Popcorn trading business. Method of production of popcorn Location of the outlet

Popcorn business- one of the most simple, low-cost and very cost-effective ideas for your own business. But, as in other forms of entrepreneurship in the food sector, you will need to pay attention to the selection of equipment, point of sale, personnel and method of preparation. This is the only way to create a truly working and successful business.

Popcorn is a hearty snack that can quickly extinguish hunger. Many people choose it because of its excellent taste. Some people like the sweet taste, while others prefer salty popcorn. Such "snacks" are eaten not only by children, but also by young people, and sometimes already by adult citizens.

The sale of ready-made popcorn in packaging is sold by many retail outlets, and fresh water is found only in cinemas and entertainment centers. But you can also offer nutritious treats in ordinary parks and crowded places. True, this format will be relevant in the summer season, and purchases will be spontaneous.

Aspiring entrepreneurs may wonder if selling popcorn is profitable or not. For a business to be truly profitable, it is necessary to learn about the advantages and disadvantages of such a business before opening a sales outlet. The advantages include:

no serious investment is required (which allows most start-up entrepreneurs to open a popcorn outlet);
the ability to open a profitable point even in a small town;
you do not need to rent a large area;
ease of making popcorn (staff will not need to undergo training or have many years of experience to work);
low raw material costs;
low operating costs (which significantly increases the profitability of this form of business).

But there are few downsides to such entrepreneurship. These include seasonality and the dependence of the level of profit on the correct selection of a place for sales.

This business has much more advantages, so selling popcorn as a business is a promising and interesting activity even for novice entrepreneurs. Let's consider how to start it from scratch in order to make significant profits, rather than incur losses.

If a businessman has not been selling popcorn before, then his first question will be - where to start a business, what factors should be taken into account? The most important thing is to choose the right place to sell. It is better to place the popcorn maker at points that have the following properties:

high cross-country ability;
places of rest.

Ideal options would be city parks, beaches, large playgrounds. You can negotiate the sale of popcorn in cinemas and entertainment centers, but only if they have not already entered into an agreement with other entrepreneurs. But in such establishments the rent will be high.

Some businessmen want to install popcorn machines in salesrooms, but this position is a losing one for the stores themselves, since part of the profits will go to an outside entrepreneur.

The ideal option is to sell popcorn near open-air ice cream shops. These two products do not compete with each other directly, but they are in demand among the same contingent - children, youth.

Purchase of the necessary equipment

Entrepreneurs working in the production and sale of popcorn argue that the vending machine does not affect the taste quality of the finished product, but cheap machines break down more often. The final cost will depend on the manufacturer's awareness. The most inexpensive models cost 8-12 thousand rubles. American counterparts cost about 45-60 thousand rubles. How to choose which machine to buy? The size of the planned profit should be commensurate with the cost of the machine. The payback will directly depend on its price, since all other initial costs are insignificant. If you plan to open a small kiosk, then you can get by with the budget option and return the investment in a month.

In addition to a popcorn machine, an entrepreneur will need:

a special trolley that allows you to transport the machine from place to place;
additional equipment (for storing raw materials, containers);
counter (for selling popcorn to customers).

It is better to choose small machines so that they can be easily transported. They have other advantages, for example, a pleasant appearance. Attention to the vending machine design will attract more consumers. You can put up a colorful beach umbrella, hang a sign, or decorate everything in a Hawaiian style.

When choosing a device, be sure to pay attention to its production capacity and compare this indicator with the planned sales volume.

You don't need to buy any expensive ingredients to make popcorn. Used corn and oil. Additional additives are used to enhance the taste:

You can buy corn ("butterfly" or "caramel") from domestic or foreign producers. In the second case, the cost will be higher, but the taste will be more pronounced.

For cooking, you can use coconut, vegetable, soybean or sunflower oil. But popcorn entrepreneurs advise using the following varieties of coconut oil:

yellow - for salted popcorn;
white - for sweet popcorn.

If you plan to sell both varieties of popcorn, it is better to purchase two machines at once.

To make the products really tasty, you need to adhere to the following storage rules:

popcorn must be stored in an airtight container (otherwise it will be too dry and unable to roast);
the oil should be stored away from light at room temperature (+28 0 С - the temperature at which the oil will begin to melt).

Recruiting staff for the sale of popcorn

To sell popcorn, you do not need to look for highly qualified specialists. Even students can do this. But the chosen person must necessarily have a health book. An annual inspection is required for all food service workers.

