24A – Venture Concept No. 1

The Opportunity

One in ten, or roughly 3.5 million Americans suffer from severe food allergies. The population of Gainesville, Florida is roughly 130,000, so, it can be assumed that roughly 13,000 Gainesville residents suffer from severe food allergies. Now consider that the dietary restrictions of one individual in a family may dictate the dining habits of that entire family. It is also estimated that the average American family spends roughly $3,000 each year on dining out. Given these figures, if we assumed that 25% of the 13,000 Gainesville residents dictate the eating patterns of their broader family (roughly 25% of the U.S. population are minors, and minors are more likely to both have food allergies and dictate their family’s eating patterns), the market of restaurant customers in Gainesville Florida who suffer from severe food allergies is north of $9 million each year. This figure is still an underestimate given that we are still not accounting for business from individuals who have food allergies but are only dictating their own eating patterns. Still not mentioned is the statistics displayed in the chart pictured here depicting the rapid growth of food allergies, especially in the population of U.S. minors. Based on the figures listed above, it can be concluded that individuals with food allergies are a large market and make up a significant portion of the restaurant customer base in Gainesville, Florida.

So, what is the problem?

Individuals with food allergies do not have ample options when it comes to choosing where to dine out. I can claim this as someone who has grown up with countless severe food allergies. Market research that I have conducted here in Gainesville has also led me to conclude that Gainesville residents with food allergies feel that they would appreciate a greater breadth of restaurant choices. At the moment, these consumers are settling for the same pattern of restaurants or for below-average customer service on the part of some of these restaurants. This is not just an issue for consumers, however, and can be naturally extended to local restaurant businesses. If a significant portion of Gainesville restaurant customers have severe food allergies, those local restaurant businesses not already catering to individuals with those dietary restrictions are missing out on a market worth over $9 million annually. So, the opportunity here is that a significant portion of small Gainesville restaurant businesses are doing little to cater to individuals with food allergies (either because they do not know the best method to do so or because they do not realize the importance of this group) and are, by extension, not tapping this multi-million dollar market segment for all it’s worth.

My Innovation

As an individual who has grown up with food allergies and who has traveled the country partially in search of new allergy friendly restaurant options, I can say that the most useful tool when attempting to decide which restaurant to visit is an allergy menu. An allergy menu is a comprehensive listing of a restaurant’s menu items where the common allergens (Dairy, Egg, Peanut, Tree nut, Soy, Gluten, Fish, Shellfish) present in each menu item are identified. There are many restaurants who do not have allergy menus at all, and of the restaurants that do, very few are successful in breaking down menu items to the extent to which they are useful to the end consumer. For example, if an individual has an allergy to, say, egg and dairy, the allergy menu may list a cheeseburger and claim the item includes dairy and egg (for cheese and mayonnaise, we will say), when in reality, that customer could purchase the burger with no cheese or mayonnaise and enjoy their meal comfortably. I will provide to my customers (local restaurant businesses) an exhaustive allergy menu of this nature, for the price of $500 (one-time fee).

This Venture

In this venture, I will supply these customized, exhaustive allergy menus to local Gainesville restaurant businesses for a one-time fee. It may be difficult to convince restaurants to give me their business, because many of the local shops may not even known they are missing out on a large market opportunity. I believe this is the weakest point of my concept. It will be harder to sell to a customer who does not always know they have a need. In addition, some “mom and pop shops” may be narrow minded and feel that the way they have always done business is the correct way to do business. In other words, some restaurants may be unwilling to change unless they can feel (acutely) that they are losing business. I will need to convince these businesses that they are losing customers (or not creating the best possible environment for all customers). That is a sensitive conversation as I need to be sure to not offend these owners/managers ways of doing business. I do not see any direct competitors in this market and creating online allergy menus eliminates concerns regarding distribution and packaging. My location in Gainesville will allow me to meet in person with these local restaurant owners whenever necessary and I will provide these restaurants with my phone number if they require continued support or if they request changes to the allergy menu after the initial draft is completed. Within my venture, I will be the owner and sole employee (unless the venture expands to the point where I cannot handle the workload on my own).

Secret Sauce

My most important resource is my understanding of the needs of individuals with food allergies. As someone who has grown up with food allergies, I can offer a unique perspective in that I understand the worries of customers with food allergies and what makes an allergy menu easy to use for consumers.

What’s Next?

At this point, I need to focus on attracting my first customer. From that point, I will learn the best way to operate the venture and each previous experience will be added to my “resume” when pitching to a new potential client.

What’s Next for Me?

I am not sure how far I would like to extend this venture. It is an interesting idea to me and worth some effort, but, ultimately, I think that I will want to pursue entrepreneurship in another field (potentially finance to match my major).