BBQ sauce is a favorite to add flavor to grilled meats.
Barbecue (BBQ) sauce is a complement to a variety of meats including beef, pork and chicken. While many people choose to cook with it, others use it as a dipping sauce. Opening your own business specializing in BBQ sauce can be profitable but also expensive to start. You can save money on the startup costs by learning start a home-based BBQ sauce business.
Instructions
1. Create a business plan. Determine make your BBQ sauce different from your competition as well as how you plan to sell and earn a profit. Know how much money you need to start your business and how long you'll need funding to cover the operating expenses until sales of your sauce earn you a profit. For assistance when drafting your business plan, consult the website of the U.S. Small Business Administration.
2. Make your own sauce. Develop your own recipe for BBQ sauce as this makes it unique and stand out from the competition. Hire others to make your sauce and buy the rights to use it exclusively if you can't come up with a recipe on your own. Make sure that if you do make it yourself, you get the recipe copyrighted so that no one else can use it. This can be done by contacting the U.S. Copyright Office. Have your BBQ sauce analyzed by a food nutrition lab as this gives you the calorie count and nutritional information that you'll need for labeling requirements once you begin selling it.
3. Seek funding. Take a copy of your business plan to a local bank or other financial institution, and use it to apply for a business loan. Make sure that your credit score and credit history are good enough to qualify for a loan and that there are no major problems on your credit report that would serve as a red flag to the lender. Take time to fix your credit report and bring your score up if it is low, as this can help you qualify for more loans and better rates.
4. Register your business. Check with your local zoning board to ensure that you can operate a business from your home legally. Obtain local business lessons from your city or county government and register with the health department as a food business. Take food-handling classes if required and complete walk-through inspections with a representative from the health department to have your home approved to produce food. Complete the employer identification number (EIN) form from the website of the Internal Revenue Service to register your business on the federal level while registering with the Department of Revenue at the local and state level to collect and pay sales tax.
5. Obtain supplies. Buy the ingredients you'll need to make your BBQ sauce. Consider buying these in bulk quantities to save money and increase your profits. Buy bottles or jars to distribute the sauce, making sure that a nutritional label is attached to each one. Buy shipping materials that allow your bottles or jars of BBQ sauce to travel across the country without breaking.
6. Sell your sauce. Make a website that allows customers to order your BBQ sauce directly from your home-based business. Network with local grocery managers to get your BBQ sauce on shelves in grocery stores in your area. Expand as the demand for your sauce grows. Provide free taste tests and samples during popular shopping times at grocery stores as well as other large scale public events such as fairs, festivals and even farmers markets.
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