For the sale of popcorn, it is better to choose a young and enterprising person. Such people usually easily find a common language with clients, do an excellent job with technology, quickly serve visitors.

It is also necessary to pay attention to moral qualities - the employee must be honest, sympathetic, and diligent.

Financial results

To increase profits, it is better to buy raw materials in bulk in large containers. A package of popcorn weighing 20 kilograms will cost 2,000 rubles. To fry such a quantity of products, you will need oil in the amount of 1,000 rubles. And you will get about 800 servings to sell. If we assume that you can sell 100 servings in a day, then in a month you get:

3,000 servings of popcorn;
to prepare them, you will need 75 kilograms of popcorn - 7,500 rubles and butter in the amount of 3,750 rubles;
employees' salary - 40,000 rubles;
rental price - 15,000 rubles;
the cost of one portion is 50 rubles.

It turns out that the total costs for the month will be 66,250 rubles, and the income - 150,000 rubles. If you subtract tax deductions and some other fixed costs, then you can count on a total income of 70 - 80 thousand rubles per month from each outlet.

Popcorn business - up to 700% profitability, instant profit, payback in the first weeks of operation, ease of production and minimal equipment costs. Popcorn is the most popular delicacy at mass celebrations, a bright cart selling popcorn can always be seen in parks, near attractions, circuses, in shopping centers. As a rule, a queue of people wishing to enjoy freshly made popcorn constantly gathers near the cart. How Much Can You Make Selling Popcorn? To find out enough, familiarize yourself with the technology of popcorn production itself.

For the production of popcorn, corn grains of special varieties are used, which are classified according to the following characteristics:

Expansion (the volume of ready-made popcorn in cm³, obtained from 1 gram of grain, the higher the indicator, the greater the volume of production during preparation).
Humidity (should be in the range of 13 - 14%, if the specified storage limits are not met, the percentage of weediness increases sharply).
Trash (part of unopened grains during cooking).
Size (the size of the finished flakes is determined).
The strength of the finished popcorn.
The form of disclosure of ready-made popcorn.

The most popular and well-established variety of grains is "butterfly" which, in turn, is divided into categories - "small butterfly", "medium butterfly" and "large butterfly". The difference between these categories is in the characteristics of popcorn, which is obtained during the preparation process from corn kernels of the selected category.

"Big butterfly" - has a degree of expansion up to 44, strong, does not break.

"Medium butterfly" - expansion ratio 43, has the greatest opening, gentle, most often used.

"Small butterfly" - extension 42, used in home cooking, due to its increased fragility.

It is also recommended to use premium grain for making popcorn, sold in 23 kg bags, costing about $ 45 per bag. A sack of grain can make 800 to 850 standard cups weighing 1 ounce (28.35 grams) or 24 ounces (US standard), which is about 1 liter glass.

When making sweet popcorn, the expansion percentage is reduced by 10%, this is due to the addition of a sweet additive, sticky sweet flakes tend to thicken, while the yield of sweet popcorn will be 10% less than the volume of salted popcorn.

To make popcorn, you will also need vegetable oil, you can use corn, soy, coconut, palm oil, as a rule, sunflower oil is not used (it gives the taste of fried seeds), coconut oil is most often used, white for sweet popcorn, yellow for salty popcorn. Coconut oil is sold in containers of 23 kg and costs about $ 60. Coconut oil consumption is about 7 - 8 kg per bag of grain.

When preparing popcorn, sugar, salt, spices and other flavors are added; for a successful trade, you need at least two types of popcorn - sweet and salty.

Ready-made popcorn is sold in cups of various sizes, in cardboard cones or paper bags.

Equipment for organizing a business selling popcorn.

To sell popcorn, you will need a popcorn machine, cost from $ 500, a mobile counter or trolley to place the machine on it, from $ 300.

Also, an important point for the popcorn business will be the choice of a crowded, lively place for placing a shopping cart with the ability to connect to a 220V network, renting 2 m² will cost from $ 200 per month.

The profitability of a popcorn business.

Up to 850 liter cups of popcorn can be prepared from one bag of premium corn, the cost of one portion depends on the location of the trade, on average it is about 35 rubles per glass of popcorn. As practice shows, the popcorn business pays off quickly, with an investment of about $ 1,000, the point brings a monthly income of about $ 2,000 - $ 3,000, and on holidays, such as City Day, daily revenue increases several times. The popcorn business is very popular in tourist destinations, where, even with a high margin, there is a high demand for this product.

