Business Essay Sample: Food Truck in Hong Kong

The food truck is an excellent business to engage in but not for the young people of Hong Kong. As indicated by Sharon Bernstein in Los Angeles time’s newspaper article in 2011. She clearly indicates that starting a mobile food business is not cheap at all. The business poses many challenges to the youth thus making it impossible to engage in this business. The challenges include:

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Food truck and equipment expenses

The cost of buying a fully equipped vehicle, which has a gear inside, customized interior including design, kitchen gears and generators, costs a fortune as well as wrapping the vehicle with fancy vinyl graphics to attract the customers (MingPao, 2016). With this in mind, this business will pose many challenges for the young people who are trying to make ends meet and who are jobless. The cost incurred here is not easy to cater for hence the business is not suited to benefit the young generation in Hong Kong. If all of the equipment including the vehicle is to be new as per the environmental science policies in the health sector, then this business proves to be impossible to the young people of Hong Kong getting the business started. Included in this is the expense of hiring a driver who will be driving the food truck from one place to another, as well as hiring fully trained and licensed cooks who will prepare the food (MingPao, 2016). This translates to more expenses and may not be easily affordable to the young people who want to engage in food truck business.

Government restrictions

Another challenge that stand in the way of the young people engaging in the food truck business the resistance from the government laws like in the case of hawkers being driven away from the Kweilin Street Shui Po during the Chinese new year celebration. There has been set rules that there should only be two food trucks at one place with each selling its food variety so as create an atmosphere for people to purchase food. This is quite a challenge especially for those young people who are just starting the business and cannot find the specific point where they can set their truck to sell and with enough customers (Yau, 2016). With this resistance from the government, it will be hectic for the young people of Hong Kong to carry out such kind of business. Most of the young people are new in the business sector hence these policies will just tie them down and discourage them the more. The issue of a food truck is likely to take a political turn when it comes to policy formulation. This would just prove the situation much harder especially when those in power do not agree to come up with the common regulation of this business. To add onto the top of this harassment from the government, these young people are likely to face challenges from town hooligans who might steal their food or as well the money that they will sell (Food Truck Pilot Scheme - Scheme Introduction, 2016). They may go to the extent of vandalizing the trucks since the young people may seem too weak to defend themselves. If this business is allowed to take place, then there will be congestion in the city of Hong Kong that will fetch far worse implications in the city. This problem of city congestion should be avoided at all cost and should not be allowed since it will hinder other important developments in Hong Kong.

Unsatisfied customers

The third reason why the young people of Hong Kong should forget about the truck food business is the fact that people have been complaining that the food leaves an awful taste in their mouths after eating the food from these food trucks. People shy away from these trucks and prefer buying food from other sources rather than from the trucks (PMQ 元創方 | Hong Kong Food Truck Festival 2016, 2016). This creates a bad reputation about the business by discouraging people from eating from these trucks and thus it would be advisable for the young people of Hong Kong not to put all their resources in the wavering business. Many people would incur the expenses they used to purchase and completely modify the trucks as well as the compliance cost. When people shy away from purchasing food from these trucks, then the food goes to waste which is a huge loss to the young person who is trying to make a living. Time, on the other hand, may discourage these young people from engaging in this business since most of them are students who have a tight class schedule that cannot allow them to operate their business properly. Delegating the business to a second party is a significant risk that may lead to massive losses if the business lands in the wrong hands.

Conclusion

The food truck business is posing a challenge to the young people of Hong Kong due to factors including tight and strict government laws and regulations, expenses purchasing the food truck as well as the necessary equipment necessary to the business as well as bad perception and attitude from the customers towards the food sold in these trucks. It is thus of no effort for these young people to engage in such a business which proves to be this hard, tiresome and time consuming.

References

MingPao. (2016). Life.mingpao.com. Retrieved 16 October 2016, from http://life.mingpao.com/cfm/learn3.cfm?File=20150424/lncritica/0424critica01.txt

PMQ 元創方 | Hong Kong Food Truck Festival 2016. (2016). PMQ 元創方 | Hong Kong Food Truck Festival 2016. Retrieved 16 October 2016, from http://www.pmq.org.hk/event/hong-kong-food-truck-festival-2016/

Tourism Commission - Food Truck Pilot Scheme - Scheme Introduction. (2016). Tourism.gov.hk. Retrieved 16 October 2016, from http://www.tourism.gov.hk/english/foodtruck/foodtruck.html

Yau, E. (2016). Hong Kong’s food trucks scheme leaves operators with a bad taste in the mouth. South China Morning Post. Retrieved 16 October 2016, from http://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/1945660/hong-kongs-food-trucks-scheme-leaves-operators-bad-taste-mouth