Meet Brett Lindenberg

When did you start publishing, and what inspired you to create your site?
In 2013, I was looking for a business ideas I could start on-the-side while keeping my steady paycheck. I had noticed that food trucks seemed to be getting more popular and it was a type of business that seemed to have a low(ish) cost to start and something I could operate on weekends profitably. So… Naturally I headed to Google to learn more about how to start this specific type of food business. I was surprised to find there was almost no information on the subject of starting a food truck business online. As a result, I thought this could be an opportunity to fill the void and start publishing information about how to start a food truck business step-by-step. I started out by interviewing dozens of food truck owners asking them questions about how-to operate a successful food truck and published those tips online for readers. Eventually, more people started to take notice of FoodTruckEmpire and Mobile-Cuisine and began to view me as an authority on the subject of starting a food truck business. My writing has even been featured in places like CNBC.com, Entrepreneur Magazine and the Washington Post to name a few.

What do you love most about running your own business?
Coming from a background in corporate America, it’s refreshing to be able to come up with an idea and execute the same day or week. No meetings, PowerPoint presentations, or feedback required. I’m the editor in chief and also the writer. Growing up, I always thought it would be extremely fulfilling to work for a magazine on the subject of either current events or music. I feel like I get to live out this dream by operating a small media company (aka blog) in this niche industry. It’s extremely fulfilling to be able to create something like this.

How many people work with you on thes sites?
I have a brilliant team of now six writers that help me research articles and publish high-quality content about different aspects of running a profitable food business. I also hire out multiple smaller jobs like web design and other tech support on a contract basis.

What can you tell us about interacting with your audience?
The coolest thing is getting emails from people who have gone out and started a food truck business and thank you for helping them on the journey. We’ve had many readers that end up becoming personal friends and it’s exciting to watch other people’s food businesses grow. The food industry is a business, no doubt. But it’s also a passion driven industry. Many of these food business owners take great care in crafting their menus and serving food to their customers.

How does advertising impact your business?
Our content wouldn’t be possible without advertising. Publishing content is a labor of love, but it’s also extremely time consuming work. Without generating an income through advertising, I don’t think we would be able to continue.

What else should we know about your site?
We have a variety of free guides and expert interviews that can help you start just about any type of food business with more being added regularly. We’ve got guides on how to start food trucks, hot dog stands, restaurants, coffee shops and more. Our goal is to become the go-to resource for starting any type of food or beverage business.