Popcorn is very popular not only among American blockbuster fans, but also among the Russian population. Popcorn is bought by everyone - both adults and children.

The easiest and cheapest way to start making popcorn is to work from home. You only have to buy an inexpensive household appliance weighing 1.5-2 kg and costing 80 USD, a bag of grain, special additives and packaging (you can even buy simple plastic bags). Finished products can be handed over to the nearest trade stalls.

The second way is to rent a place (2-3 sq. M.) In a large grocery store, cafe, campus, or right on the street, in a walk-through place where there are many teenagers and young people. Here you place your device on a table or, better, a special trolley. The cart is not cheap - about 500 USD, but in return you get various devices for placing consumables and the ability to move to any convenient place.

Experts do not recommend buying domestic equipment for the production of popcorn, it is unreliable and often breaks down. Imported cars are more expensive, but of better quality and are even equipped with a built-in hood, which will greatly facilitate the upcoming trip to the SES.

Approximate prices and performance indicators for some popcorn machines.

Model	Productivity, kg / h	Price, USD

HOPE (Russia)
STAR-39 (USA)
GALAXY 8Y (USA)
GALAXY 14Y (USA)
GALAXY 18Y (USA)

An important component of the success of your business is the assortment. Both the number of clients and your profit depend on it.

Special varieties of corn is the main ingredient for the production of popcorn. From one kilogram of raw materials, 60-80 servings of popcorn are obtained. A bag (22.7 kg) costs 34-36 USD.

In addition to corn, spices and special additives are used to make popcorn. COLOR POP salt, for example, gives the flakes a brown, green, pink or blue color. The cost of 1.8 kg of salt is 9.5 USD.

GLAZE POP makes the cereal sweet, giving it the flavor of strawberry, cherry, chocolate, and more, and breaks it into a blue, yellow, green or red candy crust. A package weighing 0.8 kg costs 4.5 USD.

FLAVACOL is a fine salt with carotene that gives flakes a flavor and color that will attract customers. 1 kg of this supplement costs 3 USD, and from 0.5 to 1 teaspoon is consumed for 6-8 servings.

Spicy SAVORY MIX additives give popcorn the flavor of cheese, pizza, sour cream with onions, bacon or barbecue. This popcorn is very popular not only among children, but also among adult beer lovers.

Coconut oil gives corn flakes a characteristic and appetizing yellow color, a special taste and aroma. The oil is delivered in barrels of 22.7 kg, costs 65 USD and has a long shelf life.

As for packaging, the choice is wide - from plastic bags to multi-colored cups made in Russia or abroad. The price varies depending on the form and manufacturer - from 0.01 to 1 USD per piece.

Boiler cleaners and metal polishing pastes are also indispensable, as are accessories such as bag wrappers, flavor separators, popcorn shakers, hanging billboards and POP CORN paper hats.

Calculations.

Homemade popcorn.

American-made device STIR CRAZE - 80 USD

bag of grain - 35 USD,

special food additives -20 USD

Packing - 15 USD.

With a wholesale of 1,500 servings of popcorn at $ 0.2, your income is $ 268 per week. Weekly profit (excluding expenses) - 198 USD, monthly - 792 USD.

Street trade.

rent (200 USD);

corn (245 USD);

food additives (140 USD);

packing materials (105 USD);

electricity (15 USD)

higher capacity apparatus

Total - 685 USD

Assuming a working day of at least 8 hours, you will be selling approximately 350 servings per day at $ 0.26. Your monthly income will be about 2,730 USD. Profit (net of expenses) - about USD 2,025 per month.

Based on materials from the website www.equipnet.ru

Your business is more obediently profitable, profitable and popular. Investors are attracted by the low entry threshold - just $ 1,000 is enough to organize one outlet, high profitability - up to 700%.

Popcorn is sold by seasonal street vendors, grocery stores, shopping malls and entertainment complexes. This business can be both the main, independent and additional source of income for children's attractions, in parks of culture, sports palaces, game centers, supermarkets, shopping malls and supermarkets.

Popcorn Making: Site Selection

A small area of -1.5x1 m2 is required to accommodate a popcorn machine.

In the warm season, it is profitable to trade on the central streets, in the zoo, parks of culture and recreation, in the area of tourist attractions. The minus point in the open air is the seasonality; in winter, popcorn is bought badly.

