We are a group of small business entrepreneurs who have set about changing the food landscape in Southern California by providing a diverse and eclectic variety of high quality food at an affordable price, from a mobile platform.   

In the face of one of the worst economic downturns our country has experienced since the great depression, we have bravely decided to START new businesses when all around us others are giving up and closing shop.  While others have laid-off millions of employees, we are creating new jobs.  Most importantly, many have been highly successful despite all the negative forces currently at work in the economy.   

In doing this, we have created a new paradigm for food service, elevating the traditional “street food” to new heights and, in the process, have quickly developed thousands of loyal customers.  Our mobility has allowed us to bring high quality, affordable food to homes, work places and entertainment venues that have languished with few existing dining options or with a stagnant variety of chain restaurants or fast food outlets. 

Over the last two decades, the restaurant industry has come to be dominated by a number of cookie-cutter corporate stores providing a generic selection of dining options while the really interesting independent restaurants and “mom and pop” neighborhood diners have dwindled in the face of multi-million dollar franchise stores.  The overwhelmingly positive reaction we have experienced from the dining public attests to their hunger for other dining options. 

While we have constantly experienced an outpouring of gratitude from the average citizens, we have also been met with a decidedly mixed reaction from local municipalities, government bureaucracies, and local businesses.  Many have welcomed the change, understanding that, in America’s free-enterprise system, competition always makes the market place stronger and more vibrant.  They also see that the influx of customers drawn to our trucks creates excitement and foot traffic which benefits entire retail areas.  They see that our success stems the fact that we are satisfying a need in the market place that existing food options have not satisfactorily addressed.  On the other hand, some have reacted with  uncertainty that often accompanies changes in the marketplace.  We also understand that the speed with which this fledgling movement has grown has occasionally overwhelmed even us as we struggle to come to terms with the dynamics of this brand new industry.  Our presence has occasionally created problems which we can and should address. 

To address some of the impacts this new food delivery concept is having on the Los Angeles area, to ensure that our continued growth is a positive addition to the local economy, and to provide a source of information to the on-going discussions, we have banded together to create the Southern California Mobile Food Vendors Association.  By forming this organization we can speak with one voice to address and hopefully allay the concerns of the various elements in the community.  By creating a single representative entity, we hope to make it possible to work with local governments, merchants associations and others to ensure our presence is positive experience for all concerned.   

Our initial goals are to:

• Provide a single point of contact for those who wish to discuss any aspect of our businesses and to work to develop and maintain positive relations with all concerned.
• Create a code of behavior for our industry to ensure that we are good neighbors and a benefit to our communities.            
• Work cooperatively with municipalities and governmental bureaucracies to review codes, ordinances, procedures and enforcement so that they better address the realities of this new industry and not try to apply out-dated and inapplicable rules to this novel and dynamic business model. 
• Develop a system of mentoring new operators so they can become positive additions to this new culinary movement.
• Create a system of addressing issues that may arise from our presence and develop equitable solutions to resolve any problems.
• Provide a contact point for members of the community who wish to avail themselves of the services our members.

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