Short Summary

Hi! I'm Zigzag Wendy Brown and I am passionate about an idea...well more of an obsession really. Most of my good friends say, "WTH? What is she talking about?" Well, this is it! This is THE idea! This is what Wendy's World fanatics have been holding their collective breath over! (Drum roll please)!

Wendy's Wieners Cartwheels will commence with the manufacture and placement of a cart near Mt. Hood, Oregon. This will hopefully be just the first of many. The original cart will be placed directly on East Hwy 26 near Welches, Oregon – a natural stop between the towns of Government Camp and Sandy. 

The idea is to sell hot dogs from the cart anytime during cart hours, &  offering plus promoting local restaurants and their fare in order to increase sales and tourism. Statistics show the tremendous profits of hot dog and other food carts!

According to 2013 data, more than 1 billion packages of hot dogs were sold at retail stores. That number represents almost $2.5 billion in retail sales (Nielson, 2012).  This is just considering the sale of hot dogs and sausages!

(Sources: Information Resources Inc. 2004, 2006 thru 2012 Package Facts, 2006, the Nielsen Company).

Furthermore, the increase in traffic traveling E. Hwy 26 has consistently risen 25% every year (per ODOT)(see traffic stats below). Since smart app development/usage has increased every year an app would allow people to view the different choices offered, order, and pay in advance. 

Future cart owners will be selected through an interview process where vivacious and infectious personalities audition for a position. This list of eager applicants will help build the business that promotes every employee to become a critical thinker, entrepreneur, and professional, educated worker.

What We Need & What You Get

Wendy's Wiener's Cartwheels will ideally need $5,000.00 to place the first cart in the Mt Hood corridor, and fund a second cart, which will be placed in Sandy. This includes permits and other expenses (see itemized cost breakdown). 

What will you get if you invest in Wendy's Wieners?! If you donate a minimum of $200.00, I will make sure that when the app/idea goes viral, you are invested at the ground level. To those who have already financially and unconditionally supported me through the development phase of this crazy-enough-to-work idea (per my lawyer), you will be duly, no, triply rewarded for your loyalty!  

The specific expense breakdown of building the first cart includes supplies and assembly costs, which total approximately $1000- 1200. This is a phenomenal deal! To have a custom built cart, one done right, is most definitely worth the risk in kidnapping, I MEAN enlisting the help of nice people who will not be tied and gagged, nor let go without a scratch after it's finished. Oops, did I digress again? Maybe...maybe not. Squirrel! WHERE?!

Other expenses are broken down into daily costs. These figures are based on a cart I ran in front of a hardware store in NE Portland. The profit margin was astounding. I made $200-300 a day, open 5 days a week, from 10 am-4 pm.

I have to give credit to the man who did the homework on weenie profits (purchased the first cart to have me run it, and ME make all the profit). I did! It was what I was born to do~I mean...Wendy's Wieners! 'Nuf said! Thanks Todd. 

Here are the average daily hot dog expenses, approximately $50.00-65.00 for all day supply (40-60 big dogs/50 reg. kid size). If this squirrel-lee girl has done her math right, the daily average profit is a minimum of $425.00 in hot dogs alone (60x$5 meal w/ chips and soda=300). Kids deals (2 for $5.00 deal= $125) The buns cost ($15.00-20.00), and cost for condiments is minimal, which can be used if kept on ice and monitored closely, to uphold health codes. 

This particular location/situation was a symbiotic relationship. The property manager let the previous owner of the cart feed the employees w/ a discount. And when employees are happy, the customers are happy and everyone's tummies are full of hot dogs! Realistically, we will have sublet costs and many other expenses that are examined in the financials (see table below).

In return for your loyalty and support, those who donate $10.00 get a free hot dog! And I am NOT talking a kid size dog~I mean a jumbo w/ chili/cheese/the works and a bag of chips to boot! For every $20.00, you get two! $30.00, three! And if you donate $200.00 or more, when this thing takes off, you will be in like Flynn. I believe it can. I am convinced that this could revolutionize the way we eat and maybe even help us to become entrepreneurs, one cart at a time.

The Impact

The responsibilities of running a cart will teach the student/worker how to operate professionally by learning a sustainable, repeatable way to run their own business. This could provide a living wage for many families. Number of workers will depend on the demand for carts and availability of locations. A base pay could be incorporated by the success of carts and the result of profits.

Risks & Challenges

When I spoke to the attorney who showed interest in composing contracts for this venture, he outlined many obstacles that could derail its implementation. These future foibles will have to be worked out as we go, but he essentially stated, “You might have something here, kid." I have known him for 20 years. He will handle the legal details of this venture with the utmost professionalism.

To be completely honest, I have limited information on how this venture may turn out, which I openly admit. I would like to see major transformation through an educational evolution revolution. I am an educated woman majoring in business psychology. I understand what it is going to take for our citizens to successfully compete internationally with multi-national corporations (MNCs), which are not good for the little guy or gal. MNCs will suffocate our independence and autonomy.

One of the main goals of Wendy's Wieners is to combat these life-sucking MNCs, by teaching Americans what we need to do in order to win this very real battle! I believe we must become independent of corporations and learn why we live in the greatest country ever, by demonstrating civil transformation.

On the lighter side of things, this fun-loving facade is really to empower our workers to be self-sustaining business owners. These work ethics can be taught to youth and adults through re-training, resulting in giving hope to those in need of a miraculous idea, a fun way to spend your day, and a lucrative career.

Other Ways You Can Help

If you can't contribute, it doesn't mean you can't help. Please, get the word out for me. Share me with all your friends, by using the Indiegogo share tools! Please assist me by enlisting support from a bunch of fellow wieners! 

Tables inserted below:

These calculations are based on double what the cart would be making at the Portland location: The justification for doubling everything is to take into consideration that the hours will increase by extending them to double and triple the original hours. These hours and the percentage that the host business will earn will depend upon the contracts established between both parties.

As stated, the N.E. Portland cart showed a profit margin of approx. $250.00 a day between the months of Feb-thru-June of 2014 and the hours were extremely limited. This is with weekday traffic of 5000 people. "According to ODOT, average daily traffic (ADT) up the mountain is 8,500 from Rhododendron, 14 to 17 percent of which are trucks" Hungry bored truck drivers will also stop, and most likely become some of our best customers.

So, subtracting the 17-percent, the ADT = 7055 PER DAY. That's 71% more traffic than the 5000 I am basing my calculations upon. (This doesn't even include those trucks that will stop at my cart.) And with a name like Wendy's Wieners, they'll stop just to ask me "What the heck are you doing?!" Having fun!

(http://ntl.bts.gov/lib/48000/48500/48580/TAG_US... - from "Transportation Observations, Considerations, and Recommendations for Mt. Hood National Forest").

Summarizing: In this 27.3 mile stretch of the Mount Hood Highway, ATD ranges from 8,500 vehicles in any 24-hour period to a high of 26,200

Traffic near Mt. Hood is shown to be growing exponentially with an increase of about 25-30% each year and no signs of slowing down. These numbers are verifiable through the ODOT link below.

For U.S. 26 (Mt. Hood Highway) between Sandy and Government Camp:

For statistical verification of the current data:

2013 Transportation Volume Tables, ODOT, http://www.oregon.gov/ODOT/TD/TDATA/tsm/docs/TVT_2013.pdf