This disadvantage is absent in closed premises - shopping centers, cinemas, entertainment complexes, sports palaces. Moreover, in these places, popcorn is sold much more expensive, the difference in price is at least 10-20 rubles. As for the cinemas, it is very difficult to get there, since they themselves organize the popcorn trade.

Popcorn Production: Equipment

Popcorn equipment is produced in the USA, China, Europe and Russia. American technology is considered the most expensive and reliable.

The cost of an apparatus for making popcorn ranges from $ 400 to $ 1.7 thousand, depending on the country of origin. The price of a trolley for such machines ranges from $ 300 to $ 1,000.

The popcorn trolley allows you to install the device, includes a trading place and a box for storing raw materials and packaging. As a rule, carts are designed in the form of trailers, old musical devices.

Popcorn Production: Raw Material

The main raw materials for popcorn are special varieties of corn and vegetable oil. Salt, sugar, spices, caramel and other flavoring additives give corn taste.

Popcorn corn is used in strictly defined varieties. In professional circles, they are called: "medium butterfly" (increase in volume by 43 times), "large butterfly" (increase by 42 times), caramel (increase by 36-38 times, used for sweet and caramelized popcorn).

Vegetable oil is used coconut, palm, sunflower, soy, mainly coconut, and yellow coconut oil is used for salty popcorn, white for sweet.

Special attention should be paid to the storage of raw materials and finished products. Coconut oil is stored in sealed bags as it melts at 28 degrees. Corn is stored in sealed bags so that it does not dry out.

Popcorn Production: Packaging, Related Products

For packing popcorn, paper bags, cones, glasses are used. Paper bags and cones are cheaper in price, but inconvenient for the seller and the buyer. It takes the seller extra time to open the bag and fill it with corn. Glasses are much more expensive, but more convenient to use. Sealed glasses with a lid allow you to store popcorn for several days. The most popular sizes are 32, 46, 64 grams.

You can supplement the popcorn trade with drinks. The fact is that popcorn is a dry product and makes you thirsty. The sale of bottled and draft drinks will increase the point's turnover and sales of the popcorn itself. According to various estimates, the income from related products is about 30%.

Popcorn Production: Price

The cost of the finished product consists of the cost of raw materials, rent, transportation costs, and the seller's salary. The seller usually receives a percentage of the proceeds. Knowing the cost of production, you can calculate the margin by analyzing the prices of other points. The highest markup is in cinemas, and the lowest is in stores where popcorn is a related product. Popcorn revenue can range from 300 to 700%.

An example of calculating the cost of a glass of Popcorn (33.4 g)

Salty popcorn

Ingredients	Qty (g)	Price per kg (rub.)	Cost (rub.)
Corn
Coconut oil

Popcorn glass
Spicy addition

Total: 5.15

Sweet popcorn

Total: 6.54

Based on the article by Ekaterina Burtseva for the newspaper Delovoy Petersburg

Popcorn does not need advertising, it is adored by both children and adults. After all, you can rarely imagine going to the cinema or to an amusement park without popcorn or cotton candy. Children simply adore these dishes, and parents buy them with pleasure. In this article, we will look at a business plan for opening a popcorn outlet, you will learn how to choose raw materials, equipment and where is the best place to start a trade.

But not everything is as rosy as it would seem at first glance. There are a number of reasons that generate huge competition in this sector:

business simplicity
minimum investment in equipment
popcorn popularity
business mobility
no special skills required.

All these factors, at the same time, discourage newcomers who do not want to constantly compete and improve their business.

Popcorn is often sold as an additional service to an existing business, for example, in a cinema, or near children's playgrounds.

In this article, we'll take a look at the most seasonal activity, street popcorn vending.

The documents

The first thing you will need to do is register the popcorn sale as an official business. To do this, you need to draw up all the documents and obtain the appropriate permissions from the inspection services.

register as an individual entrepreneur.
indicate OKVED on the activity. For Russia, this is the code 52.62, 52.63. For Ukraine - 47.
from permits, a lease will still be needed.
you must have quality certificates for equipment and raw materials.
register the staff and the employee must have a medical book.
if you work on private land, then you will need to sign an agreement with its owner, if in places that are listed outside the city, you will need to contact the local administration to obtain all the necessary permits.
permission from SES.

