Feeding Frenzy
This boot camp makes starting a catering company a little easier.
By Nichole L. Torres •
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
If you dream about putting hors d'oeuvres on littletoothpicks for large parties, you might want to check out yourlocal Catering Boot Camp seminar. Produced by Bill Hansen, founderof Bill Hansen Catering and LeadingCaterers.com, a website forcaterers and consumers searching for catering services, the bootcamps are one-day seminars held all around the country, detailingthe ins and outs of the catering business. "We walk[participants] through a step-by-step pro-cess," says Hansen."It's not a cooking school--we talk about how to start,menu ideas, where to buy insurance. Cooking is only about 20percent of the catering job."
Hansen's workshops give aspiring caterers the skinny on howto staff an event and gauge how much food to order, as well as thelogistics of serving a large group of people at once. Topics likeselecting linens, knowing your on-site facilities and timing anevent are discussed. Hansen even touches on the legalities ofserving alcohol at events and discusses developing a marketing planand website. The bevy of information offered at the Catering BootCamp should help dispel the most common catering myth: "That[catering] is an easy way to make a living," notes Hansen."It's hard work, and [people] overlook the number ofdetails involved."
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