Office Space Expenses

$0

$7,000

Employee & Freelancer Expenses

$151

$352

Website Costs

$223

$7,215

Business Formation Fees

$5,600

$20,400

Equipment & Supply Expenses

$63

$200

Retail Business Expenses

$1,250

$11,650

Inventory Expenses

$350

$14,750

Food Business Expenses

$2,125

$36,000

Software Expenses

$162

$3,094

Advertising & Marketing Costs

$0

$2,950

Total Startup Costs

$9,924

$103,611

Stonewall Kitchen

stonewallkitchen.com

78,882

Gourmet Traveller

gourmettraveller.com.au

129,387

sfa

specialtyfood.com

130,969

The Kraft Heinz Company

kraftheinzcompany.com

157,220

Gourmet Food Store

gourmetfoodstore.com

184,402

Gourmet Egypt

gourmetegypt.com

233,533

The Chefs Warehouse

chefswarehouse.com

254,384

MARKY'S

markys.com

273,572

snoopslimes

snoopslimes.co

276,928

Mackenzie Limited

mackenzieltd.com

346,732

Foody

foody.com.cy

361,855

Flexibility

You can put as much time into the business as you'd like. If you like the work and have some initial experience, you can start small and manage all aspects of the business on your own.

Ability to start your business from home

It's not necessary to have a physical storefront or office space to get your business started. You can do everything from the comfort of your own home, at least in the beginning!

Rewarding work

Starting a specialty food business can be really rewarding work. After all, you are solving an immediate issue for your customer and you're working on something you truly care about.

Scalable

With businesses and processes changing daily, there will always be demand for new features, products and services for your business. Additionally, there are several different business models and pricing tiers you can implement that will allow you to reach all types of customers.

Meaningful business connections

You never know who you will meet as a specialty food business. This could be the start of an incredible business opportunity!

High margins

The gross margins for your specialty food business are typically around 50%, which is considerably high and allows you to grow your business and manage costs easily.

Crowded Space

Competition is high when it comes to your specialty food business, so it's important that you spend a good amount of time analyzing the market and understanding where the demand lies.

Finding The Right Supplier

Most businesses in this space go the supplier/manufacturer route, which isn't a bad thing! However, finding the right supplier can take a lot of time, energy and trial/error. If done properly, this process can save you months (if not years) of time and energy. More on this below in the "finding a supplier" section.

Niche Market

A niche business is not necessarily a bad thing, in fact, it can be the key to your success. However, it can be more challenging and time consuming to find the perfect niche market and target audience.

Time commitment

With starting a specialty food business, all responsibilities and decisions are in your hands. Although this is not necessarily a negative thing, work life can take over at times. This can place a strain on friends and family and add to the pressure of launching a new business.

Strict regulations

With any specialty food business, there are strict rules and regulations as it relates to processing your product. You must follow these regulations specifically, or significant legal issues could occur.

Be prepared to get out of your comfort zone!

Although this is exciting for some entrepreneurs, it can be a big challenge for others! You may find yourself in uncomfortable social and business situations, jumping into tasks and responsibilities you aren't familiar with, and pushing yourself as far as you can go!