22 Years on the Corner of 6th and Main

It must be Spring, Andy is back with his hot dog cart

“It’s officially Spring,” Ken Vampola said while sitting on a Main Street bench Friday afternoon.

He wasn’t talking about blooming plants or Robins chirping, the judge was referring to the first day Andy Manes was peddling hot dogs on the corner of Sixth and Main streets. Continue reading “22 Years on the Corner of 6th and Main”

Huge Inspiration From A Small Classified Ad

I ran across a help wanted ad looking for someone to work a San Francisco hot dog stand. My interest was piqued by the starting wage they offered so I did a little research and discovered a very inspirational fact about the company – their annual earnings. If the figure I’m about to share with you doesn’t make your pulse quicken a bit then you’d better put a mirror in front of your mouth and make sure it’s fogging up like it should…

But first, here’s the original ad from Craig’s List:

HOW ABOUT A FUN, OUTDOOR JOB THAT PAYS WELL?
We have several openings, 32-40 hours a week, for individuals who can do ALL of the following:
1. Sell hot dogs, pretzels, and drinks from our “Stanley’s Steamers” hot dog stands in Union Square and Fisherman’s Wharf;
2. Drive our company Ford Econoline van a few shifts a week helping make deliveries to and from our carts;
3. Work in our commissary several days a week helping to prep food for our cart operations.
Applicants must be able to vend, drive, and work in our commissary, and must have open availability, mornings and evenings, 7 days a week. In addition, the job requires a clean driving record and the ability to lift coolers weighing 75 pounds or more.
We will be interviewing this Tuesday for trainings starting this Wednesday. To apply, please send us your resume with references. It always helps to include a personal note telling us something about you.

If you aren’t contacted for an interview by 9pm Monday night, please assume the spots have been filled. Thanks for your interest!
* Location: Union Square
* Compensation: $13.50/hour starting wage
* Principals only. Recruiters, please don’t contact this job poster.
* Please, no phone calls about this job!
* Please do not contact job poster about other services, products or commercial interests.

As you’ll recall, what sparked my curiosity was the $13.50 starting wage, and therein lie two lessons:

1. The owner is making way more than $13.50 an hour and he doesn’t even have to be there.

2. If you want good help, pay ’em to keep ’em. The owner is a smart operator who knows the value of a reliable consistent employee. That’s why he can play golf at noon anytime he wants.

So who is this company? San Francisco Carts and Concessions.

Dun and Bradstreet puts their annual income at $400,000. Here’s the scoop:

Company Name:      San Francisco Carts Concessions
Est. Annual Sales:     $400,000
Year Started:     1999
State of Incorp:     CA
SIC #Code:     5812

Data above provided by D&B.
2008 Dun and Bradstreet, Inc. All Rights Reserved

So there you go little leaguers – something to shoot for, and proof that it’s possible. Thanks to Craig’s List for $400,000 worth of inspiration!

-Steve

Grilling vs Steaming…Which is Best?

I got an email from a student of mine asking my opinion about cooking methods.  Thought you could benefit from the answer…

Q: “Steve,  I bought your book etc. and have been listening to the cd’s on the way to & from work. I wish i’d have bought them sooner.  I’m planning on purchasing a Top Dog hot dog cart and will have the capability of griddle “flattop” cooking. Don’t they taste better that way?    Thanks,   Dave J. –  Dave’s Dogs”

A: Hey Dave!  Grilling and steamimg are two very different prep methods which produce very Continue reading “Grilling vs Steaming…Which is Best?”

Law Firm Refugee Opens Hot Dog Cart Biz

Bert Martin, hoping to get a loan, sat down and handed over his business plan to the banker.

The banker read the sheet of paper and took issue with only one part, at the very top. It was Martin’s goal: To make the best hot dog possible.

“He reads that and goes, ‘Aww, a hot dog is just a hot dog,'” Martin recalled. “I said, ‘Oh, no, there’s good hot dogs, and there’s bad hot dogs – I don’t plan on selling bad ones.'”

Martin got the loan and, in March 2007, opened Texas Style Hot Dogs, a stand he sets up either Continue reading “Law Firm Refugee Opens Hot Dog Cart Biz”

Big Lou’s Hot Dogs – Weekend Warriors

From the Bandera Bulletin, By Jessica Hawley-Jerome – Managing Editor

There’s nothing more American than a good old fashioned hot dog, or so the saying goes. Capitalizing on a need that would benefit both their family and hometown, Ben and Andrea Guajardo are representing county and country – one order at a time. Continue reading “Big Lou’s Hot Dogs – Weekend Warriors”

What to Serve? My Hot Dog Expert Can Tell You.

