No Payments Until 2019: The Time To Finance Your Ferla Bike Is NOW!
Have you been wanting to start your own mobile coffee bike, but don’t have the funds saved up yet? Or maybe you’re looking for a promo bike to advertise your boutique, but you just don’t have it in your budget to shell out the money upfront?
Even though we aim to make the most affordable vending bikes on the market, we know that starting your dream business does come with an investment, and sometimes one that you can’t pay for all up front. That’s why we offer financing at Ferla Bikes!
With Quickspark, you can finance your bike with flexible terms ranging anywhere from to 12-60 months, giving you plenty of time to generate income with your new business and foot the bill. You also have the ability to apply using your business’s EIN number (rather than your social security number), and every penny you pay towards financing your bike is 100% tax deductible.
The best part? Quickspark is now helping Ferla Bikers the chance to finance their bike with no payments whatsoever until 2019! That means that you have almost fifty full days to market your new business and set up shop before you pay a penny for your Ferla Bike.
Are you ready to start start your new venture already? The timing is better than ever – with the new year around the corner, and the opportunity to finance your business with no payments until then, starting your dream business should be at the top of your to-do list in 2019!
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Are you ready to finance your dream business? Apply with Quickspark today to find out just how feasible it is to start your own mobile restaurant or boutique!
Ferla Mini: Our Most Versatile & Affordable Vending Bike Is Coming Soon!
Ferla Fam & Fans!
You’ve asked, and now you shall receive – the next generation of Ferla Bikes will be released shortly! We are officially introducing Ferla Mini to our product lineup by the start of 2019. At our special pre-order price of just $1,999, Ferla Mini is now our most affordable vending bike, and just as it sounds, it’s also our first mini coffee bike. However, being as versatile as our other products, Ferla Mini will serve your needs as a coffee cart, hot dog cart, taco cart, or virtually anything else that you can think of.
Ferla Mini has several great features, such as a compact & lightweight frame that makes transportation and riding easy, extendable display tables, and plenty of room to store your product inside of the vending unit. Plus, we include the same shimano gear system that is included on every Ferla Bike, as well as the option to upgrade your bike with pedal assist!
Plus, if you feel like getting creative, Ferla Mini can be converted into a kegerator equipped vending bike – similar to our Ferla Cold Brew, just more affordable!
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So tell us, are you ready to start that mobile business you keep thinking about? If so, request a quote today to learn more about & pre-order Ferla Mini. You can also request to be added to our mailing list, where we’ll keep you updated on the rollout!
Ferla Bikes Is Featured On The ContenderCast! Tune In Here!
Hey Ferla Fam!
Last month, we had the pleasure of being featured on The Contender Podcast with host Justin Honaman. The ContenderCast features entrepreneurs and innovators from all walks of life, and shines a light on their bright ideas. We were fortunate to have Justin bring us on to discuss our Vending Bike concept, and officiate the release of our Ferla Cold Brew Bike!*
Check out our interview with Justin below (click to listen HERE if you are unable to view). Hope you enjoy, and feel free to let us know your thoughts or questions!
*Due to unforeseen circumstances, we have to postpone the official release of our Ferla Cold Brew Bike. We are still continuing to work on our Indiegogo campaign, and we will continue to keep our fanbase in the know! Sign up for our newsletter to be kept in the loop.
At Ferla Bikes, we’re fortunate to work with several different companies every year who reach out to us, seeking a unique way to promote their product while hosting fun experiential marketing events for their most loyal customers.
Most recently, we’ve worked with Lululemon Chicago and Lululemon New York. We helped them by supplying vending bikes for the Ghost Race, an 8km course which runners participate in to earn a badge with benefits. Check out our cool Lululemon Ghost Race bike below!
Our Ferla Vendor helped Lululemon with promoting their brand and hosting a great race. This brand ambassador handed out hats and other accessories as a celebratory gift to those who finished the course.
The race starts and ends here. Runners were rewarded with several other popup stop-and-shops along the way, full of promotional gear and water to help cool down.
All in all, the event was fun, successful, and made everyone who participated feel like a valued member of the Lululemon community. That is what successful experiential marketing is all about!
