Although permits for food trucks in Metro Vancouver and Victoria have increased steadily over the past five years, the industry is still dealing with an 80% fail rate, according to a new Vancity report titled Keep on Food Trucking: Supporting the mobile food service industry in Metro Vancouver.
There are more than 300 food trucks in British Columbia’s two most populated cities with total annual revenue of around $50 million, but 29% of all food trucks are not profitable. The average food truck has profit of around $31,300, according to the study.
The biggest problems for operators include regulations, licensing and cost structures.
Steve Ewing, who runs the Yolk’s food truck on the corner of Dunsmuir and Beatty close to the Stadium-Chinatown Skytrain station, said it’s also hard for vendors to get a read on how the city is handing out location spots.
“I don’t really know how they pick them. It’s handled by the Department of Engineering with the city. This is no criticism of the city as I know it’s been a tough program to get going, but it’s just impossible to tell how they’re doing it.”
Ewing, who is also the president of the StreetFood Vancouver Society said the high fail rate of food trucks, outlined in Vancity’s study, is similar to restaurants.
“It’s as hard for a food truck as it is for a restaurant to get off the ground. Although the operating money you need is lower, the money you bring in is lower. I mean, it’s easier to get a food truck off the hop than a restaurant, but they still have that same high fail rate as a restaurant does, for different reasons.”
Ewing is actually looking at selling his Yolk spot as it’s a breakfast-themed truck close to Rogers Arena and BC Place, and also because he has another truck in another location and is now also operating a Yolk’s restaurant at 1298 East Hastings Street.
“It’s the single most important part of the business,” said Ewing when asked about how location plays into a vendor’s success. “You could be selling a brick with some tomato sauce on it, but if you’re on the sunny side of the art gallery you’re going to do okay.”
Jason Apple, owner and operator of Roaming Dragon, which has two food trucks, said the city currently has a moratorium on new licenses.
“A few years ago they went through an extensive process where they revamped the system. They polled Vancouverites as to what type of food they would want to see, then asked vendors to submit a business plan and then they did a food tasting for the shortlist, and then handed out spots according to that.
“There has been turnover in the downtown core where you have a fixed address east of Main and south of False Creek, but now they’re holding off on adding in new ones, they want to make sure the ones operating there are viable and sound businesses, and not just replace food trucks that failed with new food trucks that will fail.”
