How to Become a Bread Supplier
DIFFERENT WAYS TO BECOME A BREAD SUPPLIER
So, you are thinking about supplying bread? There are many ways you can do just that! First things first... Do you want to own a route, or work for someone else? Then, also think about what kind of customers do you want; Grocery stores or Restaurants? Let me explain my story, and how I became a bread supplier.
See where I serve as a bread supplier in Central Florida.
DK BREAD DELIVERY
I, Daniel, have been an independent bread distributor since November of 2013. I started with just a few customers, and have built my business to the point I have 1 other employee, and currently about to hire someone else to help deliver.
MY EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND
After high school, I decided to go to college at a 4 year private school near Tampa, Florida. I earned my Bachelor's of Science in Computer Science in 2009, with minors in Mathematics and Business Administration. My dream was to program for EA Sports. I even had an interview. The problem was, even though I had my degree, I did not spend any time working internships or gained any experience outside of the classroom in my field. I was on the baseball team, and living on the beach; why would I want to spend time working?
AFTER COLLEGE
Instead of getting a job in programming, I was lucky enough to land a teaching position at my local high school. I was teaching Computer Animation and Game Design. I taught for a few years, but it was not quite what I wanted. I had to find something new.
BECOMING A BREAD SUPPLIER
After searching for something new for quite some time, my uncle called with an opportunity. See, he had been in the bread business for 20 years! He had his ups and downs with it, and at the time was on the downs. He actually was offered a job doing something completely different, and he knew that I was looking for a career. So after a couple weeks of training, I created my LLC, DK Bread Delivery, and got to work as a newly rejuvenated bakery distributor!
MY BREAD BUSINESS
DK Bread Delivery, LLC delivers fresh breads to local restaurants, markets, and delis. I have a handfull of diners, some sub shops, burger joints, and B-B-Q stops among some others. Most of my customers come to me directly for sales, and I handle their orders and payments personally. However, there are also some house accounts, which means they place their orders and handle payments through the bakery instead of going through me. I also currently have one other employee other than myself. He distributes bread to my original built, while I purchased a second truck and use it to deliver to new customers!
Mutt's On 13th is one of my favorite customers!
SELF-EMPLOYED OR EMPLOYEE
One decision to be made when becoming a bread distributor is, do you want to work for yourself or work for someone else? There are pro's and con's to each, and yet still more decisions to be made even after choosing one or the other.
Self-Employed Bread Supplier
Perks of being your own boss, means you are in charge! You can set your days and hours, and how you manage the route... Well, to some extent. Certain bakeries may only bake on specific days. For instance, the original bakery was closed for baking on Tuesdays and Saturdays, meaning I could not deliver on Sundays or Wednesdays. Restaurants may also have days off. Many of the more local restaurants are closed on Sundays, and sometimes Mondays. Grocery stores may be open very early to very late daily, but depending on the type of restaurant, breakfast diners versus sports bars for example, may have only early morning to lunch hours versus early afternoon to evening hours.
On the other hand, you will have to figure out your strengths and weaknesses. I know I am good at the physical labor and running numbers. However, I am not very fond of doing sales to increase my business. Depending on what you are and are not good at, you will have to delegate some of the work to others by creating systems that work for you and your bread company.
Driving For An Employer
As an employee of a business, you will have a lot less stress on your plate. You show up on time, organize your bread and load your truck, deliver on the route set out for you, clean up the empty bread trays, enter numbers into a spreadsheet, and go home! Sounds easy right? One of the downsides is that your pay is determined by salary. You will probably only be able to make more money by asking for a raise. But, if your employer agrees, you may be able to make commission on any new leads or customers that you bring into the business.
Interested in working with DK Bread Delivery? Apply on Indeed
COMMERCIAL STORES OR RESTAURANTS
When choosing a bread route to become a bread supplier, you can choose from doing commercial stores such as grocery stores and gas stations. However, you may choose to deliver to restaurants and delis instead. Commercial stores generally have a higher profit margin, but you will probably have to do all of the bread rotation and take back any bread that goes out of date. Restaurants, on the other hand, typically know about how much bread they are going to go through over a couple days time. Profit margins tend to be less, but you usually do not have to worry about returning moldy out of date items. Either way, finding the appropriate wholesale bread bakery is a must.
There is much more to break down, with plenty to think about when becoming a bread supplier. Determining who to work for, yourself or someone else, or which type of customer base you want are just opening barriers. With that said, I am very happy with the business I have created and worked hard on over the last 10 years, with many more years and happy customers in the future!
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