Prepping to open your own catering company or researching ways to help your business rise? Let us help you get set!
Turn your catering business into the greatest thing since sliced bread with these seven tips that’ll help you boost profits, stay organized, and keep operations running smoothly.
1. Assess Your Business Model and Clarify Your Unique Value Proposition
Once you start your own catering business, ensure your continued success and growth by regularly evaluating your current business model and services.
Initial questions to answer include:
- Who are your ideal clients?
- What services do you offer, and do they align with the needs and preferences of your ideal clients?
- Which offerings are most profitable, and which generate the most positive or negative feedback?
- Are there services or items clients frequently request that you don’t currently provide?
These questions help you identify what about your business works well, what’s working not-as-well, and what areas could use the most attention.
From here, do a deeper dive into your current business model to help you align your services with the needs of your target and/or most profitable markets.
More in-depth self-audit questions:
- Is your current style/service model scalable?
- Is your focus — like weddings or corporate events — still the most viable option?
- Do your offerings, pricing, and marketing match the needs and expectations of your target clients?
- How do they compare to your competitors?
- Are there viable revenue streams you haven’t considered? Like boxed on-the-go options, holiday packages, or something else?
- What is your business’ focus? Are you product-driven, experience-driven, or service-driven? And does this align with what your ideal clients value?
Use this information to clarify and improve your unique value propositions (UVPs), or what makes you stand out from the competition.
Make sure your UVP is clear and consistent across your marketing channels and client interactions. It should also reflect what clients value most about your services.
Tips for creating UVPs:
- Know your clients
- Name your strengths
- Be specific
UVP examples:
- 100% plant-based, planet-friendly, and locally sourced gourmet catering
- Food that fuels productivity with fast, reliable delivery
- Michelin-level catering for intimate events — unique, handcrafted, unforgettable
2. Streamline Your Business Ops
Use tools (digital or otherwise) that help streamline tasks and processes.
Automate repetitive tasks to reduce labor hours and free up time for more urgent tasks like client meetings and menu design. Digital management tools, for example, help reduce the time it takes to create staffing schedules, create and send invoices, and track inventory.
Use software designed specifically for small businesses and caterers to improve your catering business’ overall efficiency. These platforms often have multiple membership tiers, so you can choose which level works best for your budget.
Popular catering management tools include:
- Caterease: Full-service food service software
- HoneyCart: Automated online ordering software for caterers
- Total Party Planner: Full-service software designed by caterers for caterers
- Better Cater: All-in-one software designed for catering businesses
- ChefMod: Back-of-house management software for restaurants and food service businesses
- Planning Pod: CRM (client relationship management) software for hospitality businesses
- Wave: Small business accounting software
As the owner of Farm To Belly, I’ve learned that streamlining my process is just as important as perfecting my food. I used to create invoices in Excel, write my service terms in Word, and send everything over email. If a client wanted to pay with a credit card, I’d have to recreate the invoice in Square, then manually track it in my bookkeeping system. It was clunky and time-consuming.
Now, I use Wave, and it’s made my life so much easier. I can send branded invoices that include service terms and allow clients to pay via check, Zelle, or credit card — in one place. Once paid, the invoices are automatically logged into the bookkeeping dashboard. Wave also gives me cash flow statements, reconciliations, and sales charts. I’ve even added my accountant to the platform so she can handle taxes without needing me to dig through a shoebox of receipts.
–Mallorey Atkins, Chef & Owner of Farm to Belly and FLIP policyholder
3. Leverage Relationships & Networking to Boost Retention & Referrals
Studies routinely show that 92% of consumers trust word-of-mouth recommendations more than any other form of advertising. So, if you want to grow your business, you can’t afford not to have excellent client interactions and networking skills.
Cultivate strong customer relationships with:
- Post-event engagement: Send personalized follow-up emails, thank-yous, or even photos from the event (if appropriate) to demonstrate your investment in their event.
- Incentives: Offer special discounts or other perks to clients who re-book with you or those whose referral turns into a new client.
- Proactive follow-ups: Send friendly follow-ups before a client’s next event to stay top-of-mind and highlight your attention to detail — for example, mention your bridal shower and wedding services after catering an engagement party.
- Feedback surveys: Show your dedication to improvement by asking clients to complete a simple and easy-to-complete feedback survey.
- Special touches: Impress clients with thoughtful touches — small details like decor or allergen cards can leave a lasting impression.
Build strategic partnerships by:
- Networking with other industry professionals: Build connections by joining local groups, attending expos, cross-promoting with small businesses, and following up with new contacts.
- Connecting with event planners: Event planners can be great referral sources — build relationships through tastings or a mutually beneficial referral system.
- Connecting with event venues: Event venues often have preferred vendor lists, reach out to local venues to find out how you can become a preferred vendor.
- Collaborating with other vendors: Connect with photographers, florists, DJs, and other adjacent professionals to trade services, cross-promote, and build a strong referral network.
