Brief overview
Delicacies is a food truck small scale business that will operate in Wellington, New Zealand. It is designed to provide high quality and healthy food and soft drinks on the go, unlike many street shoppers in the country. Delicacies is aware of the current sudden market growth in the mobile food purchase and, for this reason, seeks to tap this ready and highly available market in the city. The only challenge the exists is of legal basis where there are various codes and protocols to be observed. However, since Delicacies is determined to provide high quality and healthy food and drinks, all healthy regulations and requirements will be met. The main difference of Delicacies from most food trucks in New Zealand is that Delicacies will be registered as a commercial kitchen, which implies that an off-site kitchen to do all preparations will not be necessary. This poses a legal challenge because getting a legitimate commercial kitchen on wheels is not a walk in the park.
Mission and Vision
The vision of Delicacies is to a global leader and innovator in the production of high-quality food in the manufacturing sector in Wellington, New Zealand
The mission of Delicacies is to offer high quality and healthy food options for the residents of Wellington, New Zealand
Legal structure
Delicacies has obtained all relevant permits, licenses, insurance covers and trademarks. Even though acquiring all these state and city permits is hectic and tedious, they are paramount for running a truck business and as such, Delicacies will ensure that it has been met all legal requirements
Business operations, location, times, product/service offering, equipment needed
Running and maintaining a successful food truck business is almost impossible without developing a proper operational manual that will act as a blueprint for all business operations. As a result, Delicacies will involve all its staff in developing a viable operational manual that will oversee and guide all its services. The operational manual will cover several aspects, including Menu and kitchen management, purchasing and inventory, safety and security, vehicle management, equipment management, marketing and promotions, employee training, personnel administration, and cleanliness and sanitation.
Delicacies will sell pastries and non-alcoholic beverages. A wide range of pastries will be sold, including cookies, cakes, tarts, frozen desserts, and puff pastries, to mention a few. In line with the product range that Delicacies will offer, strategic partnerships will be established with other pastry and beverage sellers in the city to increase the variety of the products provided and also increase the business revenues (Chen et al, 2015). In each of the mentioned areas, forms, checklists, and procedures will be available to guide on exactly how each of the tasks is to be completed. For instance, in employee training, all training procedures and protocols will be mentioned, and every training area highlighted.
Since Delicacies offers pastry and beverages, it will be ensured that provided food meets all health standards and regulation. Various resources and equipment will be needed. Some of which comprise food truck prep and storage areas, refrigeration and grills, a health and safety permit, and a service window. Table 1. below shows some equipment required by Delicacies
| Equipment | Use |
| Undercounter refrigerator | Cooling of beverages and other cooking materials |
| Griddles | Cooking a range of items including cookies, burgers and tacos |
| Microwave | Reheating of cold pastries |
| Sprinklers | To respond in case of a fire outbreak in the truck |
| Washing stations | This would be a point for washing dishes and other truck equipment |
| Coffee brewer | Making of coffee and a range of other caffeinated drinks |
Table 1. Required equipment ( Esparza, Walker, Rossman, 2014).
Industry-outline, size of industry, unique aspect of the industry
In line with the products and services Delicacies will provide, it will operate in the food industry. The food industry is the largest industry, not only in New Zealand alone but also in the world. According to (Chand, Eyles, Mhurchu, 2012) food processing industry in the world employs over 1.5 million employees in its manufacturing sector alone. Unlike other sectors in New Zealand, the food processing industry is among the industry with the largest magnitude of value added. The food industry in New Zealand plays a very crucial role in feeding the nation by providing a range of breathtaking aromas, flavors, colors, and textures in food.
Delicacies ventures into this industry fully aware of the risks in the food industry. The most prevalent threat in the food industry in New Zealand is that of food safety. According to the world health organization, food safety is a global issue that affects millions who suffer from contaminated food. Since Delicacies is set to operate in the food industry, the risk of food safety poses a significant challenge (Mokhtar, Othman, Arsat, Bakhtiar, 2017). However, since Delicacies is committed to providing high quality and healthy food to its customers, all underlying health protocols and requirements will be fully met.
Over the past decade, registration for food trucks and mobile food services has been on the rise with enough evidence suggesting that the boom time for mobile hospitality is beginning in New Zealand. In neighboring countries like Australia, the boom is almost over because the number of food trucks has been increasing in the last two decades. Currently, competition has increased tremendously, meaning lower returns. In Victoria, for instance, there is an estimate of up to 5000 food trucks, up from 2000 three years ago (Mokhtar, Othman, Ariffin, 2018). Unlike in Australia, mobile hospitality is in a boom in New Zealand.
Management-who will manage and their skills
The truck will be the manager of the business will be selected from among the four employees, and they will be responsible for overseeing all operational activities in the business. The truck manager will be tasked with opening and closing of the truck, opens registers, makes all purchases on food and relevant inventory as well as managing the truck’s advertising. The manager will undertake both managerial duties and other kitchen duties, such as cooking and food preparation.
