7 Steps of Food Truck Design To Build An Empire On Wheels

Are you dreaming of building a food truck? Well, just go through the below steps to get a complete guideline on how to build a food truck design. Besides, it’s really a fact that how appealing your food truck design is! 

The United States and several countries in the world allow food truck business nowadays. It’s getting trendy and popular among food lovers.  

At present, the street food industry’s major components, including food trucks and food carts, and food booths, serve around 2.5 million people every day.

Do you know when and where the food truck journey began? Let’s get into it.

Evolution of Food Truck Design

Chuckwagon is the ancestor of the American food truck. At first, it’s seen in the late 1800s in Texas, United States. The US Army used it to carry medical supplies, kitchenware, and food. 

In the 1880s, it came with a variety of models like the White House Cafe and the Owl with features that included cooking stoves, sinks, and refrigerators. It was also decorated with colored windows and attractive ornamentation. 

In the late 1950s, the U.S. Army used the modern food truck as a canteen on the stateside army bases. This mobile food truck was also known as "roach coaches" or "gut trucks.” 

After the great recession worldwide between 2007 & 2009, the cooks were suddenly without work, and the food truck seemed the clear choice to them. Compared to the brick-and-mortar restaurant, a food truck could be run with a minimal investment.

Actually, the number of food trucks increased in the United States in the 2010s. And finally, it got popular in 2011 across the United States. Now, the food truck industry is a $1.2 billion industry. 

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What Is Food Truck & Food Truck Design?

A food truck is a mobile kitchen that prepares, serves, and sells different items dishes. It’s a rolling billboard that attracts customers to take food. The food truck business is a big opportunity for entrepreneurs to start food service with affordable capital rather than the expensive brick and mortar commercial restaurant. 

The food truck serves the customers in several ways, including taking meals sitting in front of the van, takeaway, and delivery services. 

Food truck design is a sketch to build a food truck in a pragmatic and workable way. A food truck design is the foundation of building a food truck business. On the other hand, the design of your food truck focuses on how you want customers to feel to see your food van. 

What Should You Consider Before Food Truck Design?

Your food truck is your business’s future. So think first about what you are precisely focusing on. In this case, you need to develop your food truck layout by following some important things. 

Besides, you have to consider-

• Efficient space for the operations
• Keeps your staff jolly
• Enables the customer experience and so on.

The following questions you have to answer while thinking about the food truck design. 

• What is your budget?
• What is on your food menu?
• What utensils do you require?
• How will you run your food truck?

In addition to this, it’s not only about the quality food but also your food truck’s color, logo, and overall vibe. The customers come to associate your food based on something else rather than your food items.

Well, let’s find out the ultimate solution to your food truck design based on your questions. 

7 Basic Steps Of Food Truck Design

Your food truck design is the basis of creating a brand value. It eases the way of branding your food service.

Suppose you have a minimal design of your food truck, and you have loyal customers. In this case, you have to work twice as hard. 

On the other hand, if your food truck expresses itself what you are offering, it helps the customers to make sense. 

Well, the scenario can differ in another situation. For instance, your food truck at any festival or fair. There Are vast numbers of customers, and they have dozens of choices. In this case, it’s impossible to serve your customers and, at a time, make them aware of your items through the window.

So, it’s essential to understand the importance of food truck design. Let’s explore the magnificent and fruitful steps of building a food truck.

Step 1: Licensing For Food Truck

Yes, it’s the first and foremost step to build your wheel. When anyone thinks about the food truck design, it’s mandatory to think about the license or permit at first before anything else.

If you asked any food truck business owner what actually matters while launching their food truck, maximum business owners would say about the licenses and permits.

The regulations of every local are different. The local code can affect your food truck designs and choices. Some essential permits that you should concern about are the following-

• Proximity restrictions
• Employees regulations
• Emission instructions 
• Parking permission

Well, it seems a boring or annoying step, but it is the crucial one. Wherever you want to run your business, your food truck design ideas should be adaptive to your local regulations. 

