Catering Business Plan Template

Catering Business Plan Template

If you want to start a new catering business or expand your current catering business, you need a business plan.

The following catering business plan template gives you the key elements to include in a winning plan for your own catering company. In addition to this template, conducting market research for your local customer base will help you identify potential market trends and customer segments to better understand the viability of your catering business.

You can download our Catering business plan template (including a full, customizable financial model) to your computer here.
 

Sample Catering Business Plan

I. Executive Summary

Business Overview

[Company Name], located at [insert location here] is a new, upscale catering business focusing on providing a variety of cuisines and services for private and corporate events and meetings.

Services

[Company Name] will offer a full menu of breakfast, lunch, and dinner options (including appetizers, salads, soups, sandwiches, entrées and desserts). [Company Name] will also provide event planning, decor, and floral design services, as well as referrals to additional event vendors.

Customer Focus

[Company Name] will primarily serve the residents within a 15-mile radius of our facility. The demographics of these customers are as follows:

• 67,827 residents

• Average income of $74,700

• 58.9% married

• 49.6% in Management/Professional occupations

• Median age: 38 years

[Company Name] will serve private customers, primarily brides and parents, corporations and non-profits in the general vicinity.

Management Team

[Company Name] is led by [Founder’s Name] who has been in the catering business for 7 years. While [Founder] has never run a business himself, he has taught cooking classes at the local culinary institute for 10 years and has worked as a head chef an upscale caterer in the community over the past 10 years. As such [Founder] has an in-depth knowledge of the catering business including the operations side (e.g., running day-to-day operations) and the business management side (e.g., staffing, marketing, etc.).

Success Factors

[Company Name] is uniquely qualified to succeed due to the following reasons:

• There is currently no upscale caterer with wide variety in its menu options in the community we are entering. In addition, we have surveyed the local population and received extremely positive feedback saying that they explicitly want to use our services when launched.

• The management team has a track record of success in the catering business.

• Market trends such as growth in demand for catering services and the increasing value customers place in full-service caterer/event planners support our business opportunity.

Financial Highlights

[Company Name] is currently seeking $125,000 to launch. Specifically, these funds will be used as follows:

• Office/Workspace Design & Build-out: $40,000
• Equipment: $45,000
• Working capital: $40,000 to pay for marketing, salaries, and land costs until [Company Name] reaches break-even.

Financial Summary	FY 1	FY 2	FY 3	FY 4	FY 5
Revenue	$560,401	$782,152	$1,069,331	$1,379,434	$1,699,644
Total Expenses	$328,233	$391,429	$552,149	$696,577	$776,687
EBITDA	$232,168	$390,722	$517,182	$682,858	$922,956
Depreciation	$7,000	$7,000	$7,000	$7,000	$7,000
EBIT	$225,168	$383,722	$510,182	$675,858	$915,956
Interest	$6,016	$5,264	$4,512	$3,760	$3,008
Pre Tax Income	$219,152	$378,458	$505,670	$672,098	$912,948
Income Tax Expense	$76,703	$132,460	$176,985	$235,234	$319,532
Net Income	$142,449	$245,998	$328,686	$436,864	$593,416
Net Profit Margin	25%	31%	31%	32%	35%

 

II. Company Overview

Who is [Company Name]?

[Company Name], located at [insert location here] is a new, upscale catering business focusing on providing a variety of cuisines and services for private and corporate events and meetings

[Company Name] was founded by [Founder’s Name]. While [Founder’s Name] has been in the catering business for some time, it was in [month, date] that he decided to launch [Company Name]. Specifically, during this time, [Founder] took a trip to Fort Lauderdale, FL. During his trip, [Founder’s Name] learned of a catering business that enjoyed tremendous success. After several discussions with the owner of the catering business, [Founder’s Name] clearly understood that a similar business would enjoy significant success in his hometown.

Specifically the customer demographics and competitive situations in the Fort Lauderdale location and in [insert location here] were so similar that he knew it would work. Furthermore, after surveying the local population, this theory was proven.

[Company Name]’s History

Upon returning from Fort Lauderdale, surveying the local customer base, and finding a potential kitchen facility and office location, [Founder’s Name] incorporated [Company Name] as an S-Corporation on [date of incorporation].

