These Are The Strategies You Need To Implement
Baking is one of those pastimes that excites the soul, and if you have become passionate about it, then your thoughts may turn to making a business of it and opening your own artisan bakery. At Nelstrops Flours, we supply many artisan bakers, and as a consequence, we have had a ringside seat to follow their success. Starting your own bakery business can be very challenging, so let's look at some of the strategies you can implement to increase your chances of success.
Do Your Research
Before you do anything else, identify where you are planning to open your bakery and then conduct diligent research to see how competitive the marketplace is. Even if your bread and other products are the best, it won't be easy to convince people to switch from the baker they have used for years. As a consequence, our advice would be to pick your battles; it is better to set up in a town or village where there is no, or at least less, competition, provided of course that there is sufficient demand for your high quality baked products in the local area.
Start Small and Build A Reputation
Another mistake that many people make, mainly due to their excitement at getting started, is that they open a shop immediately. While having a shop will undoubtedly help you to sell, it immediately starts to cost you money - rent, rates, staff, supplies and of course the shop fixtures and fittings. A more shrewd way to launch your business would be to start dipping your toe in the market in ways that needn't cost you a fortune.
Get a stall at local school fetes, attend a boot sale every day that one is open, get a stand at the local village fayre. This is the perfect and most cost-effective way to establish a reputation and grow your business without the burden of excessive debt. Once you have confirmed that there is sufficient demand for your products, and when you open your shop, you will already have a ready-made and converted pool of customers.
Always Use The Best Products
One of the reasons why an artisan bakery stands out will always be the taste and quality of its produce. Regardless of how good a baker you are, the quality of the products you use in the baking process will always have an impact on the taste, texture and flavour of your products.
Nelstrop Flours have been in the industry for over 200 years. Our flours are recognised across the country for their high-quality and unique taste. We are confident that using our flours in conjunction with your bakery skills will unlock the secret formula to success.
Don't Just Rely On Bread - Consider Every Income Stream.
Although it is reasonable to assume that you can be profitable from bread and bakery products alone, the aim is to maximise your chances of success. To put this into perspective, if we assume that you sell 400 sourdoughs a month, at an average of £4.00 per sourdough and that you make £3.00 profit per sourdough, that is still only a profit of £1200. In order to increase that profit to £3000, you would need to be selling 35 sourdoughs every single day. Will your proposed location be able to support this kind of volume? The solution to this dilemma is to diversify your portfolio. What else could you sell to maximise profits? Coffee, desserts, soups are all relatively easy to incorporate into the business, and most of these are high-profit products.
Get Some Qualifications and Training
Although there is no legal requirement for you to have any official qualifications to open a bakery, there are many benefits to gaining some qualifications at your local college. There are so many facets to running an artisan bakery, and some of these might not even have anything to do with baking. Do you know how to do your accounting? How to maximise your profit margins? Your bread making skills might be exceptional, but what about your cake decorating skills? Although the thought of going back to college might fill you with dread, it could potentially provide you with the foundations to ensure the success of your business moving forward.
Start Small - An Online Business Can Let Your Grow and Gain in Confidence Without A Large Outlay
The Internet has transformed how we do business, and utilising modern technology to launch your bakery business is a model that many business owners have followed. This method allows you to bake your goods within the comfort of your own home and then establish a following and a presence on social media. You can join local village groups on Facebook, promoting your products there with the ability for local people to collect from your home address. This has the added benefit of enabling local people to recommend you within the area and effectively do your marketing for you for little to no cost. If executed properly, this strategy alone could be sufficient to generate the funding you require to open your store and, with it, have a built-in supply of happy returning customers.
Consider Your Finances - It's Not Just The Equipment You Need To Consider
A significant landmine for any prospective business owner is financing the venture. Although you may have factored in the cost of the equipment, there are many other potential costs. Don't forget about business rates, utility bills and business insurance. Any baker will tell you that baking of any description is never an exact science. There will be unexpected wastage, burnt cakes and bread, and other unforeseen accidents that need to be factored into the equation. That is why you need to ensure you have the financial safety net.
All of this comes down to your initial planning and preparation. The baking industry is a wonderful way to earn a living, and the team at Nelstrops Flour is proud to be the main supplier to hundreds of artisan bakeries across the United Kingdom. If you are considering opening a bakery and want to use our products, get in touch to discuss your options.
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