You must have explicit knowledge of the license type that you need in your state or province. Moreover, you can review the design plans before the execution through the local government.

Although it’s a tiresome task, you are free to run your wheel once you are done with it. 

Otherwise, you have to count the hefty fines and redesign your food truck down the road.

Step 2: Finding Out A Food Truck Designer

The exterior food truck design affects the food truck business considerably. In this regard, you have to search for a good designer if you are not an artist or designer.

And it's more important to hire a professional designer. Your designer must be concerned about your food truck’s vision. So while designing your truck, the designer should consider your feedback.

You will get ample options here to choose a designer based on your requirements and budget. For a lower budget, you can create your design from an art student who is looking for a portfolio for a lower budget.

Although you can hire an amateur designer in this case, like having little experience on it or enthusiastic fresh graduates, the best option for you is the professional designer.

Some expert designers can provide you with exceptional design. You can accept that if it suits your ideas and goals.

Step 3: Designing Your Food Truck Menu

Designing the food menu is an inevitable part of your food truck design. While creating the food menu, you have to consider your branding and color scheme.

Sometimes, the food truck owners use the chalkboard to demonstrate the available items. You can choose that but one thing you must remember is that it should be changed periodically.

On the other hand, your food menu should be printed professionally. Well, which system can you choose, either printed or chalkboard sign?

In this case, it’s up to you because you can rotate your dishes frequently or fix the items you want to serve for a long time.

For the first practice, the chalkboard sign will be suitable for you, and the latter one is perfect for a printed menu.

Make The Menu Legible

Whatever system you follow, the most vital thing you have to remember is that your food menu is readable or legible from a distance. You can follow some restaurant menu designs to make outstanding menus for your food truck.

Suppose your customers are waiting in line to place the orders or take a meal. If they can see the menu items while standing in line, it’ll be easier to choose the right menu with a minimum time. As a result, your customers can save their time and enjoy their moments.

Step 4: Choosing The Suitable Vehicle 

Okay, you can choose your food truck before or after planning the food truck design. Some professionals think that it’s required to make a design before buying your food van.

On the contrary, other groups assume it is more effective to choose the vehicle first and then go for planning. 

Both of the ideas are acceptable and workable. But it’s a great concern what things should be considered while buying the truck.

You have to develop a solid vision for your design. It will help to focus on your efforts. 

Choosing the right vehicle is not the most prominent part but an essential part. You should be aware while buying the food truck about the following points.

Outlook

The outlook of your food truck should match your brand. The infrastructure of your truck can make sense to the customers’ minds.

Size

It seems like your choice is to choose the big size or medium size, or small size truck. Based on your requirements, you will go for the desired size. It may include-

• Equipment
• Inventory
• Staffs and so on.

Although if you can choose the big one if you need more space for your essentials, a small-size food truck gives you more flexibility like parking and maneuvering.

Type

You can go for a new ready-made food truck. Moreover, your choice can be a retrofitted one. If you want to customize your truck in your own way and choices, then a retrofitted one will be the best choice for you.

Power

You need the power to run your food truck. So while choosing the vehicle, you have to be determined which type of power you will use.

Depending on your activity or movement, you should select the power option. There are many ways that help you run your truck affordably and sustainably.

The power sources can be-

• Generators
• Fuel or
• Solar panels

Suppose you need to move a long distance, or you will go to remote areas for different purposes like festivals. In this case, fuel or biodiesel is the best option for you.

On the other hand, if you are not planning to move a long way, electric cars will be the perfect choice for you. Although you need to access charging stations, electric cars are cost-effective and sustainable. 

Step 5: Finalizing The Interior Design Of Food Truck

It’s a crucial step but designing the interior food truck layout is totally up to your choice. Suppose you need more equipment, more staff, and your serving system can be different from other thinkings.

So it’s impossible to provide you with one-size-fits-all advice on this topic. 