[Founder’s Name] has selected an initial location and is currently undergoing due diligence on the property and the local market to assess whether it will be the most desirable location for the kitchen facility.

Since incorporation, the company has achieved the following milestones:

• Developed the company’s name, logo and website located at www…

• Created the menu

• Determined equipment and inventory requirements

• Began recruiting key employees with experience in the restaurant and catering industries

[Company Name]’s Services

[Company Name]will offer a full menu of food, event planning and decor services, and referrals to additional event vendors for other services.

Below is [Company Name]’s initial menu. As you can see, all items are classified under the following eight main categories:

1. Appetizers
2. Soups
3. Salads
4. Sandwiches
5. Entrées
6. Desserts
7. Breakfasts
8. Beverages

[Company Name] Initial Menu
Soups		Salads
Black Bean Soup		Cobb Salad
Broccoli Cheddar Soup		Waldorf Salad
Cabbage Soup		Garden Salad
Clam Chowder		Southwest Chicken Salad
French Onion Soup		Asian Steak Salad
Split Pea With Ham Soup
Vegetarian Chili		Desserts
Wild Mushroom Bisque		Banana Nut Pound Cake
		Chocolate Chip Muffin
Appetizers		English Toffee Cookie
Veggies and Dip		Lemon Pound Cake
Grilled Eggplant with Tomato Sauce		Tiramisu
Avocado and Spinach Dip		Flourless Chocolate Cake
Grilled Tofu Skewers		Marble Pound Cake
Chicken and Pepper Skewers
		Breakfasts
Sandwiches and Wraps		Continental Breakfast
Baja Turkey Sandwich		Eggs and Bacon
Caprese Sandwich		Breakfast Wraps
Chicken Pesto Sandwich		Smoked Salmon with Bagels
Eggplant And Mozzarella Sandwich		Brunch Buffet
Spicy Tuna Sandwich
Tuna Melt		Beverages
		Wines
Entrees		Beers
Ginger Chicken with Grilled Bok Choy		Liquors
Moroccan Chicken with Cous Cous		Coffees, Teas, and Juices
Prime Rib Eye Steak with Broccoli		Soft Drinks
Braised Lamb with Polenta
Grilled Salmon with Lemon and Dill
Vegetable Stir Fry

 

Facility Design

[Company Name] will develop a 4,000 square foot kitchen and office space whose key elements will include the following:

• Kitchen area

• Storage Room

• Sales and administrative office

• Restroom

The facility location has 10 dedicated parking spots which should suffice for staff, as clients will be met on location primarily.

[Company Name] plans to have the office open 6 days a week, from 8 AM to 6 PM. Service hours will be available around the clock, 7 days a week.

 

III. Industry Analysis

[Company Name]directly or indirectly competes with all caterers and food delivery services in a 15-mile radius. Competition will come from caterers, both independent and those associated with a specific hotel or venue, as well as restaurants, delis, and grocery stores offering delivery services. Direct competition will come from companies upscale caterers offering full event support services similar to [Company Name].

Industry Statistics & Trends

The following industry size facts and statistics bode well for [Company Name].

According to Reference USA, there are over 45,000 catering companies listed in the United States. However, Research and Markets reports:

The catering industry includes 10,000 companies with combined annual revenue of $5 billion. Large companies include Centerplate, Restaurant Associates, and Wolfgang Puck Catering, but no major companies dominate. The catering industry is very highly fragmented: the top 50 companies account for less than 15 percent of industry revenue.

However, this report does not include hotels, restaurants and food service contractors that also cater events.

Research and Markets goes on to report the following:

• “Demand is driven by corporate profits and consumer income. The profitability of individual companies depends on cost controls and effective marketing.”

• “The industry is very labor-intensive: average annual revenue per worker for a typical company is just over $40,000.”

• “Major services include off-premises catering (food prepared away from the premises where its served) and on-premises catering (meals prepared and served at the same location). Off-premises catering represents 45 percent of the market; on-premises, 40 percent. Other services include alcohol sales and facility rentals.”

 

IV. Customer Analysis

Demographic Profile of Target Market

[Company Name]will serve the residents and businesses operating in [company location] holding special events and meetings.

The area we serve is affluent and has the disposable income/profits required to demand off-premises catering services.

