Anyone with an interest in food might like to look for a career in catering. There are so many positive elements of working in that industry that it would be hard to list them all here. However, people are always going to need professionals in that industry, and so you should never find yourself out of a job. On top of that, many catering experts are allowed a certain level of creativity during their work, and so it could be a pretty fun way to earn your living. We’ve created a basic guide to starting your catering career in the hope of inspiring some more of you to get involved.
Find Work as a Sous Chef
The best thing about finding work at a sous chef is that you don’t need any qualifications, and you can begin working in a professional kitchen from day one. You could head off to college and get a cooking qualification, but most employers are far more enthusiastic if you have learned your skills on the job. To begin with, you’ll probably spend a lot of time peeling potatoes. However, you will learn lots of techniques from the head chef, and there will be opportunities to progress in the near future.
Get Basic Food Certificates
During your time as a sous chef, your employer should pay for you to get your food safety certificates. You’re going to need those when you finally launch a catering firm of your own. At the end of the day, you will never make a fortune cooking for another company. Now is the time to select your niche and launch something completely original. Perhaps you’d like to focus your efforts on catering for weddings? There tends to be a lot of money in that area.
Launch Your Catering Business
Now you know how you plan to make a profit, you can register your company. You’ll then need to start looking for premises and buying the right equipment. You’re going to want some specialist items like those supplied by Ampwire and their competitors, but it’s also a good idea to start looking at larger equipment too. No catering company can exist without big fridges and ovens, so you might need to raise some capital to get the essentials. At the end of the day, you’ll have to spend some money if you want to get involved with the best hands-on career choice. Once you have a space to work and all the right tools, you can start to advertise.
Obtain Reviews and Recommendations
Even with the largest marketing budget possible, you could still struggle to get enough work if you don’t publish reviews. A lot of people choose their catering specialist based on recommendations from friends and online testimonials. So, it could be wise to drop your prices and offer some amazing discounts for the first few months. That will encourage more people to use your services, and it should encourage lots of positive reviews that you could publish on your website.
Having learned the basics of starting your career in catering, we hope you will give it some extra thought over the next few weeks. It is possible to make a lot of money working for someone else, but you would need to find work in one of London’s most successful catering firms. The chances of that happening are slim, and so taking your destiny in your hands is often the best route. Don’t be afraid of starting a business, it’s not as complicated or stressful as you might think.