Place to trade

When choosing a place for trade, a good option would be: recreation parks, places near entertainment centers, beaches, embankments. The maximum effect of business can be felt in the resort towns. Sales there are several times higher. Try to negotiate with the local authorities on the sale of popcorn at mass festivities, you will also get a good income. Simply put, the main goal of choosing a place is places for children with their parents, you need to clearly focus on your potential buyers.

Of the basic communications for a popcorn business, you need electricity. Washing and cleaning of the devices will need to be carried out daily, but this can be done on the basis of equipment storage.

Necessary equipment

Equipment in this niche plays an important role. Now there are a large number of devices on the market, for any wallet and already based on the start-up capital, entrepreneurs make their choice in one direction or the other. Among the most popular manufacturers are American, European, Chinese devices, as well as domestically produced equipment.

Since we are considering the format of a mobile business on popcorn, you will need the following retail outlet equipment:

tabletop popcorn machine, average cost - $ 300 - $ 500.
trolley with a compartment for transporting ingredients and other accessories.
consumables for the production of popcorn (oil, salt, flavorings, powdered sugar).
packaging products (napkins, paper cups of various sizes (portions), etc.).
sun umbrella.
stool for the seller.

On average, you will need about $ 1000 to complete one outlet.

As additional equipment, you can include:

freezers (ice cream and cold drinks).
apparatus for making cotton candy.

You will need at least another $ 800 for this equipment. But it's worth it, because often by expanding the assortment, you can significantly increase your profit, which will consist not only of the sale of popcorn.

Also, it is desirable to have a car to transport the equipment to the storage location.

Technology

The technology of making popcorn itself is quite simple, which attracts people in this business.

The entire technological process can be divided into several basic steps:

the equipment warms up to 200 degrees Celsius.
oil and grains of a special type of corn are loaded into the apparatus at the bottom.
add flavorings (salty or sweet).
after turning on the device for a few minutes at high temperatures, you will have a finished product.

As you can see, one of the advantages of this business is that you constantly prepare fresh products, and they are guaranteed to be delicious. Raw materials can be stored for a long time.

Raw materials and suppliers

Now let's talk about the raw materials for making popcorn. It should be said that it is very easy to get it, and the price tag quite allows you to make a high mark-up on the finished product, which is good news for entrepreneurs.

Here's what you need:

special varieties of corn.
butter.
flavors: sweet and savory.
packaging products.

Now let's take a closer look at all this. Corn is mainly used in American production. There are two of the most popular varieties: Butterfly and Caramel. The butterfly is used to make various kinds of popcorn, both salty and sweet. And Caramel is mainly exclusively for sweet products.

Coconut oil is often preferred when choosing an oil. It has a number of advantages: when making sweet popcorn, this oil gives a sweetish taste and does not burn, which improves the quality of the product at the output.

Of the flavors, salty ones are also distinguished: bacon, cheese, mushrooms and sweet ones: strawberries, cherries, raspberries and others. But in the initial stages, entrepreneurs usually make classic popcorn, and in the future, you can already experiment with flavors.

Either paper cups or paper bags are used from packaging. Glasses of popcorn business are preferred.

All raw materials must be purchased exclusively certified, and look at their quality.

Suppliers can be found via the Internet, but it is important not to fall for a fake, so that later the quality of the prepared popcorn, on which the reputation of your business depends, does not suffer.

How much money do you need to start?

Experienced experts advise you to start in the popcorn business from at least 3 outlets, only in this case you can get a decent income. You will need about $ 5400 to open 3 points.

You will also need a car, which we did not include in the cost.

How much can you earn?

One bag of raw materials (corn) weighing 25 kg can be purchased for $ 26. One bag makes about 1000 servings by volume 0.7 liters. Popcorn has an average retail price of about $ 1.2. Thus, 1000 servings will bring - $ 1200. You also need to subtract oil, additives and packaging - this is about 25% of the amount. Let's get what we can earn - $ 900. The payback of a business depends on the volume of sales. For net income, you still need to deduct taxes and the seller's wages. Having several outlets, you can make a profit - $ 1000 - $ 1100 net per season.

Conclusions. It is beneficial to open a popcorn business during the summer vacation season, near amusement parks, beaches and summer cinemas. Small investments and high demand for the product make the business very attractive, but at the same time, be realistic about the situation with competitors.

Do you have experience in this market segment? We are looking forward to your feedback and recommendations.

It might be helpful to read: