Well, if you are someone who is not from the food industry then I will say you have landed on the right page.
No matter whether you are a food expert or entrepreneur, after reading this I can assure you that you would be aware of the things that are all required to start a cloud kitchen.
Here it goes… complete blueprint on how to start a cloud kitchen!
What is a cloud kitchen?
It is basically a kitchen that is an online-based food delivery kitchen. Cloud kitchen has many different names such as ghost kitchen, back kitchen, dark kitchen and delivery-only restaurant. Unlike restaurants, cloud kitchens don’t require a place for dine-in, waiters or parking. They attract customers through online marketing and food aggregators such as Zomato and Swiggy. Cloud kitchen may also have their own delivery boys hired, to avoid the dependency on food aggregators and help their brand grow.
What are the essentials to start a cloud kitchen?
- Location
The first and foremost essential is location. You first need to decide on a suitable location near to your targeted customers to achieve more sales. To start with 180 sqft to 250 sqft is good enough to start cloud kitchen. Cloud kitchen can be built even on the backside of your apartment or a bit inside from the central market. It doesn’t affect your sales as people recognize you through online portals and not by your exterior looks. - License
Before setting up your cloud kitchen, some legalities have to be followed. These licenses provide the authenticity and certificate to operate your cloud kitchen legally.
a. Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI): This is a mandatory license for all the food businesses in India. It ensures the security of food that is being delivered by you to the customers is of good quality. It has a tenure of 1 to 5 years and can be renewed once expired. If you register it yourself, then the registration fee is Rs.100/-
b. Goods and Service Tax (GST): This has also become a mandatory license for all businesses and is advisable to issue on behalf of the company’s name. It can be issued by filling up the necessary details present on http://www.gst.gov.in. The registration is completely free.
c. Trade License: It helps in ensuring that no unethical business practices are being carried out and all the guidelines are being followed by the kitchen. The license can be applied by visiting the respective state’s municipal corporation website. It has a tenure of 1 year. The registration fee is Rs.5000/- - Equipment
Initially, you can either purchase the new equipment or buy used ones to save some money. To start with, you can start your home kitchen machines and utensils. You should have basic equipment such as grinders, oven, refrigerator etc to serve people fast and good quality food. - Staff Management
As this has no dine-in services, there is no need of hiring much staff. For a decent cloud kitchen, 2 to 3 members can easily manage the entire kitchen and at the same time, this would create a hassle-free environment for them to work in the kitchen. A skilled chef, an assistant chef, and a staff to manage the orders are enough to run a cloud kitchen. - Partnering with food aggregators
Since this is an online delivery oriented service, one of the most important requirement is to get your cloud kitchen listed in the food aggregators to get recognition in the market and get more orders. The food aggregators also recommend your kitchen to people when you serve good quality food and acquire good ratings from customers. - Marketing Strategy
People always invest more in setting up their businesses rather than investing in marketing their brand. Marketing is a crucial part to attract more customers and bring in more orders for your cloud kitchen. A good marketing strategy always helps customers buy from you at a single glance and also retains them to get more orders from them in the future. In marketing, it is believed that “The more you interact, the better will be your sales.” Building your online presence is one of the most important things, try to engage with people socially on various social media platforms.
I hope this helped you in getting clarity on steps to start a cloud kitchen. Follow these steps and start setting up your first ever cloud kitchen brand as soon as possible. Comment below what is your key take away?
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