If you’re in the food business, finding a trustworthy supplier that can consistently provide quality food ingredients is vital in your operations. If you’re operating a restaurant or café, and you don’t have resources or expertise to bake your bread, you’ll need to get a bakery that can supply you with good quality bread that you can serve or use for your dishes at a consistent quality and quantity.
Franchises and Suppliers
When it comes to food franchises such as a hot dog franchise or burger franchise businesses, the franchisor often supplies you all the goods and raw materials that you need to sell and operate. But in some cases, the franchisor provides you with the main product (in this case, the hot dog or the burger patties, and the brand) and you’re either obligated or given the option to outsource from other suppliers and be able to customize your menus such as the bread and your sauces/toppings.
So whether you own a restaurant, café, fast food franchise branch, or a food truck, here are tips you’d want to keep in mind when choosing the bakery that will be supplying your bread:
Go Local or Go Wholesale?
Your supplier would heavily depend on what type of food business you have and who your target market is. If your business is aiming for “affordable and filling”, like a hotdog stand near a park or fair selling them at $3.00, then you’re better off finding wholesale bread sellers that are cheap and still tasty. But if you own a café, a food truck, or restaurant that wants to boast high-quality food at a reasonable price, then it’s best for you to partner with a local bakery that sells high-quality bread. Not only doesgoing for local bakeries allow you to have access to freshly baked bread, but you’d also be supporting the local community and could help market your business and brand.
Test Out / Ask for Samples
If you’re going wholesale, it’s best to taste test every wholesale bread brands that are accessible to you to pick which is the best to go with your product. For those going for local bakeries, asking samples of different types of bread from different bakeries would be a good idea. Also, it’s important to note that you don’t have to only source from one bakery; if one bakery specializes in breadsticks which are perfect for customers that are waiting in your restaurant, and another bakery makes exceptional French bread that goes well with your dishes, you could always set up a partnership with both of them.
Check Their Capacity and Contingencies
Lastly, it’s important to see if they can deliver the amount you need, at the timeline you set. Ask if they’d be able to deliver a fresh batch of bread every day on the dot. And you also need to ask them if they have any backup plans or contingencies if their oven breaks down or any other issues that would result in them not being able to deliver the bread supply your business needs.
Conclusion
Choosing your bakery partner, just like choosing the supplier of your café or restaurant’s other raw materials, shouldn’t be taken lightly. For restaurants and cafes where bread is often served while waiting or is used for your dishes, you wouldn’t want customers to have a bad start in their dining experience by having subpar bread nor would you want to serve high-quality dishes with low-quality bread. So if you’re about to start your foray into the food business, make sure to keep these tips in mind.
