for catering services:
- Objective, goal, and mission
- What kind of education and experience you have for starting the business
- Which materials and equipment you are planning to use
- A detailed analysis of your competitors
- The comparative advantages of your business
- Financial analysis
- Feasibility study
- Possible difficulties and how you plan to overcome them
- Ways to scale your business in the future
Once your business plan is ready and has been approved by someone with a proven background in business, you can move on to preparing for the launch of your business.
3. How to start a catering business
While it’s possible to start a catering business on a larger scale by renting out space, in this step by step guide we will focus on how to start a catering business from home.
- Prepare your capital. Catering isn’t the most capital-intensive business: you can start a small-scale enterprise if you have just ₦300,000, although ₦500,000-₦600,000 will buy you more equipment, better materials, and you’ll have more freedom in your business.
- Choose a location for your business. Unless you want to work from home, you’ll need a place that will serve both as a cooking facility and an office. It doesn’t need to be located in a popular area, since you won’t get too much foot traffic and will promote your business in other ways.
- Buy the necessary equipment. The list of tools and equipment required for a catering business is very long and includes everything from gas ranges and serving carts to table cloths and toothpicks.
- Hire the personnel. Even if you plan to do the cooking on your own for the first several months, you’ll still need someone to deliver the food to the venue and at least two waiters for servicing the guests of the event. These workers can be employed on a freelance basis.
- Advertise your business. In order to help your business succeed, you will need to use different marketing channels. Start by advertising your catering business on Jiji, where it will be seen by thousands of your potential clients. You can also establish good working relationships with party planners, who will in turn refer their colleagues to you – provided, of course, that your services are impeccable and competitively priced.
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