Introduction
The business in this instance is a food truck that specializes in selling affordable yet clean meals to various workers in and around (PLACE NAME OF CURRENT BUSINESS DISTRICT IN YOUR COUNTRY HERE). Due to the increasing price of food, food trucks have started to become a welcome alternative to office workers that are on a budget (Jackson, 2014).
Stakeholders and Interests or Stakes
The stakeholders for this business are divided into the following categories:
- Early investors into the business – this category consists of the people that have invested in the food truck business at an early stage. These individuals consist of the various families and friends that the business owner has contacted for starting capital and they would like to see an eventual return on their investments into the business.
- The Owner – the owner of the business has a vested interest in the business since it is through it that a large amount of their time, capital, and effort has been placed into it. If the business becomes successful, this will result in a considerable amount of monetary gains for the owner.
- Customers – the various customers of the business come in the form of the local office workers within the central business district. They have a vested interest in the continued existence of the food truck since it provides them with a cheap and affordable means of eating within an expensive city.
How the business serves the various stakeholders
For investors and the owner – the business serves the interest of this particular group of stakeholders by providing a return on investment. In essence, the business acts as a source of income for these stakeholders.
For customers – the problem with working in a central business district is that the price of food is often quite high. It is due to this that office workers tend to want a more affordable alternative when it comes to their choice of food. This is where the food truck comes into play since it is not situated within an expensive commercial complex; it can sell its food at a far lower price. This enables office workers to eat good food while on a budget and thus benefits a large segment of the local community.
How does the larger society serve the business?
- Trash pickup – one of the negative elements associated with having a food truck business is that it tends to create a significant of litter around where the food truck operates. This is due to various customers buying food, eating it near the food truck, and then subsequently throwing their discarded wrappers, boxes, etc. on the ground. Fortunately, the city does provide a trash cleanup service that helps to get rid of the mess which helps in ensuring that customers continue to go eat at the truck without having to deal with a significant amount of trash nearby (Jackson, 2014).
- Law Enforcement – one of the problems associated with opening out in the open is the potential dangers associated with criminals simply walking up to the food truck and robbing it (Jackson, 2014). This is a very real threat since, unlike a private enterprise; there are no doors or security guards to prevent a robbery. One way in which government services prevent such an occurrence from happening is through a considerable amount of police officers within the central business district which helps to prevent robberies from occurring.
Unique Factors in the Business Environment
Rising Prices – one of the factors that positively impact the business comes in the form of rising and falling prices due to changes in the global economy. When the price of gas and other amenities go up, this also has the effect of increasing the price of food within the central business district that the food truck operates in. As a result, this increases the demand for cheap food which is provided by the food truck. On the other end of the spectrum, if the price of gas goes down, this lowers the price of commodities resulting in a decline in the demand for food from the food truck.
Exchange of Benefits
When examining the basis of the food truck business, namely provide an affordable means for office workers to eat in the city, it can be seen that the exchange of business and social benefits is a positive one since it provides a needed service to people. For a business to establish greater fairness and justice in its relationship with society, it is necessary to examine it from a corporate social responsibility perspective wherein it must be determined whether the business contributes to the local community it operates from in a positive way (Schmeltz, 2014).
This comes in the form of environmental, social, and cultural methods of assessment wherein through an evaluation of current business practices and how they impact the community, a business can determine whether they need to re-evaluate how they operate and what methods can they implement to create better relations with their local community (Schmeltz, 2014).
Reference List
Jackson, K. (2014). Food Truck Nation. (cover story). Prepared Foods, 183(1), 67-76.
Schmeltz, L. (2014). Identical or Just Compatible? The Utility of Corporate Identity Values in Communicating Corporate Social Responsibility. Journal Of Business Communication, 51(3), 234-258.