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Looking for a vending bike for your own promotional needs? Check out our Ferla Vendor or Ferla Promo bike, and don’t forget to request a quote!
Utilizing modern resources and tapping into local trends, taking a business concept from conception to fruition is as realistic as ever. To help demonstrate this point, we’re going to look at how anyone — from baristas, to entrepreneurial novices — can start a cold brew coffee business from the ground up.
Taking advantage of the vast heaps of education available on the internet, you or anyone could begin by educating themselves on the product itself — cold brew. Once familiar with how it’s produced and what it is, you can then seek out insights into what makes it so popular.
Following the education portion of the journey, you’ll be ready to make your own cold brew coffee, strategize how to sell it, and then actualize a business. For a small reasonable investment, you can be up and running in no time, and this post will demonstrate how. To begin with, however, let’s look at the product.
What Is Cold Brew Coffee?
One of our favorite definitions of this super popular, iced caffeine comes from Chameleon Cold Brew. It reads,
“Cold brew refers to the process of preparing the coffee, not the temperature of the final product. Beans are ground, then soaked in room-temperature water for an extended period of time, usually 12 hours or more.”
This is obviously different than the common brewing method of coffee, which consists of pouring hot water over ground beans. Iced coffee, cold brew’s predecessor as the trendy summertime twist on coffee, is regular-brewed hot coffee then cooled and served over ice. The cold brew process makes for a bolder and stronger beverage, and it’s been a hit at cafes around the world for years and years.
Why Is Cold Brew So Popular?
There’s a fantastic piece that was published a few years ago in the New York Times, when the cold brew craze was just a few seasons old.
In the piece, the writer sums up the drink’s steep rise by explaining,
“Cold brew was still a relatively niche market until 2015, when Starbucks introduced the drink in a number of stores; it is now (2017) available at every one of its more than 13,000 locations in the United States, 800 of which also offer nitro. It’s a coffee with both mass-market appeal and indie credibility. Today, you can find cold brew at a coffee shop where everything is meticulously crafted by hand, and at Dunkin’ Donuts. You can find draught, canned, and bottled cold brew coffee today as well.”
Making Your Own Cold Brew Coffee
Anyone looking to start a cold brew business will want to familiarize themselves with the process of making it first. We recommend beginning with an approach similar to that depicted in this July, 2020 NPR piece, An Easy Cold Brew Recipe You Can Make At Home, as it’s self-described as a “baseline guide.”
Cold Brew Coffee Set By Kilner, $34.
The methodology described there, and one that can be adjusted and manipulated to create infinite cold brew recipes consists of the following:
Step One: Grind up a single cup of coffee, and put it in a pitcher or container.
Step Two: Add (X) cups of coffee, stir, cover, and leave it at room temperature, or in the refrigerator for six hours.
The NPR writer recommended 4 cups of water to one cup of coffee, and describes it as a stronger brew. Less water for even stronger, and more water for milder. It’s up to every business owner to determine details like the strength of their cold brew.
Step Three: Filter the beans out two or three times, and then run the liquid through a paper filter.
Step Four: Refrigerate, or pour over ice, and drink up!
After some trial and error with this general approach, aspiring baristas and mobile cold brew entrepreneurs can begin experimenting with different water-coffee ratios. They can begin searching for the perfect bean to grind for their business, and exploring variations with their own concepts. For anyone ever lacking inspiration, there are endless general and specialty cold brew recipes online to try out, and riff off.
How To Start Your Own Cold Brew Coffee Business
When you have a cold brew product that you believe in, it’s time to start planning how to start your own cold brew coffee business. To break it down with a little more detail, we broke down these five easy steps to help ambitious entrepreneurs get their iced-java ventures off the ground.
Build A Business Plan
Like starting any business, when starting, you need to look at universal metrics such as your startup money, startup costs, operating costs, and projected revenue. If you can find a realistic way to set yourself up for profits, then you’re good to roll.
In calculating costs, consider what you can afford in terms of the beans you want to source, how large the business will be, and what your distribution methods will be. Is this cold brew business meant to be in an expensive cold brew coffee shop — i.e. brick and mortar? Or, perhaps it could be a mobile concept — such as those executed with Ferla Coffee Bikes.
