Just ordered my Italian Ice Pushcart!

[neonlady]

Tony,
I hope you can juggle! ;-)

The things that take time to cultivate are :
•the permits (up to 2 months, more likely a couple of months to investigate what you need, then once secure, order cart, then when the cart comes, get inspected)
• The cart (up to 2 months, has to be done after you know your local- county , and state requirements)
• Events (ongoing. Most large events work with a 6 months lead time, so it will most likely be too late to get into anything large this summer.
• Product ( sampling will take a couple of weeks to determine which products you want to sample, get shipped in, have a tasting with at least 4 other people to get a wider group for feedback)
• Find a commissary (if required by your health dept.)

You can start to look for local events such as street fairs, but realize you probably won't want to even consider anything that is sooner than a couple of months, realistically. In the mean time, decide on how you want to operate, business entity, business name, logo, start to work on business cards, and fliers. If you have creative friends, enlist their services. Barter when you can to help keep expenses down.

Make sure you have plans for product storage for your backup. Your local jurisdiction (health dept.) will care where you are storing the product. Some areas require you be licensed in a commissary, in order to wash your utensils, etc. will allow for storage on your site. Some commissaries will have walk in freezers, or space to store, but you will have to be concerned about product security.

Business entities should be decided on through a discussion with your accountant. Keep it simple.
To find events, there are sites online that you can register with that can help with that . Though they tend to have larger event listings. Check with your chamber, local newspaper, for their local events listings. Network, Network, Network. You will need to wear many hats, or enlist the help of someone that is good at that and can take charge. Networking and getting events can be a full time job in itself at certain times of the year.

Well, that should be enough to chew on for now. Hope that helps!
Pat
Mitas Italian Ice . com

[silz86]

Thanks so much for the info Pat,

Any suggestions or tips on what I should be looking for when I go to the health department? Or do theyhave forms for me to fill out and I can go from there? I actually thought about some questioons to ask also;

What is the lowest and highest you paid to be at an event?
Typically what is the average when renting a section/booth?
Usuallly what should I be looking at realisticly for sales & what is a good formula to break down cost to break even?
ie: customers per minute, how many oz, price etc ( an example would be great )
What should I stock up on? What do you always run out of that you wish you had more of?
What website did you go to to find these events?

I apologize for the questions but I am so thankful for your help..

Also, I checked out your website and noticed you also sell ice, how do I go about on retrieving a small sample from you? I will be going to my local health department this monday to find out what I need to do, thanks Pat


Tony

[neonlady]

See my replies below in this font.

Thanks so much for the info Pat,

Any suggestions or tips on what I should be looking for when I go to the health department? Or do theyhave forms for me to fill out and I can go from there? I actually thought about some questions to ask also;

What is the lowest and highest you paid to be at an event? We've paid $0, when they've just wanted us there to have a food option, up to to $2200 and mostly, everything in-between. It is pretty typical though for an event to charge $50 -$200 per day, depending on several factors. How many people attend, how many vendors to people ratio they have, location, etc. Many events, especially the established and larger ones can charge an upfront fee plus/or a percentage of sales.

Typically what is the average when renting a section/booth?Hard to say, but a regular street fair could be $50 - $100, a true "festival" could be $$100-200/day.

Usually what should I be looking at realistically for sales & what is a good formula to break down cost to break even?This is very hard to answer, as every event and evry location will be different. Time of year and day of month will impact sales, and of course, the local economic conditions. Not trying to side -step this, but What is average in my area, may be way off for yours.You'll need to start taking notes, drop the events that weren't worth your time and replace them with other opportunities. Cost to break even is a math thing.All expenses (even down to the spoons, napkins) divided into sales gives you a net income. From there, figure your percentage towards taxes, insurance, maintenance, gas , etc. and you will get a true picture of profit.

ie: customers per minute, how many oz, price etc ( an example would be great ) It is possible to scoop 60 servings per hour, especially if you have help taking money. BUT, you will never be in this position for an entire event. Don't let sales people tell you otherwise. There are too many people telling tales of how you can "Rake in the dough" with this" You will find out, it is hard work, many events or hours of no customers, events that you will not make money. Pricing is subjective to your area. In our area, Standard flavor based servings run $3-$4. Sorbet style (actual fruit based ice, sorbet, really) can get more. I see servings typically scooped in 2 -3oz scoops, with a couple of scoops per serving.
What should I stock up on? What do you always run out of that you wish you had more of? Well in our area, lemon, mango, red raspberry, pina colada are good sellers for us. But we sell a gourmet (fruit based) ice. But our other flavors truely are not far behind.
What website did you go to to find these events? Do a search, off the top, Festivalnet is one I can think of.

I apologize for the questions but I am so thankful for your help..

Also, I checked out your website and noticed you also sell ice, how do I go about on retrieving a small sample from you? We send at least 6 flavors so you can get a good idea of our products. They come in pint containers. The ice is free, just the cost of shipping. We can chat privately about this if you want to proceed.
I will be going to my local health department this monday to find out what I need to do, thanks PatYou can probably get alot of info on the counties website. Do a search like: x county health department mobile cart, or, x county health department.

Tony

You are welcome. Please understand, these are my experiences, and may not be typical in other parts of the country.

[workatwill]

Iceman39... months ago I read where you were coming to Tampabay Area to set up shop. Did it materialize and where are you getting your ice? Good luck and hope all is going well.

[jayitalianice]

Hello eveyone I have just started selling Italian ice in Florida. What can you guys tell me about the health inspection and dipping from a freezer? What are the requirments when they inspect you. How much are you paying for liability insurance in fl? Thanks Jay

[tdavis725]

Hi Ice Queen,

I am very interested in knowing what websites you cam across to find events. I too just purchased my push cart and will be starting in 2011. Thank You

[icequeen]

Good luck to you, tdavis - remember google is your friend! I started there and just plugged in festivals and my location. A few sites that list things are eventlister, festivalnet, eventful, and festivals.com - some of these you have to pay for. Also check in with your local chamber of commerce - they often have a list. One big thing I've found is to make sure you have business cards displayed on your cart - you will pick up some events through that. It's a lot of fun - let us know how everything goes!

[tdavis725]

Thank you so much for this information, IceQueen. Do you also have a website or two for ordering supplys such as cups, spoons, soverner cups...(I know I didn't spell it correctly)...etc...lol. Also how do you provide water for cleaning at your events if you don't have a sink attachment? Is this a requirement for the health inspectors?

[icequeen]

There are many, many places to order supplies from out there - I usually shop around for the best deals as I need them - also you can look at the local Sam's/Costco, etc. I'm not sure about the sink situation - talk with your health inspector or go to events and see what others are doing. I have the sink on my cart because I knew ahead of time my state required a hand washing unit and it wasn't that much more to add it.