What procucts should you serve on your hot dog cart?  Which brand of hot dog will sell the best? What kind of chips will make me the most money? Does it matter what kind of soda pop I stock on my cart?

In this article I’m going to introduce you to an expert that I know.  You’ll be able to ask him anything you want. Read on…

I recently got an email from Don asking if I had access to any information on which is most popular, Coke or Pepsi?  Having lived all over the country, I can tell you that soft drink preference is a regional thing.  In Chicago it was Coke.  Here in St. Louis it’s Pepsi.

I have no idea why, but then again I don’t really need to know why.

All I care about is having accurate information, but until I found an expert to tell me, I had no better than a 50-50 chance of getting it right.  I’ll tell you who my source is in a minute.

But first let me tell you about my expert in hot dog cart customer tastes and preferences.  This person can tell you exactly what your customer wants with an astonishing degree of accuracy, and their knowledge isn’t limited to soft drinks.

My expert can tell you what kind of chips will sell the best on your hot dog cart.  What brand and what size hot dogs the customer wants.  Skinless or natural casing?  Grilled or steamed?  The best condiments?  This person knows for sure and can tell you in an instant.

I’ve never known my expert to be wrong.  Ever.  Not once.  And the best part?  You can get my expert’s opinion for no charge.  Who is this person?

Your customer.

I’m constantly amazed that 99% of beginner hot dog vendors spend weeks researching which cart they want.  They rigorously check out all the manufacturers, all the optional equipment, prices, delivery, etc.

Then they agonize over the perfect location, driving all over town scoping out traffic patterns, pedestrian flow, and all that stuff.

Then they just GUESS which products to sell from the cart!  Or even worse, they assume that because they like something, their customers will too.  It doesn’t make sense.

Here’s what you can do right now.  Today.  You don’t need a cart or anything.

Start asking everyone you see a simple question. “Coke or Pepsi?”  Then ask what their favorite chips are.  Don’t think you will remember their answers because you won’t.  Keep a small notebook with you and track the results.  In a few days you will see trends appearing and the most popular choices will emerge.

This survey method will give you the answer to every customer preference but one.  You won’t be able to find out what hot dog brand to serve until your cart is operational, because you’ll need to do a taste test.

On day one, stock two different brands of hot dogs and have them heated and ready to serve. Now cut some dogs into bite size pieces and serve on a toothpick as samples.  Then let the customer purchase the one they like best.  If you stock equal quantities of each, you’ll be able to tell which sold the most at the the end of the day.

On day two test your winner against a third brand.  Then pit that winner against a fourth brand on day four.  The winner of day four is the dog you should serve.  Of course you could serve two kinds if the results were very close.

My expert will give you perfect knowledge of your market.  It’s not guess work.  It’s math.  And it’s super easy so you have no excuse not to do this, especially when it can give you such an edge on opening day.

-Steve

The E-Z Built Hot Dog Cart – Customer Photos

I think I’m seeing double…

I got an email today from one of my customers, Jim Steffen of Ohio.  Jim purchased my E-Z Built Hot Dog Cart Video and Plans Package and proceeded to build not one but two hot dog carts to be used in his new business. Jim was kind enough to send along several great pictures for us to look at.  Awesome Continue reading “The E-Z Built Hot Dog Cart – Customer Photos”

LBF the PR Kings! Here They Are AGAIN!!!

O.K.  Are you tired of hearing about “Let’s Be Frank”, the gourmet grass fed beef hot dog vendors?  Neither am I.  In fact, I am in awe of the massive grass roots style FREE advertising that these guys are receiving in the mainstream media as well as foodie blogs all over the internet. But remember this – you can manufacture all the buzz you want, but you must have a GREAT product in order to keep it going. Otherwise your fame (and fortune) will be short lived indeed.  And just to make you even more jealous, here’s a spy photo of their menu.  Check their prices!  You gotta be good to pull that off. Continue reading “LBF the PR Kings! Here They Are AGAIN!!!”

Cowboy’s Attitude is the Secret to his Success!

We could all learn a lesson from the man they call “Cowboy”.  His kind words and reputation for helping those in need not only make the world a little better place, it’s great for business.  Be sure your customers think of you as a compassionate, helpful, and friendly person.  It goes a long way! – Steve

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By Lori Gilbert
Record Staff Writer

Maria Garza-Gonzalez spent her late-morning break from her job with Human Services seeking out the man known as “Cowboy.”

“What’s going on around the corner at the apartment building?” she asked, referencing a building on Sutter Street between Washington and California.

“I don’t know,” came the reply.

“Yesterday there was caution tape around it. Today the tape says ‘crime scene,’ ” Gonzalez told him.

