Starting a personal chef business does not require a commercial kitchen, a large investment, or a complicated business plan. Most personal chefs start by cooking in client homes, offering meal prep services, and building their business one client at a time.

This step-by-step guide shows exactly how to start a personal chef business, from your first service to your first client.

Before becoming a personal chef, I spent hours searching for answers about how to get started. There was very little practical information available, and most advice focused on things that did not actually help you get your first client.

The truth is, you do not need everything figured out before you begin.

What Is a Personal Chef Business?

A personal chef works in client homes, preparing meals based on their preferences and dietary needs.

This is different from catering or meal delivery, which requires a commercial kitchen and additional regulations.

If you're comparing these options, read this next: Per...

Are you comfortable talking about your pricing to potential clients? Or, does it make you squirm and stumble over your words? 

Need help pricing? Check out Pricing for Personal Chefs $94 course here >>

Are you confident when speaking about your service fees? Do you have a service fee structure in place or do you find yourself stressing over calculating a custom quote for every event?

Have you not started or progressed in your business because of difficulty figuring out how to charge?

It's finally time to get comfortable talking about your pricing. Sharing your offering with confidence will land you that new client so much faster and propel you to the success you want and deserve.

Did you know that focusing your promotional messages on money factors will NOT bring in new clients or worse, will bring in clients that question your pricing. Take a look at these social media posts:

• "Order before Dec 20th to receive a 20% discount"
• "Call to discuss a quote for your
...

Are you thinking, "It’s really expensive to start a personal chef business?" 

FALSE.

You're currently dreaming of being a successful personal chef and want your own business with more financial freedom and more time freedom. You want to be your own boss and once you start your own business, you’ll never look back at being an employee again.

I want to share the five most common myths I hear about personal chefs.

Myth #1 – Starting a personal chef business takes too much time.

I’m going to be real with you. Starting a business does take time, but too much time…disagree.

The reality is that if you want your own business, you’re going to have to set aside some devoted time and effort, but as all good things take time and so does building  a successful personal chef business.

Yes, it takes time at the beginning, but once you put in the time and effort, you can then create recurring revenue. Once the foundation of your business is complete, you never have to start from ...

Look Chef, however advanced your cooking skills, business knowledge or lack of knowledge you think you have...whatever your market size or how long or short you've been in business is completely irrelevant...

It’s not a matter of how ready or not you think you are right now.

It’s simply a matter of how committed you’re willing to be.

The entire concept of commitment is an entirely internal process.

Commitment is free of external variables and circumstances.

No external circumstances constrict or limit your decision one moment to the next to be committed to something.

Committed means “I’m in” no matter what.

It’s happening.

Whatever it takes, I’m going to do it until it happens.

It's telling yourself, “I'm willing to be 100% committed right now."

Are you willing to re-commit right now to your business?” It's a yes or it's a no. There’s no right or wrong answer. 

When you are truly committed, you find a way...

• Despite how little time you have
• Despit
...

Scheduling as a personal chef depends on the services you offer, your availability, and the type of clients you want to work with. Most personal chefs build their schedule around cook sessions, grocery shopping, and administrative work.

If you're starting a personal chef business while working a full-time job, your schedule will look very different than someone working full-time as a chef.

I'm often asked how to go about scheduling a typical week as a brand new personal chef. How do you start if you already have a full-time job?

This guide breaks down how to schedule your week as a personal chef, whether you're starting part-time or working full-time.

What Does a Personal Chef Schedule Look Like?

Once your business is built, your schedule becomes more structured.

Think through:

• What days of the week will you work?
• How many cook sessions will you perform per day?
• How long will each cook session take?
• When will you go grocery shopping?
• When will you handle emails, bookkee
...

When was the last time you contemplated your successes? When was the last time you really stepped outside yourself for a chance to smile at all your accomplishments.

Well, today is the day!

Achievements in life are successes you've attained and are proud of accomplishing. What you consider an achievement is very personal. Your friend who underwent a similar achievement may not feel the success that you feel...and that's okay!

These life successes often involve overcoming a life obstacle or challenge, emotionally or physically. It's these life achievements that help us realize our values and goals.

Take the time today to write down three life achievements you're proud of having accomplished.

• Was the challenge something you created for your life or did the challenge come to you without warning? 
• How long ago was your latest achievement?
• Do you think it's time to offer yourself a challenge again? If so...what is it going to be and how are you going to define it as
...

I am often asked the question of whether or not joining a national association of personal chefs has any benefit to those in the profession.

First, consider what you are hoping to gain from joining the group and if there is a monetary cost involved. If there is no cost, yes, why not join! If there is a cost, what are you receiving in exchange and does this promise appear to benefit your up and coming business?

The promise of sending you referrals or listing you in their national database is not enough of a promise to pay for a membership. 

Consider the consumer online looking for a personal chef. They're not likely going to visit a national website of personal chefs because they don't likely know that one exists. The most likely action is going to be Googling "personal chef near me" or similar search.

The promise of placing the name or logo of the association on your resume is not enough of a promise to pay for a membership. 

People hiring personal chefs do not care wh...

Many new personal chefs assume professionalism comes from cooking skill alone.

Clients evaluate far more than the food.

Before anyone tastes a single bite, they are already forming opinions based on how you communicate, how organized you appear, whether you arrive on time, how your vehicle looks, how quickly you respond to messages, and whether your business feels stable enough to trust inside their home every week.

That process starts almost immediately.

People hiring a personal chef are not simply purchasing dinner. They are bringing someone into their kitchen, around their family routines and personal space. Small operational details influence whether someone feels comfortable continuing the relationship long-term.

Professionalism Changes How Clients Perceive Pricing

Two personal chefs can charge completely different rates while offering similar services.

The difference comes from organization, communication and consistency.

A chef who:

• responds quickly
• arrives on time
...

Do you ever wonder if you're ready (confident) enough to start your personal chef business?

Here are six signs that say YOU'RE READY to turn your love for cooking into a professional business.

#1 Your friends and family always say you should open a restaurant.

You probably hear this every time you cook something and serve it to your friends and family, "your cooking is so good, you should open a restaurant!" 

But in reality, opening a restaurant is not what you think (cooking), it's more about human resources, paperwork, marketing innovations, and working 10-12 hour days including Every Single Weekend. As well, it takes thousands of $$ to open up that restaurant in a location that would bring in the traffic it needs. 

As a personal chef, you choose what hours and days of the week you'd like to work, then design a business around that. 

#2 You look forward to making dinner every night.

The thought of preparing dinner excites you! You have the opportunity to try out ne...

I'm curious, have you started your personal chef business yet? Or...are you leaning on an excuse for why you have not yet begun?

There are two reasons I commonly hear about why someone has not yet started (or progressed beyond one to two clients) in their business.

THIS IS NOT your reason: You already know your reason is NOT "because I don't have the start-up costs" because working in client homes, the start-up costs are so low that is NOT an excuse to not begin or progress in your business. The absolute requirements are business license and liability insurance. If you're leaning on the fact that you think it costs too much to start, you're fooling yourself. Learn more about the start-up costs of the personal chef business in this blog post >>

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Common Reason for Not Starting #1

“I don’t know where to begin."

You might be feeling stuck because you don’t know the next step to take.

The truth is that you've been receiving emails from me for months and months a...