The precise demographics of the town in which our business is based are as follows:

	Wilmette	Winnetka
Total Population	26,097	10,725
Square Miles	6.89	3.96
Population Density	3,789.20	2,710.80
Population Male	48.04%	48.84%
Population Female	51.96%	51.16%
Target Population by Age Group
Age 18-24	3.68%	3.52%
Age 25-34	5.22%	4.50%
Age 35-44	13.80%	13.91%
Age 45-54	18.09%	18.22%
Target Population by Income
Income $50,000 to $74,999	11.16%	6.00%
Income $75,000 to $99,999	10.91%	4.41%
Income $100,000 to $124,999	9.07%	6.40%
Income $125,000 to $149,999	9.95%	8.02%
Income $150,000 to $199,999	12.20%	11.11%
Income $200,000 and Over	32.48%	54.99%

Customer Segmentation

We will primarily target the following four customer segments:

1. Brides: Serving on-site rehearsal dinners, engagement parties, bridal showers, and wedding receptions for brides.

2. Parents: Serving parents of graduating students holding graduation parties as well as those holding large birthday parties, confirmation parties, bar and bat mitzvahs, quinceañeras, etc.

3. Corporations: Serving companies holding meetings, conferences, product launches, press events, celebrations, etc requiring off-premises catering.

4. Non-profits: Serving non-profits holding fundraisers, galas, auction events, gallery openings, etc. requiring off-premises catering.

 

V. Competitive Analysis

Direct & Indirect Competitors

The following prominent caterers are located within a 15-mile radius of [Company Name], thus providing either direct or indirect competition for customers:

Elegant Catering

Elegant Catering is the town’s leading caterer and has been in business for 32 years. Elegant offers a wide array of foods, full event planning services, and event design services (floral and decor).

Elegant has an extensive menu and an established clientele, but does not serve a large number of clients who cannot afford its top tier prices.

Old Time Organic

Old Time Organics has been in business for 5 years. It offers a variety of baked goods, organic teas and coffees, and sandwiches.

While Old Time Organics’ food is entirely organic, they have a very limited selection of items and specialize in breakfast and lunch delivery. They have a retail location with four sit down tables and do not handle large, upscale social or corporate events.

Freddy’s Catering

Freddy’s Catering is a recently opened caterer with a festive attitude and brand that especially appeals to parents throwing parties for children. Freddy’s offers breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

[Company Name] has several advantages over Freddy’s Catering including:

• Freddy’s Catering only offers limited menu options without room for customization.

• Freddy’s cater-waiters have a laid-back attitude giving the company’s service a less formal

We expect that Freddy’s Catering will continue to thrive based on its brand. However, we expect that more and more customers will frequent [Company Name] based on the high-quality food and service it offers.

Competitive Pricing

Type of food	Elegant	Old Time	Freddy's
Breakfast	$9 - $12	$12-$15	$15-$18
Lunch	$12-$19	$19-$22	$20-$24
Dinner	$35-$45	$55-$75	$85-95
Dessert	$5-$6	$7-$9	$8-$10

Competitive Advantage

[Company Name] enjoys several advantages over its competitors. These advantages include:

• Menu Customization: Offering extensive menu options and allowing extensive customization of menu options, [Company Name]

• Management: Our management team has years of business and marketing experience that allows us to market and serve customers in a much more sophisticated manner than our competitors.

• Relationships: Having lived in the community for 25 years, [Founder’s Name] knows all the local leaders, newspapers and other influencers. As such, it will be relatively easy for us to build branding and awareness of our catering business

 

VI. Marketing Plan

You can download our Catering business plan template (including a full, customizable financial model) to your computer here.

The Marketing Plan describes the type of brand [Company Name] seeks to create and the Company’s planned promotions and pricing strategies.

The [Company Name] Brand

The [Company Name] brand will focus on the Company’s unique value proposition:

• Offering extensive menu options and menu customization for breakfast, lunch, dinner

• Serving high quality food with sophisticated servers

• Providing excellent customer service

Promotions Strategy

[Company Name] expects its target market to be individuals working and/or living within a 15-mile radius of its facility. The Company’s promotions strategy to reach these individuals includes:

Direct Mail

[Company Name] will use local business mailing lists and business association lists to send information to area businesses. These pieces will provide general information on [Company Name], offer discounts and/or provide other inducements for people to frequent the business.

