Is There Ever a Good Time?

We can all agree that starting up a new business is stressful; The endless planning and uncertainty of outcomes are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to setting up your own enterprise. Not to mention the unexpected situations you might find yourself in – like a global pandemic hitting just as you’re ready to open the doors to your new establishment. What a disaster!! We talk to two such businesses whose grand opening coincided with hospitality venues closing their doors and the public staying at home.

Molly’s Café and Deli, a Sheffield based eatery specialising in Anglo-Polish cuisine, were due to open the very first week of the initial lockdown in 2020. Owner Kate tells us “The timing couldn’t have been worse but being a new business, we knew we had to react quickly if we had a chance of surviving. With that in mind, we decided swiftly to switch to offering pre-order and delivery options and created our, now famous, Molly’s cheese and charcuterie platter boards.” Fast reactions count for everything in situations like this and businesses who were able to adapt quickly saw rewards to the efforts.

Alex from street food business Street Dogs recounts a similar situation. “We launched Street Dogs in November 2019 having been in the mobile bar businesses for almost 10 years. We’d spotted a gap in the market for really good quality, hotdog products at events and decided to run with it. Unfortunately, just as we were getting going, covid hit and stopped all events and food markets – our entire source of income.”

Thankfully both businesses survived their initial stormy seas and are now happy to be welcoming customers and attending events. Alex tells us “People have been so keen to get out and socialise again and it’s been great to be a part of that.”

We switch topic slightly to the importance of promoting your brand as an upcoming business. Kate confirms “Items like our branded greaseproof were really important to us when we couldn’t see customers face to face. Being able to package our products alongside our brand was a vital communication tool and helped customers feel as though we’d taken the time to care about their experience. Not only do customers feel as though they’re part of the Molly’s family, but it’s also super practical for us too!”

Alex agrees “It’s been great for us to have the brand alongside our food as customers walk around eating our products. It’s a no brainer really and a perfect marketing tool to hook potential diners. Originally we were stamping our trays by hand to get our logo on our packaging but it was really time consuming and not consistent looks wise. Lining our trays with our branded greaseproof paper looks so much more professional and customer love it too.”  

Does anyone ask or comment on environmentally friendly packaging we wonder? At It’s a Wrap it’s really important to us that our single use packaging is recyclable and harms the environment as little as possible, but do consumers care? “Definitely.” Alex confirms. The food markets are increasingly conscious of the impact packaging has and many now insist that any packaging used by food trucks is biodegradable.”

Molly’s Café shares a similar view “All our consumables are eco-friendly and include compostable materials and recycled products. Eco friendly greaseproof was the only option for both us and our customers.”

To discover how branded greaseproof can add to your marketing tools don’t hesitate to drop us a message. Don’t forget, we offer artwork design, trimming to your preferred size and delivery all free of charge!