Create A Marketing Plan & Launch Strategy
Regardless of your startup capital and how you see your own coffee brand being launched, your marketing plan and launch strategy should maximize resources to generate attention.
Every business needs to establish accessible and attractive content on their website and social media platforms. It’s also important to consider mobile promotions and marketing opportunities.
Startups who utilize grassroots tools like a cold brew coffee bike can have it customized to work as a traveling advertisement. In many cases, this moving promotion also serves as a functioning cafe with far less overhead than a storefront.
Put Your Plans Into Action
When the numbers are calculated, and the strategies are in place, then the long and arduous process of actualizing it all begins. Building websites, social media followings, shopping for venues and mobile cafe options, hiring people, and procuring the cups, payment systems, and various other materials needed takes time.
Selling Your Own Cold Brew Coffee, & Building A Brand
Starting up any business takes time and patience. Selling cold brew coffee, and really anything, takes daily commitments online and in the physical world. For those who opted to go with the mobile-cafe route to upstart their cold brew dreams, we recommend riding as much as possible.
Ferla Coffee Bikes & Carts, for example, are fully customizable with full-wrap color and logo painting, and signage services. So, theoretically, the more an upstart rides their branded coffee bike around their town, the more eyes will see it, and the more people will eventually try the coffee.
How Much You Can Earn Selling Cold Brew Coffee
According to this piece from Coffee Detective, an average pound of quality beans will run you around $13. According to LEAFtv, a cup of coffee beans should equal about 3 ounces. That means twelve cups per bag, the only extra costs being water and filters. Selling cold brews at a competitive $4 per cup, means one could earn upwards of $48 per bag, a $45 profit minus filter and water costs.
That profit can also dwindle with common cafe and cold brew costs such as rent, electricity, and insurance. Those that are dependent on a mobile option like a Ferla Coffee Bike or Cart can get out of the woods fast.
Startup venue costs max out at around $7,000 with bikes and carts available as low as a few thousand dollars. These expenses end there, with no ongoing rents, insurances, and fees. For higher mobility, they can opt for electric pedal assist options with green rear hub motors, offering an emissions-free mode of transport without gas costs.
Whether on a bike, with a cart, or in a store — once the startup costs are covered, the profits can be plentiful.
Looking to start your own business selling cold brew coffee? Both upstarts looking for mobile vending units, and established brands with brick-and-mortar locations can benefit immensely from the mobile sales and promotions benefits of a Ferla Coffee Bike or Cart.
Reach out to us today to discuss what you’re looking for, and a quote on a cold brew coffee cart.
How To Start a Coffee Cart: A Guide To Starting Your Own Business On Wheels
So you’re thinking of starting your own mobile coffee shop, hmm? Great idea – after all, the profits are great, startup costs are low, and with an ever-growing market, the possibilities for growth are endless!
We’ve created a comprehensive guide to starting your own coffee cart business. While each and every coffee varies, every aspect to consider before going into the mobile coffee business is listed – be sure to give each checkpoint some thought before proceeding forward.
First, check out some of the pros and cons of running your own coffee cart below:
The Advantages and Disadvantages of Running a Coffee Cart Business
A Coffee Cart is a great way to break into the coffee industry – with minimal startup costs, it’s a great alternative to starting your shop at a brick and mortar location.
Coffee is also a great product to sell. Over 60% of americans drink at least one cup of coffee per day, and with so many people on the run, being a mobile cafe gives you the opportunity to cater to those who may be running from meeting to meeting or heading to the office. Coffee also has extremely good margins, so your venture will prove to be very profitable.
– Coffee is a growing trend: The number of coffee drinkers continues to rise year after year, and with true connoisseurs acquiring tastes for specialties such as nitro cold brew and even “bulletproof” coffee, the gaps to fill in the market have never been bigger.
– Great Profit Margins: Gross profit margins for coffee can be as high as 90% – meaning that there is plenty of opportunity to make a buck (or several, which you will!).
– A year round product: Coffee can be served hot or cold, and even in its warm form, it still sells decently on a hot summer day. No matter the time of year, everybody can benefit from a good caffeine kick.