Operational plan
Relevant policies and procedures developed
Several policies and procedures were developed to guide Delicacies operations. Some of the policies and procedures designed include training policies, work schedules, payday procedures, overtime and compensation policies, drug and alcohol policy, gender and sexual harassment policies, and attendance policy (Ideris et al, 2017). Each of these policies and procedures has been stipulated to provide clearance on how the business will operate.
Relevant contingency planning for business
With the mobility of the food truck, the business will be able to move around; as such, any noted potential risk such as reduced demand, whether or sustainability of location the truck will conveniently be moved to better locations so that break-even is met (Weber, 2012). In the event where the business is not in a position to break-even, it can quickly be sold to other entrepreneurs and only hold a trademark and franchise license, which will otherwise generate income via franchising feeds.
Staffing needs for identified business
Unlike most restaurants, food trucks operate by a relatively small staff who work on a different role. Depending on the size of the truck, Delicacies will need four employees. Two will work as service persons while two will work in the kitchen section. Service providers will work in the front house and will be tasked with taking customers’ orders, accepting payments, and serving food and beverages.
Training needs
Delicacies will start with four employees, two chefs, and two service providers. Training of staff when they first join them is essential, and as such, all staff will be adequately trained to acquire the necessary skills required for running the business. It is as well crucial to note that even though initial training will be provided, ongoing training for all staff is essential and will be administered to enhance the delivery of quality food and services in line with the changing customer needs and demands. Apart from this, Delicacies will also adopt a policy of continuous training to enhance employee retention by creating a culture of constant learning. Here, the primary purpose of training is to define the major functions of each job position for every staff member and to ensure that they are in a place to meet all their job requirements and what is expected of them.
Training strategies and objectives vary for both entry experienced and entry-level employees. In both cases, however, training will include various tips and aspects specific to the job and the mobile food industry in general. Moreover, the level of training will correspond to the individual employee experience in the foodservice industry (Fahlevi, Zuhri, Parashakti, Ekhsan, 2019). Training will begin on the first day of the job, with several issues being addressed, including basic hygiene standards as per the ministry requirements, appearance, and dress code. Other areas of training will include food preparation, learning the Menu, cleaning and safety, service standards, and how to deal with customers. Even though every employee will perform a different task, all employees will be trained in all aspects to enhance flexibility during high demand. According to (Carter et al, 2017), adequately trained staff increases customer satisfaction, thus keeping your food truck running efficiently. For this reason, Delicacies will appropriately train all its staff to enhance service delivery and customer satisfaction.
Delicacies also fully understand the consequences of not training employees in the food industry. According to (Alfiero, Giudice, Bonadonna, 2017), failing to train employees can result in far-reaching consequences. For instance, untrained employees in a food truck business will not know the right temperatures to serve certain foods such as meat, and this might result in customers becoming ill. When such an issue happens, and the health department is notified, it might eventually result in closure, something that Delicacies want to avoid. As such, all employees will be fully trained before they are allowed to work.
References
Alfiero, S., Giudice, A. L., & Bonadonna, A. (2017). Street food and innovation: the food truck phenomenon. British Food Journal.
Carter, M. A., Signal, L., Edwards, R., Hoek, J., & Maher, A. (2013). Food, fizzy, and football: promoting unhealthy food and beverages through sport-a New Zealand case study. BMC public health, 13(1), 126.
Chand, A., Eyles, H., & Mhurchu, C. N. (2012). Availability and accessibility of healthier options and nutrition information at New Zealand fast food restaurants. Appetite, 58(1), 227-233.
Chen, E., Flint, S., Perry, P., Perry, M., & Lau, R. (2015). Implementation of non-regulatory food safety management schemes in New Zealand: A survey of the food and beverage industry. Food control, 47, 569-576.
Esparza, N., Walker, E. T., & Rossman, G. (2014). Trade associations and the legitimation of entrepreneurial movements: Collective action in the emerging gourmet food truck industry. Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 43(2_suppl), 143S-162S.
Fahlevi, M., Zuhri, S., Parashakti, R., & Ekhsan, M. (2019). Leadership Styles Of Food Truck Businesses. Journal of Research in Business, Economics and Management, 13(2), 2437-2442.
Ideris, M. S. K., Zainum, M. N. A., Mustafa, E., Nordin, N., & Zainol, N. A. (2017). The Factors that Influenced Consumer’s Food Choice of Mobile Food Truck. Management (STHEM), Universiti Utara Malaysia Postal Address: STHEM, UUM COLGIS 06010, Sintok Kedah Statement of review, 85.
Mokhtar, R., Othman, Z., & Ariffin, H. F. (2018). Brand Equity and Revisit Intention towards Food Truck Business. International Journal Of Engineering & Technology, 7(2.29), 241.
Mokhtar, R., Othman, Z., Arsat, A., & Bakhtiar, M. F. S. (2017). Brand equity and customer behavioural intention: A case of food truck business. Journal of Tourism, Hospitality & Culinary Arts, 9, 561-570.
Weber, D. (2012). The Food Truck Handbook: Start, grow, and succeed in the mobile food business. John Wiley & Sons.
