I need help with tweaking a way to make some extra money

[DisneyScraps]

i know that this would not appeal to everyone but i was talking to one of my friends that has her own business. She often works late and dinner is always a problem for her. I LOVE to cook and I am a great cook. So what I thought about is a small dinner deliver service.

What I have come up with is offering to a few friends that on 3 days a week I would offer a casserole or a one dish dinner. I will make it in my kitchen and have it ready for them. I can cook it for them to just warm up or deliver it ready to pop in the oven.

i will post the menu a week ahead of time and the can reserve theirs up to the night before. I am only going to make this for 4 right now so the earlier they sign up the better chance they are going to get in.

I use only the best products, fresh herbs, top meats. /the meals will easily feed a family of four.

How this came to my mind was we were talking about on those nights when you work late or the kids have activities it's difficult to make dinner. It happens to me on Monday nights so I make extra meals and freeze them. My friend said she wished she could do that but she never finds the time. Eating out is expensive and it takes time that we don't always have. She said some nights all she wants to do is go home. Pizza gets old and we are both agains fast food so it gets rough.

I was using bagged meals, they felt healthier and my family liked them but they were expensive, the portions were small and I kind of felt guilty for not really cooking. So I started to make my own frozen meals, I portion them for a single serving and freeze them.

That is the history of how I came up with it/

I am going to charge 25.00 per meal and will do things like Shepard's pie, baked spaghetti, roasted chicken potatoes and veggies, gourmet mac and cheese (it's to die for I use 9 different cheeses) etc.

I am keeping it small and it's going to be either people I know or word of mouth.

for busy Moms and professionals or just people that hate to cook. How does it sound?

thanks so much for your input I am a little nervous but with a Disney trip coming up I want to make some extra money.

 

[MinnieForMe]

Hi:
I think you are in the right ballpark for price. A local small restaurant does a meal for a family of 4 for $26.00.

It includes something like:
Chicken parm and ziti, a loaf of fresh bread and a salad.

I know there were other similar choices!

Good luck!

 

[DisneyScraps]

One other big detail is this is a small town and we only have 2 chain restaurants, Applebys and Ruby Tuesdays. We have a few locally owned places and a slew of fast food and sandwich places. So a families eating out options are limited.

 

[crashbb]

Sounds like a good idea, but have you looked into health regulations/laws.? There are strict rules about selling food (e.g. how/where it can be prepared).

 

[MSSANDRA]

It sounds like it would be a good choice for you but there might be health codes etc that would come into play if you charge money or go beyond your own core group of friends.May want to be sure before you invest some money!

 

[I loveStitchnippyjon]

Sounds like a winner!
Whenever i get behind and can't make dinner, Wegman's grocery store has great $6 dinners. That's about what you will be charging, and yours are home-cooked and delivered!

 

[robsmom]

I would love something like this. One idea is that I would think a little bit beyond your casserole one dish idea and offer a variety of meals including sides and fresh vegetables as times. I guess some things like Fish would be harder to heat up but i think variety and nutritional balance is important. this is what is harder to get from take out and where you would differentiate yourself.

 

[gigi1976]

The daycare my daughter used to attend was sort of uppity and there was a lady that would market her similar business at the daycare, she would send out a menu the week before, you would order and pay by Friday and then pick up your meal when you picked up your kids. I onced asked the director about it and she said that she usually brought 2-5 meals a day for people. I never tried it, but I know a lot of other families that would really love it.

 

[timmac]

Apart from the advice about the health codes, I'd advise you to think carefully about the costs of ingredients, amount of time it will take, and expected profit margin for your time. It may turn out to be worth your time, but it also may not.

 

[3mickeymom]

Maybe only 1 or 2 days a week at first. See how it works outand if there is a profit for you. Also, don't forget to add in the price of containers, foil etc.

 

[timmac]

Maybe only 1 or 2 days a week at first. See how it works outand if there is a profit for you. Also, don't forget to add in the price of containers, foil etc.

