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Letter: The food truck debate

I understand there is some concern regarding the perceived advantages that street vendors have over their operations.

Thanks for the opportunity to write to you today and keep up the good work.

I understand there is some concern amongst the brick and mortar restaurant community regarding the perceived advantages that street vendors have over their operations.

The most common statement I hear is that the cost of a food truck is so much less to build and operate. Let me tell you, that cost is relative.

“A newly designed food truck retrofitted MFPV (US building codes) with all new equipment could cost you upward of $100,000.”

http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/220060

“A common question we are asked by our readers relates to food truck start up cost. Due to varied factors that can be used to determine this answer, we typically provide a broad range of $60,000 to $250,000.”

http://mobile-cuisine.com/

Of course, these numbers do not reflect the cost associated with purchase of a building but from my experience, are very much inline with the costs involved in lease hold improvements with regards to creating a restaurant. Cost of lease/rent is a valid difference.

But all businesses have expenses that we recognize as the cost of doing business

The running of a food establishment is not for the weak in the knees and the competition is, and will remain, tough. Restaurant owners must recognize that the minute they open the doors the clock is ticking. If the model isn’t working then prompt changes are necessary. The national failure average is 50 per cent in the first year and 75 per cent after three. Not the 90 per cent that the banks will tell you just as they escort you to the door. This goes double for mobile vendors.

In a side by side comparison the advantages that Yamagoya has over Yama2go are staggering.

No roof or heat or walls with artwork and metal sculptures.  We tend to be more often scrutinized by officials, inspectors and the public. Our business licences are more expensive at $330 compared to the $80 of brick and mortar restaurants. FYI, an average size restaurant at 30 seats open for lunch and dinner, averaging out at 10 hours per day, times 30 seats, comes to 300 dining hours per day. 30 days a month times 12 months is 108,000 hours of available seat dining time. This is a luxury not afforded to catering trucks. Another formula available online shows that average sales per seat with 85.4 per cent food content on the bill equals $9,859/year per seat with a high of $15,000 and low of $5,000. No liquor licence for the increase revenue sales and then it snows. An unfair advantage indeed.

Commerce professionals will tell you that “business breeds business”, and to run business away from a downtown core that just underwent an expensive facelift that was meant to bring the masses seems counterproductive and frankly, a little unfair.

Fernie is punching above its weight but there are dozens of other towns aggressively vying for what we have going on here.

The last Fernie street vendor guidelines were drafted in 1998.

My hope is that cooler heads prevail and a more contemporary solution presents itself.

 

Cam Carr

Yamagoya Sushi

Fernie, B.C.