COMPANIES which are looking to sell street food equip themselves with food trucks to get around the limitations of fixed locales and take advantage of mobility.
Naturally, some SMALL BUSINESSES start street food endeavors with customized trucks which are fit to their needs.
In the food service and hospitality sectors, bars, ice cream shops, restaurants, fast food chains, and hotels buy food trucks to complement and expand their day-to-day business.
A food truck does a more exciting and better job than more traditional options at providing a bar service in the gardens of a resort, offering street food at a festival, catering a company event, and doing home delivery.
However, it should be said that a good food truck requires adequate investment. As in every other sector, price is the best indicator in evaluating a product’s quality.
But what does the cost of a food truck depend on? What are the most important features which determine its sales price?
Without going into every detail, let’s take a closer look.
THE MODEL
It’s quite clear that the type of vehicle and its outfitting are what primarily determine final cost. Typically, smaller models have lower costs. For example, the Ape TR or the Ape Smart are in a lower price range than the Pro X Food Truck, no matter how many customizations and optionals get added. Furthermore, the model’s price is also affected by how the structure gets constructed. In order to save money, many manufacturers prefer to build structures without insulated walls and with internal reinforcements which are held together by perimeter profiles. VS Veicoli Special’s structures set themselves apart for their solidity and clean look, as they are built with sandwich wall panels equipped with internal reinforcements. This means that they have an extremely solid structure without large perimeter profiles.
THE AMOUNT OF CUSTOMIZATION
After choosing the base model, the price is affected by the number and the quality of customizations one wishes to make on any element on the outfitting (materials, equipment, furniture, graphic design, lighting, optionals, etc.).
THE PAINT
The vehicle’s price is also affected by whether it gets left in its original color or gets painted, and further increases if specific, non-standard colors get used. Furthermore, there are different levels of paint jobs and different types of paints, and this can raise or lower the price as well. In the eyes of a normal person, the difference between paints might go unnoticed. However, the difference between high-quality professional paints and industrial paints made with cheap materials will surely be evident over time, as a food truck painted with poor products will become run-down and obsolete.
THE FURNITURE
The furniture can come standard, be reduced to the bare minimum, or be custom-made and cared for in the most minute details in order to get the most out of the space, work better, produce more, and move around with ease. To get custom-made furniture, it is necessary that one have the support of an expert team.
THE KITCHEN
There are various designs, materials, and performance levels for kitchens and extractor hoods (i.e., there are cheap brands and expensive brands). For example, all fryers might look the same, but this is not the case: the performance and the durability varies a lot from one model to another. It takes years of experience in the sector for someone to be able to understand and choose professional equipment which will get the job done during busy and critical moments.
THE WATER SYSTEM
The water system can be autonomous or have a manual loading and unloading system. The former ones cost more as they get the most out of the space and make maintenance and use extremely easy and up to health standards.
THE ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
As far as this component is concerned, the customer is usually left without a choice. Some manufacturers install a completely certified electrical system, including the protections on each user and equipment. Meanwhile, other manufacturers use one protection for more users and cable sections, pushing good practice to its limits. In the second case, clearly one is trying to save money in favor of system reliability and safety.
THE ELECTRICAL GENERATOR AND LITHIUM BATTERY
One should install a built-in, professional electrical generator or a lithium battery pack on a food truck. However, in order to save money, some manufacturers use external generators and fit them as best they can inside the outfitting.
THE REFRIGERATORS
One can choose standard refrigerators or custom refrigerators to get the most of the space and improve performance.
Clearly, the second option is more economically burdensome, but it ensures greater storage space and higher levels of production. maintaining fridge temperatures even when it is extremely hot outside and they are constantly being opened.
THE LIGHTING
A food truck’s lighting can be laid out in way to offer the highest visibility everywhere on the vehicle, especially in the work areas. However, some choose to save money with a standard and imperfect lighting setup.
A well-made truck must have at least three well-lit areas: the work area, the service area, and the customer area.
THE OPTIONALS
Optionals also have an effect on the final price. One can add a camera, choose between two or four support legs, go for a non-slip retractable entrance step, opt for a remote-controlled management system, and so on.
In conclusion, the cost of a food truck depends on lots of factors:
- some are built into the outfitting and not chosen by the customer but have an effect on the quality of the final product the manufacturer decides to offer;
- others are in some way in the hands of the customer who can choose between cheaper or more expensive alternatives.
There are truly very few manufacturers on the market which produce top-of-the-line food trucks and get the most out of every component on the outfitting while respecting all the health and road standards.
When all is said and done and one has to evaluate efficiency, durability, communications and working comfort, the extra investment in a high-quality food truck pays for itself many times over.
Clearly, a food truck which allows one to save on maintenance costs, work better, and produce more increases profits and makes the investment worthwhile.
The VS Veicoli Speciali team is available for a full pre-purchase consultation.
