Cater to Build Pizzeria Revenue | Slice of Advice

Once you’ve built relationships with your local government and community, the next step is utilizing them to increase revenue by taking your offerings directly to customers. This move transforms your business from a local pizza shop into a catering operation, which increases your financial opportunities.

The beauty of catering is its flexibility. You can start small or go big: pop-ups, drop-off service, buffets, full-service dining, action stations, mobile trucks or even just chef drop-ins. The sky truly is the limit!

However, to cater well and ensure that you capitalize on this opportunity, you’ll need two things: a solid plan and a deep understanding of your customers.

Step 1: Build Your Catering Plan

Before investing in new equipment, you need to be mindful of what you currently have. Ask yourself, what type of catering can I offer right now?

At Simply Pizza, we’ve been fortunate to scale up our equipment over the years, but we didn’t start there. If all you have are boxes and standard to-go containers, you can make that work!

I break down catering opportunities into four core categories:

Corporate

Reliable, year-round revenue. Think luncheons, staff appreciation events, annual holiday parties and promotions.

Social Events

Consistent, year-round business with less pressure than weddings. This includes birthdays, anniversaries, graduations and other celebrations.

Weddings

High-revenue opportunities – but they are seasonal and high-pressure events.

Concessions (Non-Public)

Events where you serve a captive audience, and the organizer covers the cost (e.g., slices for a school event or VIP offerings at a large community event where you already are set up).

Start building a successful catering plan by defining your target categories. It is perfectly OK only to focus on corporate and social events and leave weddings for the next guy or vice versa. You just need a plan! You can always add other categories as your experience grows. The coolest thing about driving your own business is you can build organically on to it.

Step 2: Understanding Your Customer

After I break down events by category, I dive into whom I’m serving. Remember: You are the expert; you control the narrative and the sale. Defining how and where you will cater naturally filters your target clients, but you’ll still need to understand their personalities.

There are four main types of catering clients. Let’s break down each one into a client profile to learn how to maximize sales:

The Clueless Client

This client is often in charge of making an event happen but has little experience with events or food service (e.g., a welcome dinner, a surprise birthday or a bachelor party). You are the driver in this relationship. You aren’t just catering, you are creating the game plan. When it comes to serving the Clueless Client, it’s not just about taking the money, it’s about creating an exceptional offering and service to capture the full budget. This customer can become a repeat client if you make them look good and eliminate their stress!

The Carefree Client

This client is a vibe! They could be hosting any event, and they trust you’ll get the job done without worrying if your signage matches the décor. This client gets an estimate with all the bells and whistles and then eliminates what they don’t want. Starting with an all-encompassing menu allows you to capitalize on the full budget available, which they often failed to mention because they are so carefree!

The Indifferent Customer

These customers are typically handling corporate events, VIP festivals or social events that are just a small part of their larger work responsibility. Know the budget, use every dollar of it, and communicate that you will make them look good. Then, deliver flawlessly. This customer will use you for every event moving forward if you deliver and make sure that they look professional.

The Controlling Client

This client is almost always found in the wedding category, though you may find an outlier planning an anniversary bash. They take a lot of communication and energy. Don’t start here if you can avoid it. You need firm boundaries and all your catering systems and programming defined and documented. This client could become your best friend and provide the best reviews to help you seal your next big gig – or they could sink your ship!

MELINDA CARBAJAL is the CEO and managing member of Colorado-based Simply Pizza.

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