For instance, you will need a commercial freezer if you think for the ice cream business. Besides, the size of the freezer depends on your sales volume. 

On the other hand, you will require a deep fryer provided that you serve hot empanadas. So the interior design of your food truck fully depends on your choice whether you go for a floor model or countertop. 

The design can vary based on the size as different sizes of the food truck have specific designs like small food truck design, medium-size, and giant food truck design.

Popular Professional Designers for You

Across the USA & Canada: Apex Specialty Vehicles

Chicago: Mr. Kustom

New York City: Shanghai Mobile Kitchen Solutions

Toronto: Unique Food Truck

The well-known food truck layout designers will help you to complete your interior design. If you are experienced, you are welcome to do it. Otherwise, you must contact a professional designer because they know well how the layout can assist you in improving your workflow.

What About Your Kitchen?

Well, you can get a basic idea that is essential for your food truck kitchen. Let’s take a look.

Floor: Commercial-grade laminate or vinyl will be the best as it offers a non-slip and durable floor. Besides, it is also inflammable.

Ventilation: The proper ventilation is essential for your food truck kitchen. In this case, you can use a hood fan and roof vent. In addition, you can add extra windows if possible.

Free Space: The proper room for movement is required. Sometimes, your staff can move with pans or hot pots, so you need to ensure the space.

Inventory: The convenient inventory design can help you to access your inventory easily.

Others: Emergency exits, ease of transition between workstations, etc.

Step 6: Combining Extensive Privileges

Well, your food truck has some primary requirements like the right vehicle, compelling design, perfect kitchen design, etc. But do you know that you also need some extra features?

The extensive features can make your food truck design more special and more productive. 

Awnings: The awnings of your food truck can help your customers to keep them safe from rain. It is also helpful for your food truck.

Fans: In the summer, your hungry customers can feel comfortable if you have fans.

Multimedia: If you demonstrate your food items to the customers through a slideshow, it attracts more customers. In this case, a TV or monitor helps you.

Moreover, you can manage a speaker to entertain your customers by playing music.

Washroom: A food truck bathroom makes your staff happy and tension-free. You can face difficulty finding a bathroom while moving to another place to run your business. But this extension ensures a great privilege.

Step 7: Integrate A Food Service Management System With Website

Okay, let me clarify the reason for integrating a dynamic website for your food truck business at first.

Now, you have a perfect vehicle, and your food truck design, both interior or exterior, is persuasive and compelling.

Do you think only your food truck physically can create brand awareness? No, definitely not.

Nowadays, customers look for any online services and then go for the physical evidence or online delivery system.

What are you thinking? If you can create a portfolio of your food truck business, you certainly get huge customers, and at a time, your branding will be done without any extra efforts.

This is the last step, but actually not. You have to choose the best package in the market that offers you complete food business management software with an eye-catchy website. 

How To Make Your Food Truck More Live & Dynamic?

The main difference between the food truck and the brick & mortar restaurant is that one is attempting to drive the customers to the restaurant, and the other is attempting to drive to the customers.

If your food truck design is not dynamic, it will be difficult to catch the attention of the customers. Some options that you have to consider while designing the exterior outlook of your food truck. 

Vinyl Wraps

Well, maybe you have heard the name of Vinyl wraps. It’s a popular and the most common method to design the exterior of a food truck.

The people install it for various reasons. Although it’s expensive and hard to install, people use it to make a strong brand value.

You can add different graphics related to your brand and art your logo on the truck. The printed design can grasp more customer’s attention towards your service.

Painting

Well, if you are concerned about the money and look for a cheaper but effective way like vinyl wraps, hand painting will be the best choice for you.

Hand painting is the alternative to vinyl wraps. It is more DIY-friendly. 

Hand painting is great, but one of the cons is the brand inconsistency. Let me explore.

When you have a website of your brand, you must have a brand logo. 

If the brand logo of your truck does not exactly match the logo of the website, it’s really a downside. When you use hand painting, you can face this problem.

