By David Mann | KVEWTV.com
Want to open a food truck?
Mobile Vending University is a program in the Tri-Cities offering classes to locals looking to start a food truck business. Its next session starts Saturday Jan. 28.
Mariliou Shea, director of the Pasco Specialty Kitchen, started the program in 2015 to give hopeful vendors in the area a running start.
“We give them the fundamental tools to get rolling in the right direction,” Shea said.
The program teaches everything from financing and operations to marketing and social media. It even helps participants find food trucks or trailers for sale.
One resident who completed the program last fall is Charlotte Williams. She and her husband Kelly plan to start a shop called KC’s Biscuit Shop, which will specialize in breakfast sandwiches and southern comfort food.
The couple initially planned to open a brick-and-mortar shop, but quickly realized it was too expensive.
Now they feel prepared to start a mobile food business, and they love the freedom to choose the location and events where they work, Williams said.
The program “opened our eyes to a lot of information” about things like health regulations, she said. She added, “It’s time consuming, but it’s worth it.”
http://kvewtv.com/article/2017/jan/20/food-truck-business-classes-help-local-community/