– Flexibility: You have the option to run your coffee cart as a side project, or you can go all in and make it into a career. You can choose to only serve at events and festivals, or you can take to the streets and serve along the busiest avenue of your city. The options are endless, and the choice is yours.
Disadvantages of a Coffee Cart
– Competition: While there are more people drinking coffee than ever, coffee is still considered a commodity. To stand out, you will need to differentiate yourself. Specializing in a specialty or niche of the coffee market is not enough; you must offer a superior product, charge a lower price, or offer the best service and experience, if not all three, to make your business a true contender. Have a solid plan and vision to achieve this.
– Skill: What will make your customers choose you over making their own coffee at home? Well one reason is skill – a truly good barista will know their product and execute once it comes to making a coffee. Practice your skills, as this factor alone could make or break you in the coffee industry.
– Brand loyalty: Many coffee drinkers already have a preferred outlet that they buy their morning brew from. What will you do to convert them and earn their loyalty?
While there are a few challenges, the time to start a coffee venture has never been more perfect than now. With proper research and execution, you now have a great opportunity to break into the market and turn over a profit.
1. Research Your Local Laws and Regulations; Secure a Permit
The laws and regulations from city to city, county to county, and state to state can vary widely in very miniscule ways. The best way to guarantee that you operate within the law is to contact your local Health Department.
You’ll want to consult and obtain information on the following:
Your city’s street vending regulations
Requirements on how to prepare and store the type of product you plan to sell
Commissary requirements
Required size and equipment for your vending cart
The carts’ clean water and grey water capacities, if applicable
Hygiene requirements
Inspection of your equipment prior to approval.
Once you’ve done your research and consulted with your local Health Department on legal requirements, it’s time to search for a vending cart that will meet your needs. Make sure you take into consideration every aspect that the Health Department mentions; otherwise, you may end up with an expensive piece of equipment that is not legal for vending. Ferla Bikes provides specs for any bike you are interested in, so that you can consult with your Health Department prior to investing in the cart.
A note on commissary requirements: Some local municipalities will require that street vendors prepare their goods prior to going out and selling it on their food trucks, however, this is not as commonly seen when selling coffee. Make sure to ask your Health Department if this will be a requirement for your type of business.
2. Research Your Market
While the majority of your business plan may end up needing correction after experimentation, it’s still a great idea to go in having an idea of how to operate. Consider the following:
Target Market:
Your target market is who you are planning to advertise, cater, and sell your product to. If you don’t quite have an idea of who they might be, picture your ideal customer and ask the following questions about them:
Where are they located? Where do they hang out?
What do they like? What are their beliefs, passions, and hobbies?
What will you offer them, that your competitor is currently not?
Location:
Having a mobile coffee cart means that you can test out several locations at any time, but it is still a good idea to have a set location to start at. Check out locations that show great returns below, and consider your target market when choosing:
Business parks
Corporate campuses
University campuses
Touristic locations
Stadiums and sport centers
Farmers markets
Outdoor events
Outdoor concerts
Parking lots
When choosing a location, also remember to keep the proximity to the storage location in mind. If you choose to use a vending bike, rather than a cart, then you may be able to travel to further locations, especially if using an electric pedal-assisted vending bike.
Competition:
In any business, it’s important to consider things from your competitions point of view. This will be important when writing your business plan.
What’s your competition doing right?
What are they doing wrong? How could they improve on that?
Where are their customers coming from? (think location wise, but also think about which of their marketing efforts their customers find them through).
What do their customers buy the most?
Customers may choose you if you offer a less expensive but superior in quality product, however, they will also consider the experience of buying from you, as well as what your brand stands for. Consider all of this when analyzing your competitors.
Menu and Pricing:
Your menu is an essential part of your business. What you list on your menu will determine everything from what type of equipment you will need to invest in, to how you’ll fare against your competitors.
Write everything that you plan to serve down, and then remember to list out the ingredients that will be used in each drink. Consider the following:
What will your signature drink be?
What will your signature snack or food offering be?
Will you offer any seasonal specialty drinks or snacks?
Why will your customers choose you over a more established brand?