Since OP mentioned "deliver", transportation costs might be a very real factor also.

Don't get me wrong, while it's very possible this will be a great way to make a few extra bucks, it's also just as possible the actual profit margin per time/effort is razor thin, or even negative.

Also, it was suggested that the price point sounds similar to a local small restaurant, which I think is a telling sign. Keep in mind that even a small restaurant has higher production volume, professional grade equipment, and overall greater efficiency than one is likely to achieve in a home setup.

 

[disneyfreakk]

I would totally buy something like that! Great idea!

 

[Cheshire Figment]

1. Most restaurants the cost of the ingredients is about 30% of the menu price to maintain a reasonable level of profit.

2. Check with your local and state health authorities about the legality of what you are doing.

3. Check with your Homeowner's Insurance Company to see if you would be covered under the liability portion of the policy or would they disavow you because of commercial use?

4. Make sure that you have an umbrella liability policy with at least a million dollars of coverage.

5. I would also suggest going to www.irs.gov and order the following publications which will probably help a lot.

334 - Tax Guide for Small Business (For Individuals Who Use Schedule C or C-EZ)
463 - Travel, Entertainment, Gift, and Car Expenses
535 - Business Expenses
551 - Basis of Assets
552 - Recordkeeping for Individuals
560 - Retirement Plans for Small Business (SEP, SIMPLE and Qualified Plans)
583 - Starting a Business and Keeping Records
587 - Business Use of Your Home
946 - How to Depreciate Property

And also, if the time can be spared and at and minimal cost take a first semester Principles of Accounting course at a local Community College. Not necessarily to keep the books, but to get an understanding of what the business is doing.

Note that most small business fail within the first few years not because the owner did not know his subject but because they did not understand the accounting.

Mike (CPA Retired)

 

[luv2mickey]

I think it's a great idea! You should try it your not investing that much money if you end up not making enough profit you can quit without much loss.

 

[marn913]

Like others mentioned, check in to local regulations. My sister in law wanted to do something with food (selling homemade caramels). She had everything in line and attended the food safety course to get certified and then found out that in Illinois you cannot use your home kitchen to prepare food for sale. You have to use a "dedicated" kitchen - so she'd either have to somehow make another kitchen in her condo or rent space in a commercial kitchen (I guess there are shared kitchens like this where you can rent time each week). It was too cost-prohibitive, so she scrapped the idea.

 

[tlbwriter]

You would also need to see if your auto insurance would cover commercial use of your vehicle.

 

[Alesia]

You have gotten great advice. I hate to rain on the parade, but you really need to think this through. Doing this sort of thing on the side without following health codes and without insurance is risky. If you were to give someone food poisoning (or even if they just suspect you did) You could find yourself in deep financial trouble.

Also, I don't see how you could really make any money selling the meals for $25. You need to figure in not just your food costs, but packaging, transportation, and increased energy costs.

 

[deuceswild10]

I love this idea!

I would agree to include maybe salad and rolls with meals too. If you can shop at Costco or something like that to reduce your costs that would be good. Also, shop on sale, and depending on what you buy a certain week, that can influence your menu options, to increase your profits. You said you live in a small town, so maybe delivery isn't a problem, but, if all your kids go to the same school or something like that and you could meet the parents there to deliver food that would save you gas money as well.

I think you might really be onto something here!

 

[dislal]

I really like this idea! I'm a stay at home mom and I would buy something like this once in a while! I wish you luck!

 

[thebeesknees]

I will echo the advice to check health code regulations. My mom started out making wedding cakes for friends as their wedding gift. In time, people started asking if she would be interested in doing them as a small side business. When she looked into it, she discovered that in her state, she could not use her home kitchen for doing it and would have to either bring it up to restaurant-grade, or rent out a commercial kitchen. She can't even charge for the cost of the ingredients without having that permit. So she just stuck with doing it as gifts for people.