Pro Tip: Discover more catering marketing strategies for growing your business!
4. Evaluate Your Menu Regularly
To help your catering business thrive, your menu needs to be as sustainable, scalable, and profitable as possible.
Minimize your costs and maximize the effectiveness and efficiency of your menu by:
- Identifying high-profit margin items
- Standardizing recipes and portions
- Utilizing as many of the same ingredients between items as possible
- Offering easy, high-profit add-ons
- Designing dishes with easily-swapped components for guests’ dietary restrictions
- Providing pre-made event menus (that you’ve already confirmed are profitable)
Pro Tip: Read more about food pricing tips to ensure a profitable menu!
Another game changer has been designing seasonal menus. Instead of telling clients, “I can make anything,” I guide them to thoughtful seasonal offerings. It keeps decision-making simple, helps me batch prep more efficiently, and allows for bulk ordering to save on costs. I design all my menus in Canva, using my brand colors, fonts, and logos for consistency. Those menus live on my Linktree, which is linked on my website, so I can make changes anytime without having to pay someone to update the site.
Between Wave, Canva, and a clear seasonal structure, I’ve built a system that supports my clients and my sanity, so I can stay focused on what I do best: feeding people well.
-Chef Mallorey Atkins, Farm To Belly
5. Review and Update Your Budget Often
Make financial forecasting a priority. Be proactive about your budget with the following tips:
- Regularly track and record food cost percentages to stay within the industry standard for success of 28% to 35%
- Keep detailed records of all event/business costs
- Buy in bulk where possible
- Include the costs of professional services you use regularly in your budget
- Set minimums, either per person or event, to protect yourself from unnecessary losses
- Plan for seasonal lows by identifying likely slow periods from past sales data, and adjust your business expenses accordingly
- Adjust your offerings during slow seasons — for example, add a limited-time box lunch service or one-time discount deal
- Prepare for emergencies and unexpected costs by including small buffers into every event
Pro Tip: Get help tracking and improving your budget with digital tools like QuickBooks, Wave, or Square.
6. Adapt and Evolve
Some things are out of your control, like the food supply chain or the trajectory of foodie trends. This is one reason why adaptability is key to long-term growth and success.
Stay on top of the food pyramid by collecting regular client feedback, staying aware of relevant trends, and utilizing technology to upgrade and streamline your processes.
7. Protect Your Business With Catering Insurance
One misstep or rogue peanut can lead to costly claims against your catering business. Inventory restocking you can plan for, the costs of medical bills or lawsuits that result from unknown food allergies or slip-and-fall incidents — not so much.
Catering insurance acts as a financial safety net should someone bring an injury or property damage claim against you. Plus, many venues insist on seeing your proof of insurance before allowing you onto their property.
Protect your budget and your business from unexpected and expensive liability claims for as low as $25.92/month with FLIP.
FAQs About Growing Your Catering Company
What Are Some Common Mistakes to Avoid When Implementing Food Pricing Strategies?
Food pricing is about striking a balance. Charging too much can deter customers from buying. Charging too little can give customers the perception that your product is cheap or low-quality. Other mistakes to avoid:
- Failing to align pricing with the market, which can reduce your profits
- Being too rigid with your menu — having flexible options helps you react to market and customer fluctuations
- Ignoring foods that sell — cutting items that aren’t moving helps reduce your overall food costs
How Can I Get on Preferred Vendor Lists at Venues?
Each venue generally has their own list of criteria for preferred vendors, but they usually include some variation of:
- A previous working relationship/experience
- A positive and professional reputation
- Exceptional customer service
- An aesthetic and/or mission that aligns with theirs
How Do I Encourage Clients to Make Referrals?
Increase the likelihood of clients making referrals by:
- Delivering exceptional customer service throughout the entire process
- Finding ways to personalize your service
- Weave in unique touches like custom signage or allergen cards (they don’t have to be expensive items)
- Send thoughtful follow-ups after events
- Make it easy for them to refer you — send them review links or referral links
Alex Hastings
Seattle-based copywriter and (WA) licensed insurance agent Alex Hastings leverages her experience as a lover of fast-casual food, baked goods, and iced oat milk lattes. She holds a B.A. in Creative Writing from Western Washington University. Before working at Veracity, she was a retail copywriter at Zulily and an English language teacher in South Korea. Alex is fully trained on FLIP insurance coverages and writes content that connects food and beverage business owners with the policies they need.
Seattle-based copywriter and (WA) licensed insurance agent Alex Hastings leverages her experience as a lover of fast-casual food, baked goods, and iced oat milk lattes. She holds a B.A. in Creative Writing from Western Washington University. Before working at Veracity, she was a retail copywriter at Zulily and an English language teacher in South Korea. Alex is fully trained on FLIP insurance coverages and writes content that connects food and beverage business owners with the policies they need.
