Would this work?

M

mrdeepseafisher

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We love the water and are either on the lakes around Raleigh NC or we are at our boat in Carolina Beach NC. My wife is wanting to start some kind of summer business where she can be on the water, so she came up with an idea.

We are quite often out on the water and run out of either food and/or drink so she wants to get a 22-24 ft pontoon boat and turn it into a snack bar on the water. There are several lakes around our area and since most are regulated by the Corps of Engineers in this state there is not really any options if you have run out of food, drink or bait while on the water. The Corps strictly regulates any and all building on the shores of lakes so there is rarely anything other than maybe a single marina on the lake with limited supplies.

She would like to have a floating snack bar with simple items like snacks and drinks maybe even hotdogs. After thinking about it and we have been on the lake many times and would have paid more than market prices just to have a drink.

My son added why don't we even keep some fishing worms and simple tackle for the fishermen in an emergency.

They are a excited about it. Would it work?
 
The biggest hurdle is getting permission from The Corp and all the permits required. Do your homework thoroughly first.

Add capability to sell ice to your inventory list!
 
on the south shore of long island, at a few of the local "hot spots" to anchor at, there is a small boat that comes around sells ice cream.

I asked him one day what he makes, told me he walks away with $800 after pay, supplies, and fuel...
 
There's a guy that does that on the Delaware River. What a great way to spend the summer! Ditto on getting permission and permits, etc. I fear you won't be able to get the proper permission.
 
Absolutely your biggest issue is going to be dealing with the corps.
 
BAIT!!!!

A change of bait or lure will do 'wonders' for fishermen having bad luck.[:P]
 
There is one the sits on my local river. It seems the idea has merit. Good luck.
 
We now have several on the Barnegat Bay at Tices Shoal in NJ as well as a smaller boat that sells ice cream delivered to your boat at a handsome price. There are hundreds of boats anchored there every weekend so they may do well.
 
I have seen this done at Lake of the Islands in the St. lawrence.
no as nice as this one.

l.jpg
 
Sounds like a great idea. As others have indicated, the greatest hurdle will be the usual suspects:...... overbering government red tape.
 
The health department could be a tough one to please not to mention as most have permission from the Corp.
Good luck it's a good idea hopefully government won't be overbearing (I think it will be).
It might be easier if you didn't actually make or prepare any food on the boat only sold it from the boat along with ice, bottled chilled non-alcoholic drinks, some supplies and bait.
Bill
 
We have one in Charleston, nice pontoon with all the fixins. Some college kids bought it and ran it to the sandbar on weekends. I have been told that it does not go out any more because the owners wanted to party on the weekends and the business interfered.
 
As mentioned, this is not a new idea, it's being done in many locations. It's also been mentioned, there will be a lot of permits required.

While it may sound like a lot of fun and a great idea, "restaurants" are one of the riskiest business ventures out there. It seems great that you can sell $40 worth of food for $100, but there are a lot of hidden expenses and there's no guarantee that you will have customers for all your food. Ice will melt, food will spoil or go stale, weather will keep people away, mechanical problems will keep you off the water, etc.

Figure in your permiting costs, startup costs (boat and equipment), the value of your time and/or the cost of employees, insurance, etc. Remember, you'll have to report and collect taxes on your sales.

Just some things to think about.
 
quote:
Originally posted by PJ

We have one in Charleston, nice pontoon with all the fixins. Some college kids bought it and ran it to the sandbar on weekends. I have been told that it does not go out any more because the owners wanted to party on the weekends and the business interfered.

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The one that's at St. Johns Yacht Harbor?

There was a "Bikini Babe" a couple years ago who supposedly delivered snacks and drinks to boaters on a PWC. I never saw her but she left some stuff at my marina for them to sell. That was a couple years ago and I haven't heard about her since.
 
There used to be an older fella with a pontoon who ran up and down the St. Lawrence river near here. He sold coloured diesel, tax free gas, smokes, gallon's of Rum & Whiskey in clear bottles. He did a thriving business till the Feds caught up with him. I miss that ole' guy! ;-)
 
Yes Ron that is the one at St Johns Yacht Harbor.
 
quote:
Originally posted by PJ

Yes Ron that is the one at St Johns Yacht Harbor.

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I've been by there a few times lately to the restaurant and once with a friend looking for a slip and each time, I've seen it docked.

It's not making any money sitting in a slip!
 
There`s been a hot dog raft on the Ct river just below the East haddam bridge for years. He is in a high visibility area so if he needed permits i would say he must have them. I think its a good, useful, enterprising idea. I like the kids in their dinghy running errands and taking in garbage for boats in the Salt Pond at Block. I always tip them good just for thinking of it and being out there trying.
 
In addition to the permits and license issues. The employees working on a self propelled boat engaged in commerce may fall under the Jones Act ($$$$$) or at the very least Harbor Workers and Longshoreman Act when it comes to insurance P&I coverage. You will have to sell a lot of snacks/beer/bait just to cover the cost of the proper insurance coverages.
 
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