Public Relations

We will contact all local and area newspapers and television stations and send them a press release describing the opening and unique value proposition of [Company Name].

Advertising

[Company Name] will initially advertise in local newspapers and event publications in order to gain awareness.

Ongoing Customer Communications

[Company Name] will maintain a website and publish a monthly email newsletter to tell customers about recent catered, deals, and tips for event planning and catering.

Business Networking Groups

The sales manager and head chef of[Company Name] will use their contacts as part of local business networking groups to find qualified leads for catering work among businesses.

Pricing Strategy

[Company Name] pricing will be on the high end of price, but lower than Elegant Catering which serves only the elite. Customers will feel they receive great value because of the high amount of service they receive and customization they are allowed. Pricing will be higher than Freddy’s Catering and Old Time Organics for this reason.
 

VII. Operations Plan

Functional Roles

In order to execute on [Company Name]’s business model, the Company needs to perform many functions including the following:

Administrative Functions

• General & administrative functions including legal, marketing, bookkeeping, etc.

• Sales work and ongoing corporate account management

• Sourcing and storing ingredients

• Hiring and training staff

Kitchen Functions

• Food preparation

• Ongoing menu creation and modification

Event Functions

• Event planning

• Waiting tables, serving appetizers, bartending, and other event service

• Floral Design

• Decor Design

Milestones

[Company Name] expects to achieve the following milestones in the following [] months:

Date	Milestone
[Date 1]	Finalize lease agreement
[Date 2]	Design and build out [Company Name] facility
[Date 3]	Hire and train initial staff
[Date 4]	Launch [Company Name]
[Date 5]	Reach break-even

 

VIII. Management Team

Management Team Members

[Company Name]is led by [Founder’s Name] who has been in the catering business for 20 years.

While [Founder] has never run a catering business himself, he has taught cooking classes as the local culinary institute for 10 years. Two courses that he taught included:

1. Dishes to Make any Event Special
   • This course was designed to give students a repertoire of special dishes for parties and events

2. Fancy Finger Foods
   • This course was designed to give students an overall understanding of how to prepare simple, but seemingly fancy, appetizers that do not require utensils and are suitable for passing.

[Founder] has also worked as head chef for Fine Design Catering, an area upscale caterer, for the past ten years and as an assistant chef and cater-waiter at numerous other caterers for the ten years prior to that. He studied cooking formally at the local culinary institute and learned the business side of catering as a part-time assistant manager at Elegant Catering for five years, where he was specifically responsible for ordering ingredients, maintaining relationships with vendors, and storage systems.

[Founder] graduated from the University of ABC where he majored in Communications.

Hiring Plan

[Founder] will serve as the head chef and operations manager. In order to launch the catering business, we need to hire the following personnel:

• Sales Manager

• Event Designer (Floral and Decor)

• Cater-Waiters (8 part-time to start, same as 4 full-time-equivalent employees)

• Busboys (6 part-time to start, same as 2 fill-time equivalent employees)

• Chefs (2 to start)

• Sous-chefs (2 to start)

• Driver/Delivery Person (1 to start)

 

IX. Financial Plan

Revenue and Cost Drivers

[Company Name]’s revenues will come from off-premises catering primarily and secondarily from event planning and design services.

The major costs for the company will be food production costs and salaries of the staff. In the initial years, the company’s marketing spend will be high, as it establishes itself in the market.

Capital Requirements and Use of Funds

[Company Name] is seeking a total funding of $125,000 to launch its catering business. The capital will be used for funding capital expenditures, manpower costs, marketing expenses and working capital.

Specifically, these funds will be used as follows:

• Office/Workspace Design & Build-out: $40,000
• Equipment: $45,000
• Working capital: $40,000 to pay for marketing, salaries, and land costs until [Company Name] reaches break-even.

Key Assumptions & Forecasts

Below please find the key assumptions that went into the financial forecast and a summary of the financial projections over the next five years.

