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[[Category:Strategy]]
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{{Panel|Welcome to Business Heroes!|This guide walks you through your first days running a food truck. Follow these steps and you'll be serving customers and earning revenue in no time.}}

== Your First Day ==

You're starting with a '''Startup Burger Bike''' -- one employee, a small storage capacity of just 8 units, and a staff training level of 0 (Burger Boss). That means your food quality and service speed are both capped at '''40 points''' out of 100. Don't worry -- everyone starts here.

Your first goal is simple: serve food, cover your costs, and start building a reputation.

=== Choosing Your First Location ===

Where you park your truck determines which customers you'll attract. Each district type has specific [[Customer_Segmentation|customer segments]]:

{| class="wikitable" style="width:100%"
|-
! District !! Customer Segments !! Beginner-Friendly?
|-
| '''University Area''' || Students, Fit Ones || Yes -- Students are very price-sensitive but forgiving on quality
|-
| '''Residential Area''' || Parents, Environmentalists || Yes -- Parents want good value family food
|-
| '''Shopping Centre''' || Parents, Tourists, Influencers || Moderate -- mixed crowd, some need bigger trucks
|-
| '''Business District''' || Staffs, Managers || Not yet -- Managers demand top quality
|-
| '''Tourist Zone''' || Tourists, Foodies, Influencers || Not yet -- Foodies need Mini Burger Trailer or better
|}

'''Start in a University Area or Residential Area.''' Students and Parents are the most forgiving segments. They don't need gourmet food -- they need affordable, filling meals. That's exactly what your Burger Boss can deliver.

{{Panel|Location Tip|Avoid the Business District early on. Managers have ''very low'' price sensitivity (they'll pay a lot), but they demand top quality that your Level 0 staff simply can't produce. You'll waste ingredients and tank your reputation.}}

=== Setting Your First Prices ===

Start with '''cost-plus [[Pricing|pricing]]''' -- it's the simplest strategy and it ensures you always cover your ingredient costs.

Here's how:
# Calculate your ingredient cost per meal
# Add a '''50-80% markup'''
# Check that the final price feels right for your target segment

For Students, keep prices ''low''. They are very price-sensitive and will walk away from anything that feels expensive. It's better to sell 20 meals at a small margin than 5 meals at a big margin. Volume is your friend when you're starting out.

{{Panel|Quick Pricing Example|If your ingredients cost $3.00 per meal, a 60% markup means you charge $4.80. For a Student-heavy University Area, that's a good starting point. You can adjust up or down as you see what sells.}}

=== Creating Your First Recipe ===

Your [[Recipes|recipes]] combine ingredients into a taste profile, and different [[Customer_Segmentation|customer segments]] prefer different profiles. But here's the key constraint: '''your staff's training level caps food quality.'''

At Level 0 (Burger Boss), your quality ceiling is 40 points. Buying premium ingredients won't help -- your untrained staff can't make the most of them. So keep it simple:

* Use '''affordable, basic ingredients'''
* Aim for '''filling, cheap recipes''' that Students love
* Save premium ingredients for later when your staff can actually use them
* Focus on keeping ingredient costs low so your margins stay healthy

== Your First Week ==

=== Managing Inventory ===

Your Startup Burger Bike holds only '''8 units''' of storage. Every unit counts. Here's how to manage [[Inventory_Management|inventory]] without wasting money:

* '''Order just enough for expected demand''' -- guess conservatively at first
* '''Ingredients expire!''' Anything unsold and unused will spoil, and that's money in the bin
* '''Start with manual ordering''' so you learn your daily usage patterns
* '''Track what sells vs. what expires''' -- adjust your next order based on real data
* '''Use FIFO''' (First In, First Out) -- always use your oldest stock first

{{Panel|The Inventory Balancing Act|Order too much and ingredients expire. Order too little and you run out mid-service, turning away paying customers. Start small, track your numbers, and dial it in over a few days. A small buffer above expected demand is safer than a big surplus.}}

=== Training Your Staff ===

This is your '''number one priority''' after covering the basics. [[Training_and_Development|Training]] is the single highest-ROI investment in the game.

Here's why:

{| class="wikitable" style="width:100%"
|-
! Training Level !! Title !! Quality Points !! Speed Points
|-
| Level 0 || Untrained (Burger Boss) || 40 || 40
|-
| Level 1 || Basic || 50 || 50
|-
| Level 2 || Developing || 60 || 60
|-
| Level 3 || Competent || 70 || 70
|-
| Level 4 || Proficient || 80 || 80
|-
| Level 5 || Advanced || 90 || 90
|-
| Level 6 || Expert (Michelin Maestro) || 100 || 100
|}

Each level adds '''10 points''' to both quality AND speed. Going from Level 0 to Level 1 is cheap and gives you a 25% improvement in both dimensions. That's a massive return.

Staff training sets an absolute ceiling on food quality. Even the finest ingredients in the world can't overcome an untrained cook. '''Always invest in training before you invest in premium ingredients.'''

=== Reading Your Numbers ===

Check your [[Financial_Statements|financial statements]] daily. You don't need to be an accountant -- just answer one question: ''are you making more than you spend each day?''