What menu options will you offer (almond milk instead of regular milk, etc.) that will help each of your customers feel specially catered to?
Suppliers:
Once you’ve created your menu, it is the perfect time to source out suppliers for the ingredients you plan to you. Shop wholesale, and buy product in bulk. If possible, see if you can try a sample before making a deal with any supplier.
You will also need to source out materials such as cups, lids, straws, etc.
When sourcing out any supplies, keep your costs low while making sure the product meets your standards for branding, quality, and taste.
3. Write Your Business Plan
Writing a business plan may be a boring part of starting your coffee cart, but it is essential to make sure you have a somewhat thorough idea of your expenses at any point during the venture. Consider the following:
Planning a marketing campaign prior to launching your coffee cart will ensure that you have customers from day one. A few ideas for a pre-launch campaign:
Advertise on social media; give out a coupon to track the campaign’s success
Contact your local newspaper or TV station to issue a press release
Partner with other local businesses to utilyze word-of-mouth marketing
Make your grand opening go viral through an irresistible offer – for example, offer a free espresso shot to the first 100 customers in line, etc.
Once you opened, make sure to continue to market your business, especially online. Stay active on social media (instagram and facebook are two of the best for coffee shops), sign up on yelp, and make sure you have a website where customers can view your full menu!
5. Define Your Vision, And Create Steps to Achieve It!
Write your vision in a single statement. Do you want to stay independent and eventually get into catering at local events? Hoping to expand into a national chain someday (hello, Starbucks!)? Make your objectives clear, and then break them down into smaller goals that you can work to meet daily. Slowly but surely, your ultimate business dreams will begin to manifest.
Ferla Bikes Love: User Reviews that Win Hearts
“We purchased 4 MINI carts from Ferla. Their commercial sales emailed us an estimate while we had them on a Zoom call discussing a client’s project. They are small team but they bent backwards for us to meet a tight schedule and vinyl wrap all the carts on time. Thank you.”
— Hyeon K. ★★★★★
“Purchased My first Coffee Bike and I cannot say how happy I’m. I purchased directly from the owner Feras. He inspired me to open my own Mobile Business. Uhhuu I’m not working for Anyone! I have my own small Business. I love it. About Electrical Coffee Bike: Superior Quality. It’s actually made from real wood which makes this Bike Standout! Today, I made my first Buck. I love it!!! Thank you guys a lot! Looking forward to purchase my second Coffee Bike In Los Angeles.”
All in all, running a coffee cart business will come with its own set of challenges, but it will also present you with the opportunity to be your own boss and create your own empire, however big or small you want that empire to be. Keep your vision clear and remember why you started along this path in the first place.
Looking to learn more about what it takes to succeed in the mobile coffee industry? Reach out to us today to learn more about the business and how easy it really it to start your own mini coffee empire. Your future venture awaits!
Ferla Bikes Will Be Stocked Again in Just SEVEN Days!
Ferla Fam! Just as soon as we’ve sold out, we’re now restocking our fleet of vending bikes, including Ferla 2, Ferla Ice Cream, and now our Ferla Grande as well.
Plus, we will officially be releasing our Ferla Cold Brew with our restock! Ferla Cold Brew will officially be available for sale in November through our IndieGoGo campaign- feel free to subscribe to our mailing list for updates!
Ferla 2 is our flagship coffee bike – equipped with a food grade sink, several storage units, and optional pedal assist feature. This vending cart is perfectly fit for you to serve coffee, pastries, tacos, hotdogs, and more. Request a quote for your Ferla 2 Food Bike today!
Our Ferla Ice Cream Bike is equipped with a commercial grade freezer/redridgerator – switch from one to the other with the simple turn of a knob. Ferla Ice Cream is perfectly suited for those selling cold goods, whether ice cream, gelato, sandwiches, fruit, or more. Our cooler-equipped vending bike is almost available – request a quote today!
The Ferla Grande is our most versatile bike, suited for those planning to sell coffee, hot dogs, burgers, cotton candy, or even those who plan to sell and display clothing, jewelry, books, or art, just to name a few. Reach out for a quote on Ferla Grande – a limited amount of Ferla Grande vending bikes will be available for this round of restocking!
