How an UberEats Driver Started His Own Profitable Ghost Kitchen
Andrew Nguyen was messing around in the kitchen with his cousins during the pandemic when he realized he stumbled into the next big thing in the food industry: sushi pizza.
In episode 94, Andrew shares how you can make money in the food industry without opening a traditional restaurant.
Have you ever wondered what a ghost kitchen was all about? Have you considered combining sushi with pizza? You’re going to enjoy this episode.
What’s discussed in this episode? Here are some of the gems that you won’t want to miss:
- What a ghost kitchen is and how they make money.
- How Andrew went from being an UberEats driver to running his own restaurant.
- How to promote a food business in 2023.
- The profit margins for a ghost kitchen.
- How to find food influencers to promote your business.
Resource Links For This Episode
- Answer’s Restaurant: Kozu Sushi.
- Andrew Nguyen on LinkedIn: Andrew Nguyen.
Show Notes & Episode Guide
- 1:34 – What’s a ghost kitchen all about? Andrew shares the premise behind this business model. Andrew gives us a sneak peek into what’s involved with a ghost kitchen.
- 3:16 – Are there additional income streams for the ghost kitchen? Andrew shares how third-party apps take a huge chunk of the profit, but there are other options for getting around this.
- 4:44 – Do customers ever order food from Instagram? Andrew shares how he has been able to grow his business with social media. The conversation turns to the background of starting a food business.
- 7:25 – Andrew shares the math behind starting a ghost kitchen. The rent goes for about $2,000/month, and a fridge is about $1,000. With $4,000 all in, Andrew was able to start his own “restaurant.”
- 8:18 – How do you get by the health regulations to get approved?
- 9:30 – Andrew looks at the role of mentorship and how he got on the apps to offer his food.
- 11:00 – What are the biggest mistakes that new restaurants make? Why do so many fail in the food industry? We look at branding and understanding the business basics required to make it in this field.
- 12:40 – How did Andrew promote sushi pizza to the target customers? He shares how he was able to start multiple restaurants in one kitchen.
- 14:30 – Does Andrew hire different chefs for every kitchen? We look at the role of the cook in the ghost kitchen. The conversation turns to the popular dishes in the kitchens.
- 18:00 – What’s it like to be on food delivery apps? Do these platforms promote the business for you? Andrew shares insights into what it’s like to be on these channels.
- 19:30 – Andrew shares the profit margins involved in a ghost kitchen. The discussion turns to profit margins in the restaurant industry.
- 21:00 – How does Andrew find influencers for his ghost kitchen? He shares what he looks out for and the marketing budget that he sets. Andrew even brings up how he looks out for micro-influencers and how he tracks the effectiveness of marketing campaigns.
- 26:15 – How does Andrew feel about competition? He shares how you can differentiate your business to stick out. Andrew stresses the importance of having your customer return.
- 27:40 – How did Andrew decide on a sushi pizza business? He shares what led to the launch of this business venture.
- 29:10 – Where could you find the sushi pizza? Andrew shares future plans for the business.
- 30:15 – Andrew ends off with his words of wisdom on how to follow through on a side hustle for those who are interested in doing something similar.
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