- Many sandwich shop owners choose to find a space to rent and have an actual brick and mortar location. This option does require more overhead than some of the other options for a sandwich shop or service. For a brick and mortar location, you'll really want to find a shop that gets a lot of traffic. This will result in a steady rush of customers. Sandwich shops can be as simple as a counter stocked with breads, lunch meat, vegetables and toppings or as elaborate as a kitchen in the back where sandwiches can be grilled or baked.
- Sandwich carts and trucks are another option for anyone who wants to run their own sandwich shop. A sandwich cart allows the owner to prepare the sandwiches at home and then take them to the location where they will be sold. There should be a way to keep the items refrigerated to avoid spoilage. Your clients with this type of service will likely be located in busy offices in a major metropolis. Some sandwich cart owners push their cart in front of office buildings (make sure you obtain any necessary permits) and others pull their trucks up to an intersection and park during lunch hour. This option works well with large construction sites, for example.
- Another option is to offer a sandwich delivery or catering service to busy offices. With this option, you take the orders ahead of time and deliver sandwiches to busy executives during lunch. Also, you can likely pick up some additional work by catering sandwiches for parties and other events. As this business grows, you'll likely need to hire delivery people and focus on making the actual sandwiches. It is also smart to limit the number of different types of sandwiches offered by your service to avoid confusion for the delivery person and to offer condiments, such as mayonnaise, on the side.
- Add on business can help make your sandwich shop more profitable. For a retail location, the sky is the limit. You can combine a coffee shop with your sandwich shop, offer soups and salads or even add a small bookstore or Internet cafe. For carts and delivery services, you may want to focus on adding items such as cookies, cakes and pies. Use your imagination and you're sure to come up with many clever ideas for growing your business.
- Although starting a small sandwich delivery service can be fairly inexpensive, the other options require some start-up costs. A sandwich cart requires not only the purchase of a refrigerated cart, but stock. A location requires costs to decorate, buy tables and equipment and rent. In addition, you'll have a lot of other overhead with a bigger operation, such as employee payroll and utilities. Because of this, it might be best to start small and work your way into a larger store at a later date.
