Specialty food supplier with a delivery route

Independent cafes, restaurants, caterers, food trucks, bakeries and event venues in your area.

You sell at a markup over your buying price, usually with minimum orders and delivery days. Repeat weekly orders from a group of regular accounts are what make it work.

• Sales and relationship building
• Route planning and organizing orders
• Knowing food handling and storage basics
• Reliable driving and timekeeping

• State and local food wholesaler or distributor licensing, which varies a lot, so check with your state agriculture or health department
• Whether you need to register with the FDA as a food facility if you store food, and how it applies to your setup
• Cold chain and food safety: refrigerated or insulated transport for perishables, and product liability exposure
• Commercial auto and general liability insurance, plus product liability coverage
• Thin margins and slow-paying customers, so set clear payment terms and check credit before offering them

Startup costs are typically around $8,000 to $35,000, depending on your vehicle, refrigeration, initial stock and niche. These are estimates, so cost out your own route before you buy stock.

Monthly revenue is typically around $5,000 to $25,000, depending on your niche, number of regular customers and route size. Margins can be thin and some customers pay slowly, so set clear payment terms.

Check state and local food wholesaler or distributor licensing with your state agriculture or health department. Also check whether you need FDA food facility registration, what refrigerated transport you need, and commercial auto, general liability and product liability insurance.