Start a Sandwich Delivery Business

Have you ever made a really great sandwich?  Not just a regular ham and cheese, but a three or four decker sandwich you shared with other people, and which everyone enjoyed and talked about for several days afterwards?

Did you ever consider starting a business based on your own sandwich designs and flavours?

And was the great idea subsequently shoved to a back burner, like so many great ideas with incredible profit potential?

The reason this business idea is set for success is down to the fact that thousands of people are sitting in their offices every day, eating the same sad ham and cheese with a wilted salad on the side, purely because they lack time or energy to shop for lunch further than the cheap deli a few doors away.  Imagine if these people could taste your delicious creation!   Imagine how much they might pay and how often they might order one of the sandwiches your friends and family are drooling over days after they’ve eaten it.  Now get to work promoting your service to people eating those boring sandwiches in their offices each day.

A sandwich service might be just the business for you if you live near office buildings or are willing to drive to them.  It is technically a home business, but it involves making outside deliveries.

The first thing you need are some great sandwich menus.  Experiment with friends and family to get the best ones and create a list.  Your product range should be fairly simple, no more than five or six options because you don’t want to stock a huge variety of ingredients.  Include at least one veggie sandwich for people who don’t eat meat, and list all the ingredients so your clients can let you know if they want more or less of  specific ingredients in their sandwich.

You might let customers create their own sandwich menus, by choosing their own type of bread, for example, and adding or removing specific ingredients from your main listings. If you work this way, try offering up to ten toppings and charge a base price for the bread and two flavours in a triple decker sandwich.  Charge more for the third flavour in a four deck compilation.  Just be careful when taking orders and double check all ingredients, because mistakes can be costly if the customer really dislikes something you put into the sandwich in error.

Include the client’s phone number and order form with your menu when you drop orders off. Design it so that everyone in the office wanting a sandwich can mark it down on the form, and so one person can phone the order in.  To encourage large orders, offer a discount if each business orders a certain amount of sandwiches, and you’ll have one full delivery per company.  Don’t forget to put your ordering deadline on the menu in bold letters.  Depending on the number of orders you have, this could be around 10:00 am to give you time to make sandwiches for a noon delivery.

Use all fresh ingredients and only make the sandwiches as they are ordered.  Anything with watery fillings, like tomatoes, should be made just before delivery so they don’t end up soggy.  Alternatively, you could place moist ingredients on the side of the plate and let your customers add them just before eating.  Wrap the sandwiches in wax paper or plastic wrap, and then place individual orders in paper bags, or wrap them individually in paper.  Write the customer’s name and sandwich type on each one.  Arrange for someone to receive the order and pay you on the spot, and for that person to subsequently deliver sandwiches to individuals who ordered them.

If you want to move on from sandwiches and grow your income, try offering soft drinks to your menu, and maybe crisps and fruit also.  Buy them at a bulk discount store and resell for regular prices.  You might also consider adding salads or desserts to your menu to bump up profits.  If all goes well, you will soon have to hire additional delivery people!