Ferla Cold Brew is the world’s first kegerator-equipped vending bike – a perfect solution for those looking to sell cold brew coffee, lemonade, kombucha, beer, soft drinks, and much more! Our Cold Brew is not officially available yet, but reach out to us and our sales team will be happy to assist you!
The first most common option is a food truck. Food trucks offer all of the classic benefits you’d expect – a full kitchen set up, an expansive menu, and the possibility to travel and take your restaurant several hundred miles beyond home base, if you feel like. Plus, with food trucks being a big trend at the moment, there is a whole subculture of diners who attend special food festivals that allow food trucks to vend. This may make you think food trucks are the best way to garner a following, and that statement is probably true. However, the upfront costs of a food truck run high – you can find a used one for around $40,000-50,000 on Craigslist, but to purchase a brand new and fully customized truck, you should expect to shell out more than $100,000. This is simply not a realistic price for many who have dreams of opening a mobile restaurant, but on a limited budget.
If you do decide to proceed with a used food truck in order to save money, you also have to account for the vehicle’s history – it is a vehicle, with a motor, after all. Plus, you’ll have to inspect the kitchen equipment to make sure everything runs properly, otherwise you seem the trucks purpose useless. The best solution is to have a mechanic come out to visit and inspect the truck with you, but keep in mind that mechanics charge per visit – so the costs can add up if each used food truck you prospect to buy has problems under the hood.
One last thing to consider is that you may have to acquire a commercial license. If your food truck weighs over 26,000 pounds, then you may have to acquire a commercial license to legally operate the vehicle. This equates to more time and money that you may not want to spend up front.
Food Cart
A food cart is a great option to consider if you would prefer to lower your restaurants start-up costs. Food carts can range from $2,000 to $10,000, depending on the features and specialties of the cart. You also have the opportunity to sell in other spaces, whereas a food truck is usually limited to selling curbside. You can set up shop in a multitude of arenas, such as a park, stadium, or even inside buildings such as malls or hotel lobbies (provided you have the proper licensing). Lastly, a huge benefit that many don’t consider is that you easily run a food cart with a single employee – yourself. With a food truck, a larger kitchen means more operating space, and therefore more staff needed to complete orders. Employees can be a large expense for businesses, and as a start-up, your goal is to minimize unnecessary expenses. On the other hand, a food cart is small enough that you can interact with the customer, handle the payment, cook the food, and serve the customer all by yourself while still being the CEO and head chef of your own restaurant!
Yet, a food cart still comes with its challenges. A smaller kitchen means that your capabilities of whipping up different recipes are now limited. You may have to limit your menu to a couple of different specialties – for example, a plain hotdog, chili cheese dog, and possibly a “nacho dog” or something of the sort.
The lack of transportation options means you will also have to consider a smaller radius of operation. You can wheel your cart from its own storage space every day, but many carts are heavy, so you shouldn’t plan on walking more than a mile or so. You can always transport your cart in a trailer, but keep in mind that that would be another expense to consider.
Food Bike
Lastly, there is the option of a food bike, more commonly known as a vending bike or cargo bike. However, food bikes, unlike a traditional vending bike, are equipped with the proper tools to help you sell your eatables. Food bikes can be equipped with freezers, refrigerators, and sinks, similar to certain food carts, which gives you a proper mini-kitchen setup. The difference between a food cart and food bike, however, is the fact that the vending unit is attached to a proper mode of transportation – the bike!
A food bike still lacks certain qualities, such as a full kitchen set up, which means that your menu will have to be on the smaller side. However, a food bike is still as close to the best of both worlds as you can get – offering a lower price and more flexible set up than a food truck, while still being more mobile and innovative than a food cart.
With a food bike, you have the possibility of vending in parks and baseball stadiums, but you also have the possibility of traveling further distances, with many bikes including pedal assist features to make riding an ease. Bikes are also a great way to engage customers. The concept is eye catching, and riding quickly from one set of customers to the next makes them feel as though they’re being served in the most exciting way possible.
Last but not least, of course, is the affordability of vending bikes. Ferla Bikes sells vending bikes that start as low as $1,999. With costs in the same range as food carts, why not consider a food bike for your start-up restaurant?
