Just like any profession, being a caterer needs a combination of hard work, training and honed skills. In order to succeed in the business you need to have dedication, the right kind of skills to manage a catering business and always ready to all kinds of problems and challenges. Aside from that, you will be dealing with a lot of work that is important in the business from accounting, customer relations and marketing. You will have the necessary knowledge and skills in order to manage everything from the actual catering service to the paper works.
However, a person who is capable of dealing with all the paper works does not make a good caterer. So what makes a good caterer? In a highly competitive business, you need to possess an efficient set of catering skills that is tailored with good characters in order to stand out among competition. You also need to have the following:
Great Cooking Skills– Remember that catering in its most basic level is all about food. A good caterer must possess enough cooking experience. You need plenty of experience in order to know how to make recipe substitutions, plan new menus and safely prepare and transport large amounts of food. You need to impress the customer not only with the decoration and place settings but most importantly the quality of the food.
Comply with food safety Laws – A good caterer must follow the most-up-to-date food safety laws or regulation. Every state has its own law and you need to get familiar with this in order to avoid violating them.
Good Customer Service – You must be good in dealing with clients and must possess traits such as courteous, tactful and diplomatic. It is possible to find difficult clients which you need to impress with the preparation and preparation of the food. If necessary, you need to be good with persuasion at times when you need to change the menu or to substitute ingredients and explaining this to a client is not easy.
Leadership – You need to manage your staff from the cook, servers, cleaners, to dishwashers. Your business will not succeed without proper leadership and good management.
Flexibility and Creativity – A good caterer must be very creative and flexible in order to cope up with unexpected changes in plans. Be aware about food allergies and religious dietary requirements that may affect your cooking methods and menu. Being able to survive these challenges is a true testament of your capabilities.
Attention to details – It is important to have a keen eye to everything. Do not miss simple things that may affect your service from the catering equipment, kitchen utensils and appliances, decoration, table arrangements and food presentation.
In order to succeed in the catering business, you need to have the right skills, knowledge and attitude to face the many challenges and demands the business require. Your attitude towards work will make a big difference between failure and success.