SETTING up a food truck in Windhoek’s central business district costs around N$519,52 in municipal rent per month, yet many hopefuls are abandoning this type of venture.
Having a food truck in a prime location can earn one between N$5 000 and N$7 000 a month, says Isilda Barroso, who has been operating a food truck for more than three years.
Business can get demanding during lunch hour, which is exactly what is needed to make reasonable returns, she says.
Prospective food truckers need the approval of the Windhoek municipality to set up shop, and the municipality also determines monthly tariffs.
City of Windhoek spokesperson Lydia Amutenya recently said 38 food trucks are currently registered with the city’s economic development division, and operates on municipal land.
This is the lowest number in the last four years.
In 2019, Windhoek had a whopping 59 approved food trucks, followed by 49 in 2020.
In 2018, a total of 57 food trucks operated in the capital.
The numbers have dropped though due to the country’s economic decline over the past four years.
Namibia has high a unemployment rate of over 38%, according to the Namibia Statistics Agency.
Food trucks and other semi-formal businesses provide income for the unemployed.
Although it is relatively affordable to run a food truck, start-up costs can be high.
Barroso, who runs a food truck near the Namibia University of Science and Technology, says setting up a food truck can cost as much as N$30 000 – especially if one has to buy a trailer.
The process, however, appears to be simple.
“The first thing one has to consider is the location of the food truck. You have to do research on where you’re going to put the truck. Would there be a demand for your food?
“The second thing is whether you’re going to buy a trailer or rent one. If you have the capital, it is better to buy the trailer.
“And the third thing is the menu. You have to serve things of good quality, which are still affordable so that people would buy them,” Barroso says.
A different menu keeps one’s business unique, she says.
“Try to stand out and come up with a menu that is not the same as other people’s.”
According to the City of Windhoek, setting up a food truck in the central business district costs N$519,52 per month, whereas it would cost N$346,96 in the northern and southern industrial areas.
In other areas the city charges N$302,40 per month.
These tariffs exclude value-added tax.
The monthly tariffs are based on the number and movement of potential customers in an area.
Areas with a high movement of potential customers cost more, Amutenya said.
To mitigate the current economic crunch, tariffs were not increased in the past two years.
spoke to several food truck owners who say starting off is not as costly as one would expect.
Some started off selling small items, such as sweets and passport or ID card covers.
Selma, who prefers not to provide her surname, runs a food truck in the city centre.