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Intrigued by the idea of a food vending bike? Reach out to Ferla Bikes for a quote on some of the most innovative commercial vending bikes on the market. We look forward to discussing your business’s plans!
3 Reasons Why to Invest in a Food Truck or Other Mobile Vending Solution as a New Restaurant
Mobile vending solution versus brick and mortar retail location – it’s a question that many entrepreneurs ask before writing a business plan for their restaurant. While you may want to jump head first onto that cheap lease opportunity at the local strip mall, it helps to know that many successful restaurants started out as food trucks and mobile kitchens before moving to their retail locations. Read on to learn why you should consider a food truck or other mobile vending solution as a new restaurant:
1.) Initial Investment
The investment that starting a new brick and mortar restaurant takes is not small. Start-up costs can reach upwards of $500,000, and with first year success rates oftentimes less than 33%, banks are not always willing to lend you the money needed to start. This can put your dream business out of reach, and you may feel discouraged knowing that you’ll have to shell out so much money up front.
Food trucks, on the other hand, cost much less. You can find one used for as little as $50,000 on Craigslist. However, this is still a high number for some business owners, who may still be paying off student loans or have other expenses such as children and a home. Not to worry, there are several other mobile vending solutions that could work for you! Ferla Bikes offers a full fleet of vending bikes specialized for selling hot dogs, burgers, tacos, coffee, ice cream, and much more. A vending bike is a much more affordable solution than a food truck, while still offering more mobility than a push cart. Plus, Ferla Bikes offers both consumer and business financing options, to make the investment that much less daunting!
2.) Testing Your Location
Imagine having a full business plan for your restaurant, knowing you have a market for your recipes, only to discover that you’ve picked a bad location and are now bound in a contract for a two year lease. Unfortunately, this is the reality for so many restaurants, and why so many of them will, sadly, fail within the first year.
With a mobile vending solution such as a food truck, you are offered the flexibility to choose your location by the day, hour, or even within minutes. Stop by the local community college in the morning to serve coffee and pastries, then head down to the beach to scoop some ice cream for the tourists. You can even try out catering, serving at weddings, festivals, or corporate campuses! Once you’ve tested enough locations, you’ll notice a pattern on which locations produce the most revenue. You can decide to open a brick and mortar location here once ready, or continue to run your mobile business and follow a weekly schedule, changing your location each day of the week.
3.) Building Your Following
Did you know that over half of all diners in the US would only spend between 16-30 minutes to drive to a restaurant? This means that only truly dedicated foodies may be willing to make a trip to your newly opened establishment a few towns over. So why not bring the location to them?
As we’ve discussed, mobile vending is a great alternative to a brick and mortar location. But why is that? A huge reason is to grow your following! Unless you’re receiving some ahh-mazing press, most people probably aren’t willing to travel to your new restaurant. However, after they sample your food, they may just become a loyal customer.
Ferla Bikes offers awesome solutions for mobile vending, that are easy to transport from one location to the next. Your mobile kitchen will be sure to catch plenty of attention, as the sight of a bike and smells of your delicious recipes entice customers to try your newly opened restaurant out!
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Looking to start your mobile restaurant today?Reach out to us for a quote on a vending bike – your future restaurant awaits you!
Ferla Bikes Update: We Will Not Be Raising Our E-bike Prices Due To Tariff Increases In 2018!
Ferla Fam! We bring you an important update!
As you may have heard, pricing on e-bikes in the United States is expected to dramatically increase, due to an increase on tariffs for electric bicycles being imported to USA.
So you may be thinking: Oh man! Now the Ferla 2 is going to go up in price???
While many companies that sell ebikes are expecting to raise prices by up to 25% immediately, we’re still honoring the pedal assist feature on our commercial vending bikes for only $700 on top of the bike!! This is the price we have always honored, and we are happy to honor it going forward, as our ebike option has been helpful to so many past and present customers.
While we will still be honoring this price throughout the rest of 2018, we are not sure what pricing will look like after the new year. Therefore, it is now a great time to look into your own vending ebike today, as we may currently be offering the best price possible!