“It’s probably the only tape they had,” Cowboy reasoned.

He was right.

The block around the corner from where Gonzalez stood speaking to Cowboy on Washington Street was blocked off because a precarious piece of decorative molding was pulling away from the structure. Later in the afternoon, it was deliberately pried off, lest it fall and cause injury or damage.

“I just figured he’d know if anyone did,” Gonzalez said.

That’s kind of the way the folks who traverse Washington Street or walk in and out of the Human Services Agency building regard Cowboy.

The tall man in the black hat is a fixture on the street, arriving at 7:30 with his hot dog cart and sticking around until late in the afternoon or until all of his hot dogs, Polish sausages, hot links and cold drinks are gone.

On a typical day, the hot links and Polish sell out pretty quickly, as was the case Friday.

“You’re out of hot links?” a dissatisfied customer asked, a look of disbelief on his face.

He walked away, shaking his head in dismay at the state of Cowboy’s affairs.

More than likely, he’ll be back. They almost always return.

Even if they’re not in the market for lunch or a snack, they come by and say hello.

“He’s friendly, outgoing,” said Sheli DeFils, who’s been making trips to the Human Services Agency for a couple of years and always makes a point to say hello to Cowboy. “I see him helping out people who don’t have the money, or he’ll take money out of his tip jar to pay for them.”

That willingness to feed a homeless person or, on Friday, a drug user who had only $1, that bill having been given to her by another customer, is only part of what defines Cowboy.

A fixture for 10 years on Washington Street, he’s the unofficial mayor of the block. Cowboy, who goes by no name other than the one he’s been called since he began working his uncle’s ranch in Kewanee, Ill., at 9, and declines to offer one when asked – repeatedly – has a friendly word for all. He teases those who buy his food. He listens to their stories, happy and sad. He responds with a smile and a kind word to the calls of “Cowboy” that come in a steady stream from passers-by.

He even serves customers – regulars – who pull up to the curb of the one-way street in their cars to buy their dogs, giving new meaning to drive-through service.

The 60-year-old former truck driver, father of five grown daughters and husband of 16 years to Christine, an office secretary, mans his cart on foot. No sitting down for him.

“I feel like a yo-yo when I sit down. I’m up and down,” he said.

So he stands, ably assisted every day by his friend Steve Rogers.

Cowboy doesn’t pay Rogers for his help, but Rogers is more than happy to get up before dawn to help Cowboy pick up the cart where it’s locked for the night, pack it for the day and set it up on the sidewalk in front of the building at 333 E. Washington St.

“What else am I going to do at home?” asks Rogers, who first met Cowboy when he worked at nearby Seniors First, then came under Cowboy’s blanket of generosity when he got sick, lost his job and found himself homeless.

“He’d feed me hot dogs, and he took me out fishing,” Rogers said.

Now back on his feet, though on disability, and with a place to call home, Rogers helps serve dogs during the week and accompanies Cowboy on fishing ventures to Rio Vista, Antioch and other hot spots due west.

“That’s the only thing I do,” Cowboy said of his free time.

Rogers claims Cowboy isn’t much of a fisherman, his joy not determined by the bite. Sitting on the boat with friends who barbecue and passing away hours on the water are how he unwinds after standing on the pavement every day of the week.

Rain or shine, in most cases, Cowboy delivers, as reliable as the post office.

“You should see it when he’s not here,” Gonzalez said. “People freak out: ‘Where’s Cowboy?’ ”

If it’s raining too hard, he stays home, but usually the bad weather just causes him to move his cart under the awning on the San Joaquin Street side of the building.

The regulars know where to find him. They make the effort.

Besides his pleasant demeanor and obvious affection for the people he meets on the street, Cowboy has remained in business with an old-fashioned creed.

“Serve good hot dogs for a good price,” he said.

When launching his business 10 years ago, he bought five brands of hot dogs and let his customers try them for free. They chose the one they liked best, and that’s what Cowboy continues to deliver. He declines to name the brand. He also doesn’t reveal the number of customers he serves in a day. But he’s not complaining about the level of business he’s doing, even in these economic times.

His business, he said, has not suffered in the economic downturn.

“People still have to eat,” Cowboy said.

A sidewalk hot dog vendor is a unique fixture in Stockton. Cowboy’s presence not only provides a quick, inexpensive lunch, but it gives that block of Washington Street a big-city feel and brings the people of the area together.

Impatient clients and harried employees alike know that when their frustrations mount, they don’t have to go far to find someone who will give them a smile, offer them a friendly “hello,” sell them a hot dog or just make their day a bit nicer.

original article at Recordnet.com