Pizza Delivery Please

Just a few days ago, I had the opportunity to explain how it came to be that a major pizza company's sign was above a vendor's tent.

This information is covered in the book Festival and Fair Vending 101 by Michael Wier, but I have also been involved in this situation myself.  It works!  Believe me, it does!

Here is a excerpt from Festival and Fair Vending 101;  (Please note the guys in the story below are not wanting people to know they have ordered their pizza from a local joint!)

The Pizza Kings

While doing a fair in Ft. Myers, Florida I decided to have some pizza for lunch so I went to the pizza trailer I saw earlier on the midway and ordered a slice.  While I was waiting I looked over the trailer as I always do, it wasn't anything fancy just a Waymatic with three serving sides, two counters, two ovens or, what I thought were ovens, and a fountain drink machine, drink cups and the usual paraphernalia.  After two or three trips over the week, it occurred to me I never saw these guys making pizza, so on my next trip I took a close look.  I found no refrigerator, no dough mixer or really any other equipment it took to make pizza.  Being an inquisitive (nosey) type, I decided to keep a quiet eye on the situation.  What I discovered was so simple yet so ingenious I was flabbergasted.

I did two shows with these two guys in south central Florida and here is their operation.  Before the show opens they go to a local pizza chain or store that has at least two locations, and contract for large regular pizza at $5 ea. and supreme multi topping pizza at $6.  They then sell the pizza at $2.50 per slice and usually every one buys a drink at $1.50 for small and $2.50 for large.  They sliced the pizza into six slices at a gross of $15 per pie plus $1 and usually $2 per profit on the drinks, pretty good profit, but here is the real story.  I found where they were stashing the empty pizza boxes behind the midway line ups.  These great entrepreneurs were selling 50 to 70 pizzas on a week day and 125 to 175 on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.  Let’s just use the lower numbers,

4,400 slices of pizza at an average of $1.50 per slice

= $6,600 gross profit

not bad, but we forgot to add the drinks, so lets say not every one bought a drink, and average the profit on drinks at only $1 per customer another $6,600, $12,000 to $15,000 gross profit per show. Not bad for two waiters serving pizza.

This is a simple how-to listed in Festivals and Fairs Vending 101.  Be sure to order your copy!

You can purchase either the book or ebook at Lulu.com. 

Just click here.

Have a great day scheduling your events!

Cindy