Get Started

Starting a tiffin business is not just about cooking. There is an initial investment that you will have to make to get your business off the ground.

Here is a list of things you will need:

1. Kitchen

An average kitchen of about 8ft. by 10ft. might not be sufficient for cooking especially if you have a full-fledged tiffin service. You would need a space of at least 10ft. by 12ft. Remember, you will need a lots of counter space too for all that chopping and mixing.

2. Gas Stove

Without a gas stove you really can't expect anything. So make sure you have at least a four-burner gas stove and the burners need to be big. Small burners not only consume a lot of gas, but also make cooking very time consuming.

3. Appliances

Just like your regular kitchen, you will require appliances like a mixer-grinder and small oven if you need to bake anything. A refrigerator is an absolute must (with a separate vegetable compartment).

4. Utensils

Your regular pots and pans will not make any sense. After all, you will be cooking in bulk. Large utensils and ladles will speed up your cooking.

5. Raw Material

You will need plenty of food items. But some of the must-have food items are dals, rice, wheat flour for chapatis, a couple of varieties of vegetables and salad veggies too. Remember, you will need large quantities of these items so you might want to buy them from a wholesale market.

6. Tiffins

You will need at least 10 tiffins to start with. The tiffins should have about four to five containers. If you buy the tiffins from a wholesale market, you can get them for as low as Rs.50 to Rs.60.

7. Delivery Boy

You can't cook the food and hand deliver it yourself to different houses. Hire a delivery boy with a bicycle for about Rs.1500 per month who can deliver the tiffins for you.

In the Tiffin...

The basic food you need to put to provide in each tiffin is -

• 1 rice
• 1 dal
• 4 chapatis
• 1 vegetable item
• 1 salad
• 1 sweet dish (not compulsory)

You can also make customised tiffins according to people's tastes. For example, you can make tiffins with less oil, ghee, salt etc. for people with heart trouble or unsweetened foods for diabetics. You make money on these tiffins, as people will be willing to pay more if you are making it according to their needs.