Number of customers per day	Per location
FY 1	4
FY 2	6
FY 3	8
FY 4	10
FY 5	12
Average private order price	$1,000.00
Average revenue per corporate order	$750.00
Annual increase in order price	6.00%
Annual Lease (per location)	$50,000
Yearly Lease Increase %	2.50%

5 Year Annual Income Statement

		Year 1	Year 2	Year 3	Year 4	Year 5
Revenues
	Product/Service A	$151,200	$333,396	$367,569	$405,245	$446,783
	Product/Service B	$100,800	$222,264	$245,046	$270,163	$297,855
	Total Revenues	$252,000	$555,660	$612,615	$675,408	$744,638
Expenses & Costs
	Cost of goods sold	$57,960	$122,245	$122,523	$128,328	$134,035
	Lease	$60,000	$61,500	$63,038	$64,613	$66,229
	Marketing	$20,000	$25,000	$25,000	$25,000	$25,000
	Salaries	$133,890	$204,030	$224,943	$236,190	$248,000
	Other Expenses	$3,500	$4,000	$4,500	$5,000	$5,500
	Total Expenses & Costs	$271,850	$412,775	$435,504	$454,131	$473,263
EBITDA		($19,850)	$142,885	$177,112	$221,277	$271,374
	Depreciation	$36,960	$36,960	$36,960	$36,960	$36,960
EBIT		($56,810)	$105,925	$140,152	$184,317	$234,414
	Interest	$23,621	$20,668	$17,716	$14,763	$11,810
PRE-TAX INCOME		($80,431)	$85,257	$122,436	$169,554	$222,604
	Net Operating Loss	($80,431)	($80,431)	$0	$0	$0
	Income Tax Expense	$0	$1,689	$42,853	$59,344	$77,911
NET INCOME		($80,431)	$83,568	$79,583	$110,210	$144,693
Net Profit Margin (%)		-	15.00%	13.00%	16.30%	19.40%

5 Year Annual Balance Sheet

		Year 1	Year 2	Year 3	Year 4	Year 5
ASSETS
	Cash	$16,710	$90,188	$158,957	$258,570	$392,389
	Accounts receivable	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
	Inventory	$21,000	$23,153	$25,526	$28,142	$31,027
	Total Current Assets	$37,710	$113,340	$184,482	$286,712	$423,416
	Fixed assets	$246,450	$246,450	$246,450	$246,450	$246,450
	Depreciation	$36,960	$73,920	$110,880	$147,840	$184,800
	Net fixed assets	$209,490	$172,530	$135,570	$98,610	$61,650
TOTAL ASSETS		$247,200	$285,870	$320,052	$385,322	$485,066
LIABILITIES & EQUITY
	Debt	$317,971	$272,546	$227,122	$181,698	$136,273
	Accounts payable	$9,660	$10,187	$10,210	$10,694	$11,170
	Total Liabilities	$327,631	$282,733	$237,332	$192,391	$147,443
	Share Capital	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
	Retained earnings	($80,431)	$3,137	$82,720	$192,930	$337,623
	Total Equity	($80,431)	$3,137	$82,720	$192,930	$337,623
TOTAL LIABILITIES & EQUITY		$247,200	$285,870	$320,052	$385,322	$485,066

5 Year Annual Cash Flow Statement

	Year 1	Year 2	Year 3	Year 4	Year 5
CASH FLOW FROM OPERATIONS
Net Income (Loss)	($80,431)	$83,568	$79,583	$110,210	$144,693
Change in working capital	($11,340)	($1,625)	($2,350)	($2,133)	($2,409)
Depreciation	$36,960	$36,960	$36,960	$36,960	$36,960
Net Cash Flow from Operations	($54,811)	$118,902	$114,193	$145,037	$179,244
CASH FLOW FROM INVESTMENTS
Investment	($246,450)	$0	$0	$0	$0
Net Cash Flow from Investments	($246,450)	$0	$0	$0	$0
CASH FLOW FROM FINANCING
Cash from equity	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
Cash from debt	$317,971	($45,424)	($45,424)	($45,424)	($45,424)
Net Cash Flow from Financing	$317,971	($45,424)	($45,424)	($45,424)	($45,424)
SUMMARY
Net Cash Flow	$16,710	$73,478	$68,769	$99,613	$133,819
Cash at Beginning of Period	$0	$16,710	$90,188	$158,957	$258,570
Cash at End of Period	$16,710	$90,188	$158,957	$258,570	$392,389

 

Download a Free Catering Business Plan PDF

Use this catering business plan PDF to get started on your own catering business plan.