Imagine this… You build your own hot dog cart. You take it out, fire it up and make $800 on your first day. Plus, you get to spend the afternoon with your loved ones. That’s what Dennis did over the weekend.
Have I ever told you how much I LOVE THIS BUSINESS!!!
Dennis writes…
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Steve:
Attached is a picture of the early morning set up for our first outing in Bisbee, Arizona, July 4, 2011. Underestimated product need. Grossed over $800. The E-Z Built cart was flawless. Used a lot of ice……..ideas for best insulated coolers? Pictured is my son-in-law and grandson.
Thank you,
Dennis Corderman
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Way to go Dennis! I’m proud of you. Looks like you have a real nice family too.
Let’s hear it for Dennis in the comments!
-Steve
Congratulations on a great start. I have my hot dog cart nearly ready and will be up and running for the Australian spring and summer. Nice legs, by the way.
Dennis. Cart look’s nice. This is my first year an I’m having a great time doing this with grandkids. Today we tryed deep fryed hot dogs they went over good. Hope you an your boy have fun make a lot of money while doing it. The Kids are doing a scrap book with pic’s of where we set up. Have fun. Richard in HOT kansas.
That is awesome!!! I’m so happy for you. I haven’t started a hot dog business yet… But hope to sometime in the future.. your story is very inspiring!!
Started building my cart last fall while home on workmans comp and had to stop because we lost our work space. We live in an apartment so I had to rent storage and then gained another cart and ran out of cash while being hurt. Then I went back to work in March driving a truck and didn’t have time to finish the carts so I purchased a cart from hotdogcarts.com and got approval from our town and just waiting for the cart so we can get to slingin soon!
You can’t argue with $800.00 the first day! I hope you have many more just like it.
Great name (Bisbee Hot Dog Co.), great colors, clean looking, professional look…what’s not to love. No question, I’d want lunch.
Congratulations to all.
Great first day! – I use the coleman 5 day @ 90 degree coolers. My 120 quart for pop uses about 20 pounds a day in 90 degree heat. In 105 it uses about 30 pounds. It stays @ 32 degrees 24 hours a day. I bought these at Wal Mart. I have tried others and none have had the cooling residual of this one. I have a 120 quart and a 90 quart, and both work equally well.
That is awesome. Congratulations on a job well done. Nothing like the hot dog biz. America wants hot dogs!! Street vendors rule!!
OUTSTANDING !!!! KEEP IT ROLLING!!!
PAY OFF YOUR BILLS!!! LIVE DEBT FREE!!!
TAKE THAT GRANDSON FISHING!!!GO
BISBEE HOT DOG COMPANY GO!!!!!WE ARE PROUD OF YOU HERE IN NORTH CAROLINA!!!
Way to go Dennis…! Not a bad way to start on your first day in “the business.”
Per your ice issue, especially on hot Summer days, we pack our pop cooler with pre frozen ice packs that line the bottom of the large cooler. This really helps to keep everything cold, and slows the rate of the actual ice melting. We’ll typically bring 12-15 bags of ice per day, and keep the ones not in use in a separate cooler that’s covered with an insulated blanket.
I think that Steve’s next cart design should include an optional equipment listing that includes an ice maker.
Man way to go, you must be on cloud 9. keep up the great work it only get better from this point on
Tony
congrats to you dennis! your making me wish I got into a 4th of july event this year. This is the 1st year i stayed home, for i live in arizona also, the 110 temp. was a factor. as for coolers in AZ. you just need lots and lots of ice.
Good deal, Dennis! Looks like you found a good spot, I like the idea of having lots of tables for your customers.Good luck with the ice issue, being in one of the hottest state’s I’m sure you will go threw alot of ice. A freind of mine who does carnivals use’s ice packs to help with the ice says it makes it last longer but I havent tried that yet! Best of Luck with the rest of the year and Welcome to the Hot Dog business
Sam
Congratulations the cart looks fantastic!!! Nothing like an EZ Built!!!!
Way to go! We are currently in the throws of building our cart and anxious to take it out. I hope we have an $800 day our first day out too! That would be terrific. Good luck and keep up the good work. P.S. Your cart looks terrific!
Coleman are by far the best coolers, hands down. Holds ice like nothing else!
God bless!
Grats on your inaugural outing!!
Great setup as well.
Question: Was this a July4th event, park locale or just a site with busy foot traffic?
Hi Guys,
I did a little research a while back and found that Yeti marine Coolers are the best on the market . Try this link or just type in marine Ice Chests as they are designed for use on boats to cool everything from Brewski’s and that 900 lb Tarpon you just caught . Hope this helps.
so i call Steve today via his cell phone, and guess what, this dude answers his phone even when he is on vacation!!! I do apologize for calling during that time, but i had to share with other Hot Dog Cart News followers. Its usually hard enough to call a company and not get the robo phone for hours or out of office reply. Steve gives great personal attention! I will be purchasing his 101 course soon!
Congratulations Dennis, All my ideas are still on the blackboard! I keep hearing I am nuts to try to get something going with the economy the way it is. Your story gives me hope and inspiration! Keep slingin and having fun.
Thank you all for kind comments. To Lee, it was a 4th of July event. We were adjoining a small park leading into a street that was closed for mining related competitive events. Got most of the “walk by traffic”
Thanks for kind comments. To Lee, it was a 4th event. Adjacent to a small park leading to a closed street that was set up for some competitive mining events……”drilling and mucking” to be more specific.
Great job I’m hoping to make at least half that this weekend at an event I’m participating in. Way to go keep up the great sales!
Congrats!!! Best of wishes and keep ip the Great job!
Awesome!!! Keep up the slinging and may you have a great summer season. Most importantly is to have fun at what you are doing.
John
cool. I also just got into the business to fill in my days between web design gigs. I absolutely love it. I have an older station BUT hope to build my own via Steve and his EZ Carts.
Great profession!
great i have to get my cart started this next year still buying and looking for the popcorn machine-griddle- mybe a chip & cheeze machine
best of luck to you from michigan
If you want an awsome cooler the best on the market is called “yeti”.. but be ready to roll out a good part of the $800 for a large one.. holds ice for about a 5 solid days… the Key is to “pre chill” your cooler so the hot air inside the cooler doesnt melt your ice
Whoo Hoo, with all of that income Dennis, I highly recommend Steves “Cash Tracker” bookkeeping program, if you dont already have in place. I have a degree, several years of experience in Accounting, and Cash Tracker is one of the best, accounting programs that I have seen, and used for small businesses. It is so simple, that a caveman can use it.
I’m happy for you, at this monut I’m trying to buy a dog care, but it looks like I have to be patience . my money funny at tihs time.
Great Job on first day out!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Just started my cart doing ok. Having trouble with a lady that sells snow cone in our county park. Working on that problem. ny suggestions??
Hey Steve using your cash tracker for a 5 day run, so far so good. I believe that is going to be the ticket. Thanks!!!!!!! Will Send pictures of my cart soon!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Congratulations on your great start, Dennis!
As far as the ice problem, have you tried the Coleman X-treme coolers. $37.88 @ Wally-world. They’re supposed to keep ice for days at a time…
Great job Dennis! Cart and set up look awesome! I have a question about product needs for the pros. How did you determine how much product you needed to start out with? I know as the days go on you can gage the need, but how may dogs did you start out with?
Just out of curiousity, has anyone tried “dry Ice” to keep things cool? Perhaps it might be overkill. Any comments?
great job on your new business, stay positive and and the income will stay steady.
OK Dennis..Here is the best tip you are ever going to get regarding ice usage and coolers. I have had the same coolers (Coleman) for 5 seasons now. First you need to store your coolers completely filled with canned products and ice for the next day in a walk in cooler…also keep all your spare beverages in the walk in as well…never put warm beverages in your cold coolers..it will reduce your ice by 50% …we have the coldest beverages in Indiana and that’s how we do it…Hope it helps..Happy Jack’s Hot Dogs, Greenwood, Indiana..
Congratulations on an awesome first time out! Love the logo!
Dennis you know AZ heat and ice are mortal enemies. I use to buy four bags of ice just to make it home with 2 lol. But try wrapping your coolers in Reflectix Bubble Pack Foil http://www.acehardware.com/product/index.jsp?productId=1296201 from your local Ace Hardware. Dry ice might be a better option as well. Worth a try. No guarantee either will work. Ice & AZ just don’t mix. Good luck. And fantastic job!
BYW I see you are using cinder blocks to weight things down. That AZ wind can be horrific. You might want to try 5 gal buckets filled with concrete and put a heavy duty eye hook in it to tie things down with. I did that to hold my canopy down when I was doing outdoor art shows.
Great tip Terry. Thanks for sharing!
Dennis, you have been infected with hotdogchilidogitis. There is no known cure but you can manage the symptoms by continuing to Sling and have fun doing it. Welcome to the neighborhood!!!
Ice Chest quality is the key, along with some of the ideas mentioned above, you should be able to manage meltage and your cost. Who knew frozen water would cost so much…..
Depending on your plans, fulltime or weekends/events, you may want to look into purchasing an ice maker. We’re a fulltime operation and we use a bunch of ice daily.
4 seasons ago, we bought an ice maker and it has been a life saver not only cost efficience but logistically also.
Best of luck…
Tim and Debbie
I love it!
damn it!
I just brought a hotdog cart and I’m building one too. Can’t wait to hit the streets this year !
Good luck! Let me know how I can help.
Has anyone tried dry ice
Dry ice gets expensive fast.
Hola amigos desde Santiago de Chile Sud América les saludos, los sigo y aprendo de sus experiencias, acá tengo en Santiago un carrito de comida con Bratwurst y Frankfurter, un gran abrazo y que dios los cuide.
Hello friends from Santiago, Chile, South America, greetings, I follow you and learn from your experiences, here in Santiago I have a food cart with Bratwurst and Frankfurter, a big hug and may God guide you.
Carlos Fuenzalida Yancas
Same to you Carlos!