Key numbers to watch:
* '''Revenue''' -- how much money came in from sales
* '''Expenses''' -- ingredients, staff wages, loan repayments, other costs
* '''Cash balance''' -- your total available cash (if this hits zero, you're in trouble)
* '''COGS ratio''' -- your Cost of Goods Sold (ingredients) as a percentage of your selling price

{{Panel|The 30-40% Rule|Aim to keep your ingredient costs (COGS) at '''30-40% of your selling price'''. If you're spending $4 on ingredients for a $6 meal, that's 67% -- way too high. Either raise your prices or find cheaper ingredients. At $3 ingredients and $8 selling price, you're at 37% -- right in the sweet spot.}}

If you're losing money each day, don't panic. Check two things first:
# Are your prices high enough to cover costs? (Check COGS ratio)
# Are you wasting ingredients to spoilage? (Check [[Inventory_Management|inventory]] expiry)

== Growing Your Business ==

=== When to Expand ===

Only expand after your first truck is '''consistently profitable'''. Signs you're ready:

* Positive daily cash flow for several days running
* Good reputation in your current [[Location|location]]
* Staff trained to at least Level 2-3
* Cash reserves to fund the upgrade (or a smart loan plan)

Expanding too early is one of the most common mistakes. A second unprofitable truck doesn't fix a first unprofitable truck -- it doubles the problem.

=== Upgrading Your Truck ===

Bigger business units unlock more storage capacity and access to premium [[Customer_Segmentation|customer segments]]:

{| class="wikitable" style="width:100%"
|-
! Business Unit !! Employees !! Storage !! Segments Unlocked
|-
| Startup Burger Bike || 1 || 8 units || Students, Parents, Staffs (baseline)
|-
| Maxi Burger Wagon || 1 || 16 units || + Influencers, Environmentalists
|-
| Mini Burger Trailer || 1 || 24 units || + Foodies
|-
| Burger Master || 1 || 32 units || All segments accessible
|-
| Happy Big Burger || 2 || 48 units || Higher volume operations
|-
| Giant Burger || 2 || 64 units || Maximum capacity
|}

The '''Maxi Burger Wagon''' is often the best first upgrade. It doubles your storage to 16 units and unlocks Influencers (who have low price sensitivity and love trendy food) and Environmentalists. The '''Mini Burger Trailer''' further unlocks Foodies, who will pay well for outstanding recipes.

=== Taking Your First Loan ===

[[Loans|Loans]] in Business Heroes are 5-year term loans with a '''5% processing fee''' upfront. Your interest rate depends on your debt-to-equity ratio plus the central bank rate. Lower debt relative to your equity means a better rate.

The golden rule: '''only borrow if the investment will generate more revenue than the total interest cost.'''

Good reasons to take a loan:
* Upgrading to a bigger truck that will unlock profitable customer segments
* Investing in equipment that boosts efficiency

Bad reasons to take a loan:
* Covering daily operating losses (fix the root cause instead)
* Expanding before your current operation is profitable

{{Panel|Loan Math|If you borrow $10,000, the 5% processing fee means you only receive $9,500 in cash but owe $10,000 plus interest. Make sure the investment you're funding will clearly pay back more than the total cost of the loan. If you can't make a strong case for the return, don't borrow.}}

=== Targeting Premium Customers ===

Once your staff reach '''Level 3-4+''', you're ready to start targeting the premium segments. Foodies and Managers pay significantly more per meal, but they demand quality to match.

To succeed with premium customers:
* '''Upgrade ingredients AND training together''' -- one without the other doesn't work
* '''Move to appropriate districts''' -- Foodies appear in Tourist Zones, Managers in Business Districts
* '''Use value-based [[Pricing|pricing]]''' instead of cost-plus -- charge what the food is worth to these segments
* '''Upgrade your truck''' -- Foodies need at least a Mini Burger Trailer; Influencers need at least a Maxi Burger Wagon

The economic cycle in Business Heroes compresses 10 real years into 1 game year. Premium customers are more resilient during downturns, making them a valuable long-term investment.

== Common First-Week Mistakes ==

Avoid these traps that catch most new players:

* '''Buying premium ingredients with untrained staff''' -- quality is capped by training level, so expensive ingredients are wasted on a Level 0 cook
* '''Over-ordering inventory''' -- ingredients expire, and every spoiled unit is money thrown away
* '''Setting prices too high for your district''' -- Students in a University Area won't pay premium prices, no matter how good your food is
* '''Ignoring [[Training_and_Development|training]]''' -- this is the single biggest ROI investment in the game, and every day you delay it costs you
* '''Expanding before your first truck is profitable''' -- fix what you have before adding more trucks
* '''Taking [[Loans|loans]] to cover losses instead of fixing the root cause''' -- debt doesn't solve a broken business model, it just delays the reckoning
* '''Neglecting your financial numbers''' -- if you don't check your revenue, costs, and cash balance daily, problems sneak up on you

== What to Learn Next ==

Now that you've got the basics, dive deeper into the topics that matter most for your strategy:

* [[Quick_Reference|Quick Reference]] -- all key tables and numbers on one page
* [[Early-Game_Strategy|Early-Game Strategy]] -- detailed strategy for your first 10 days
* [[Troubleshooting|Troubleshooting]] -- "Why is my food truck losing money?"
* [[Customer_Segmentation|Customer Segmentation]] -- deep dive into the 9 customer types
* [[Pricing|Pricing]] -- all pricing strategies explained

== See Also ==

* [[Quick_Reference|Quick Reference]]
* [[Early-Game_Strategy|Early-Game Strategy]]
* [[FAQ|Frequently Asked Questions]]
* [[Recipes|Recipes]]
* [[Location|Location]]
* [[Training_and_Development|Training and Development]]
* [[Inventory_Management|Inventory Management]]
* [[Loans|Loans]]

Getting Started - Revision history

Maintenance script: Replace -- with em dash

Maintenance script at 14:49, 23 February 2026