The 86% profit margin myth is killing new pop-up owners

I keep seeing people on here claiming they can run a pop-up at 86% margins on a $12 plate. That's total fantasy unless you're counting free rent and free labor. I just ran my numbers after 3 months at Smorgasburg and after produce, permits, and paying my cousin $20 an hour, I cleared maybe 22%. Who else is actually tracking their real costs?

2 comments

2 Comments

river_bailey21mo ago

Those numbers sound way more realistic than the fantasy margins people throw around. If you haven't already, start tracking how much time you're spending on social media promotion that you aren't billing to the business.

andrew_kelly1mo ago

That thing you said about social media promotion not being billed to the business, I read a breakdown from a guy who ran a taco pop-up in Austin and he figured out he was basically working for free during the hours he spent filming and editing Instagram reels. Really makes you wonder, do people actually sit down with a calculator and add up every single hour before they claim those crazy margins? It's like they're only counting the cost of the food on the plate and forgetting the 20 other things that eat into the money. The real truth is nobody talks about the hidden costs like gas for running to the store three times a week or the extra packaging you buy because you ran out.