Teen Money Making Ideas » cooking

How Teenagers Can Start Their Own Cookie Company And Sell Millions

Amber — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 06:24:00 +0000

The following article is from TeenMoneyMakingIdeas.Com:Are you a teenager that enjoys baking? Do you like the idea of working for yourself – possibly making millions? If this sounds like you, you may want to start your own cookie business. You can start a home-based business the way many teenage entrepreneurs around the world have done already.

If you already have a cookie recipe that is not only delicious but different, you might have what it takes to compete in the cookie industry. Your idea could be to start a cookie business online or perhaps you just want to try your hand at selling to stores or people in your neighborhood. Either way, starting a cookie company is a sweet and rewarding challenge!

Before beginning on the road to your very first cookie adventure, here are some things you should think about.

First, decide what your specialty will be. Of course, you can build your cookie enterprise by making all kinds of cookies, but you might be better off deciding on a particular cookie specialty. Your specialty could be cookies with unique shapes, ingredients or decoration. No matter what it is, find a way that will set you apart from the competition and you’re more likely to be successful.

Once you’ve decided on your niche, select a few cookie recipes and make the cookies for your family and friends as a test run. While doing your test run, you might find out that you need to make some adjustment in your recipe to make your cookies even more special or unique.

Next, decide on your workspace. Are you going to start your cookie company at home or will you start somewhere else? Obviously, the most economical idea would be to start at home in your own kitchen.

While you’re at it, if you’ve already decided you would like to sell your cookies online, do some research into website development? Will you have someone build the website for you? Or, will you build your own website? If you do decide to build your own website, you can start off with a free blog or a free site in order to save money. You can get one here. Also, to learn more marketing ideas, check out, “From Kitchen to Market: Selling Your Gourmet Food Specialty (Sell Your Specialty Food: Market, Distribute & Profit from Your Kitchen Creation).”

Once you’ve narrowed down which cookies you’re going to start with, get a hold of a digital camera and take some pictures of your cookies for marketing purposes. Later on, you can use these pictures on your website where you’ll be selling your cookies.

Next you need to figure out what is the best way to package your cookies. You can find some great ideas in the book “Baking for Profit: Starting a Small Bakery” by George Bathie. In thinking about the packaging of your cookies, keep in mind that if you’re going to be selling online, the cookies must be able to withstand changes in temperature and handling. Try to speak to people in the shipping business and for tips for suitable packaging that will keep the cookies fresh. Also, talk with the shippers to get the best deal on the fastest shipping; FedEx, DHL, the United States Postal Service, and UPS are options to check out. Before starting, be sure to test the packaging that you’ve chosen by shipping to a few friends and family.

If you’ve gotten this far in the planning of your cookie business, the next important step you should take is to figure out what kind of beginning capital you will need to get your business off the ground. If you’re starting out at home, you may not need a lot of money. And if you can convince your parents and other family members to support your venture, you may be able to convince them to pay for the initial baking materials you will need. Try to estimate the costs of your budding business for at least the 3-4 months.

Once you have done some of the important research above, you’re ready to get the cookies into the hands of your customers! Build you websites and put up pictures of your cookies on the website. Start spreading the word to people. Make flyers and/or business cards about your new cookie business. Send an email to everyone on your email list and ask them to pass the email on to their friends. You may also want to speak to shop owners in the local grocery stores and specialty food stores to see if you can get your cookies – or at least your flyers or business cards – placed at their location.

It isn’t hard to start a cookie business. And as we’ve shown in previous articles, teenagers who start their own businesses can make millions! But you’ll have to be serious about it and consider all of the factors involved. That’s just how the cookie crumbles!For more information like this, visit TeenMoneyMakingIdeas.Com.

How To Start Your Own Highly Profitable Catering Service

Amber — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 04:55:54 +0000

The following article is from TeenMoneyMakingIdeas.Com:Do you have a knack for cooking? Do you have a special recipe or dish that you can make really well? Or, do you have a delicious recipe for something that’s been passed down in your family? If so, then why not start a catering service? Think that sounds a little far-fetched? Well, listen to this: with a recipe passed down from her grandmother, 12 year old Leana Archer makes $45,000 a year with products she cooks up in her kitchen. Granted, the items that she makes and sells are hair products but the idea is still the same: she started out at home in her kitchen. The same is true for Justin Avery Anderson, who, at the age of 16, stated out making his own brand of home-made granola in his kitchen. Years later he’s thousand of dollars richer as a result of his efforts. The lesson here is simple: stop saying you can’t and start thinking of ways you can.

To start your own catering business, you don’t need any special education or training to become a successful. Additionally, a quick survey of successful caterers across the nation shows that the majority began with zero capital by working out of their homes – making it a perfect business for a young entrepreneur.

You Can Start Right In Your Own Kitchen

Caterers handle everything from birthday parties for children to company dinner parties for 50 and wedding receptions involving a thousand or more guests. However, it doesn’t have to be as grand or elaborate as all that. It’s flexible enough that you can start out small and this article explains how. As for how much you can earn, this is up to you. A good caterer in a large city can easily gross $100,000 per year, while a small, part-time caterer in a small town can count on making at least $10,000 to $15,000 per year. One small, but very ambitious caterer is reported to have grossed $200,000 after only 2-years in the business!

This can be an ideal business for a couple of friends to start. It’s fairly simple to start and operate a business like this with very little capital investment required. One person can spend his time generating new business while the other would do the planning, organizing and actual catering.

To start a catering business, you need to first decide what you want to specialize in. Just because you’re starting a catering business, doesn’t mean that you have to offer a full fledge catering service that prepares everything from appetizers to full course meals.

Your catering service can be tight niche that specializes in freshly made gourmet sandwiches….

…cold buffets, delicious smoothies, or desserts and freshly made baked goods.

These are just a few of the areas that you can specialize in. Believe in yourself and know that there are lots of opportunities in the catering business for people who have the drive and commitment to succeed.

Additionally, a catering business can be full or part time. In fact, it’s possible to start slowly with just a few clients and work around school and your other commitments. You can offer your catering service on weekends or for certain events such as birthday parties, or at special times of the year. By starting small, you don’t have to spend a lot on expenses. A catering business can be started out of your home and you can start with say gourmet sandwiches, which can cost you less than $100 to get started.

The possibilities of a catering business are endless. Time is becoming more valuable to almost everyone today. This means there are more and more opportunities for you to offer your services as a caterer. Your success will be limited only by your imagination and energy.

In upcoming articles, we’ll discuss other aspects of starting and growing your own catering service.

Bona Petite!

Resources:

For more information like this, visit TeenMoneyMakingIdeas.Com.