But painting can be a great way to design your food truck. The attractive painting can give your existence in a crowded place.

Customized Art

You can make your food truck more captivating if you design it on your own choices. For instance, to make a better brand logo, you can use vinyl wraps.

And if you are interested in adding some graphics, you can choose them and paint them. In this case, you can cut your cost to wrap your truck rather than fully wrapped.

You will get different food truck design templates that are available on different sites.

How Advanced Software Assures The Growth Of Food Truck Business?

A business owner always looks for a way to grow the business in the long run. But all of them don’t follow the same way.

Advanced and intelligent business owners introduce new strategies and unique ideas. Besides, to keep pace with the time, they adopt new technology that enhances overall business performance.

The digital and modern software helps the food truck business to ensure future growth in several ways.

Creating A Brand Awareness

Advanced software provides you a responsive website, and the customers can easily find your food services internet.

You can cover a large number of customers through your online food services, and they can place an order through your website.

Besides, the food service management software makes your service more convenient. In this case, the user experience will be increased.

Perfect Order Management

You will get orders from both online and offline. But how can you manage the orders?

The modern software helps you to track your every order perfectly and make sure the customers get the desired orders within the right time.

Efficient Staff Management

As a food truck business owner, you need some staff to run your entire service. The HR management system helps you to monitor and evaluate the performance of the employees.

In this case, the working efficiency of the employee increases. 

Accurate Accounts Management

The regular activities of your food truck business are several, but the accounts section is much more important. 

The account management system assists the food truck business owners to maintain and handle the costs and expenses of your business. 

Real-Time Supply Management

When you can build a better relationship with the suppliers, you can easily improve your supply chain management. 

But the advanced software helps you to communicate with the suppliers and you can easily track the supply process through this system.

Proper Inventory Management

The stock of your food truck is a basic part of your business. You need to track the product in and out and the available stock of your inventory from time to time. For these, you must have a proper understanding of the inventory management system. 

The automation system helps you to list down all products in and out date and time. And you will get notified in real-time about your inventory. 

Timely Delivery Management

Your online orders can be an excellent future for your food truck business. It’s not possible to come out on the road with your truck. If your online delivery management is controlled properly through advanced software, it will help you to enhance your customer satisfaction level.

Reporting & Analytics

Now you can forecast your business future. When you will get your business review at the end of the day and at the end of the month, you can overlook your business growth or improvement, you can forecast your business easily.

Is The Digital Food Service Management Software Cost-effective?

Well, the time is to search for a cost-effective solution. When the corporate world is getting more competitive, and the food truck business is increasing day by day with popularity, you need to gain a competitive edge over your rivals. But how?

The cost-effective solution. Yes, automation software that can track and manage all your business activities is your business solution. 

The digital food service management software is cost-efficient as now you don’t need to be panic about your business monitoring and accounts management. 

Besides, now you can save time and costs. The additional costs are cut down. The productivity of the food truck business will be increased as the staff can enhance the working efficiency. 

So the new and productive software can be the best and cost-effective solution for your food truck business. 

Drive Your Food Truck’s Wheel With an Online System!!!

Suppose, your food truck business has a perfect and compelling design. Now you can run on your wheels and provide services to the customers.

Do you think about your business and the future of your business? 

Don’t worry, now the modern software shows the future of your food truck.

The online food ordering management software offers a time-worthy solution to foodservice business owners. Now you can control, manage and monitor all essential activities through this system.

Your customers will get more satisfactory services so the retention rate will be increased. Besides, your productivity and profitability can be assured through using advanced management software. 

Conciseness

Sometimes our new strategies and ideas may not be effective. But the current and upcoming technologies are designed to consider the business requirements so that they can be your business solution.

As the interior and exterior design is important to you, the improvement of the efficiency of your business operations by using the latest technologies should be considered side by side.

The fuel helps you to run your vehicle. Likewise, digitized and optimized management software is the fuel of your food truck business.

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