He even has a caulking gun loaded with cream cheese. Try unusual toppings like avocado and sour cream, cilantro and tomato, crumbled bacon and chopped dates (try it – it’s good!).īiker Jim’s Hot Dogs in Denver is becoming famous for his specialty sausages like Alaskan Reindeer Sausage, Elk Jalapeno Cheddar Brats, Southwest Buffalo, and Wild Boar Sausage. Jump on this trend by offering gourmet hot dogs. The hottest trend in the country right now is “street food”, which usually refers to non traditional or gourmet offerings served from street carts. One of your fellow readers Esteban Guzman (Stevie’s Red Hot Weenies) is killing it in Texas with his Chicago Style Dogs.ģ. If all you offer is a green dried out no name dog with ketchup or mustard, you’ll get killed by the gas stations.ĭo the regional dogs. Don’t try to compete with QT, Seven Eleven, and every other one-dollar-nasty-hot-dog-on-a-slimy-roller-grill-thingy operation out there. Watch those expiration dates – your customers do.Ģ. Use top quality ingredients, super fresh condiments, ice cold drinks, and name brand chips. Here are six better ways to deliver value:ġ. You don’t have enough volume to make up the difference.ĭon’t join in the race to bankruptcy just because you’re a little nervous at the moment. See the leverage you get by charging a premium price? It’s exponential. When you charge the base price, 30 percent of that price is eaten up by your costs. When you charge that extra fifty cents, your costs have already been covered in your base price so you keep 100 percent of that extra fifty cents. You would need to sell 23.6 percent more. If you don’t charge that extra fifty cents, you would need to sell 16.5 percent more hot dogs (about nine) every day to make the same money, right? A 16.5 percent raise which you didn’t have to work any harder to get. If you sell 55 dogs a day, you’ll pocket an extra $5,321.25 per year (based on a 9 month selling season). If you charge an extra fifty cents for your dogs here’s what happens: Let’s say you have been selling your dogs for $2.50. Man up (you too ladies) and plan to charge a price that will return a decent profit. In reality this terrible strategy is based purely on your fear of failure. You think it’s a competitive advantage, something you have control over. The temptation to lower your prices is very strong during this period because it makes you feel more confident.
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It’s normal to be nervous during the start up phase, but it leaves you susceptible to self doubt. As a matter of fact it’s the very worst way. Price isn’t the only way to deliver value in your hot dog cart business. Do You Have The Courage to Make More Money With Your Hot Dog Cart?