Scalable UK Food Trade & Event Catering Platform

I am looking for a developer to build a scalable UK platform for the food trading and event catering industry.

This is not just a simple directory website. The long-term goal is to connect food traders, event organisers, suppliers, service providers and staff/jobseekers in one platform.

The first version needs to be affordable, but the database and architecture must be built properly so future features can be added without rebuilding the whole site.

Main user types:

Food Traders
Event Organisers
Suppliers / Service Providers
Staff / Jobseekers
Admin / Moderator

FOOD TRADERS

Food traders should register for free and create structured searchable profiles including:

Trading name
Contact details
Location/postcode
Travel radius
Food type/cuisine
Dietary options
Trading unit type, such as gazebo, trailer, food truck, vintage trailer, container, Airstream, horsebox, etc.
Unit size
Power requirements
Water requirements
LPG/generator use
Photos of unit and food
Food hygiene rating
Local authority
Public liability insurance level and expiry date

Traders may have more than one trading unit.

All important information must be stored as structured searchable fields, not just free text.

EVENT ORGANISERS

Organisers should create a profile and then create multiple event listings.

Each event should include:

Event name
Location/postcode
Dates
Event type
Expected attendance
Previous attendance
Years running
Number of traders expected
Pitch fee
Percentage of turnover if applicable
Deposit
Electricity included or charged
Power available
Water/waste facilities
Photos from previous events
Trader requirements
Minimum hygiene rating
Minimum insurance
Unit types accepted
Food categories wanted
Maximum unit dimensions

Traders should eventually be able to search events by location, distance, date, attendance, cost and facilities.

Organisers should be able to search traders by food type, location, unit type, hygiene rating, insurance and other filters.

SUPPLIERS

There should be a supplier/service directory for businesses such as:

Food wholesalers
Packaging suppliers
Catering equipment suppliers
Refrigeration engineers
Gas engineers
Electricians
Equipment repairs
Generators/power
Waste/water services
Signage/printing
Stand/trailer builders
Insurance
Accountancy
Transport/logistics
Staffing agencies

Supplier profiles will eventually be paid listings.

STAFF / JOBSEEKERS

Staff should be able to create profiles similar to Indeed, including:

Location
Travel radius
Availability
Experience
Preferred roles
Own transport
Driving licence
Qualifications
Food hygiene certificate
Expected hourly/day rate

Future functionality should allow traders and organisers to post jobs/shifts.

COMMUNITY / FORUM

There should be a trader-only forum with categories including:

Event Feedback
Staff Needed
Support Needed

Future AI-assisted moderation should flag abusive, threatening, discriminatory, spammy or potentially defamatory posts, while admin retains final control.

MARKETPLACE

Traders should be able to sell used equipment such as:

Fryers
Refrigeration
Generators
Gazebos
Signs
Trailers
Containers
Complete catering units
Vehicles
Other trade equipment

Normal equipment listings may be free, while complete units/trailers/containers should support a small paid listing fee.

ANNOUNCEMENTS / ADVERTISING

Admin should be able to send targeted announcements or adverts to:

All users
Traders
Organisers
Suppliers
Staff
Specific regions

These could appear on the homepage, dashboards, announcement feeds and later by email/push notifications.

FUTURE FEATURES

The first version does not need all of these, but the architecture must support them later:

Event applications
Trader shortlisting
Saved searches
Alerts
Internal messaging
Document uploads
Insurance/certificate expiry reminders
Verification badges
Stripe subscriptions
Featured profiles
Featured events
Paid adverts
Job applications
Availability calendars
Event management dashboards
Mobile app/API
Advanced analytics
AI moderation

IMPORTANT TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS

I need the developer to explain:

1. What platform/framework you recommend and why.
2. How the database will be structured.
3. Whether one user can have multiple roles.
4. How radius/location search will work.
5. How advanced filtering will work.
6. Whether admin can add/edit categories without coding.
7. Whether all data can be exported.
8. Whether the website can be moved to another host.
9. Whether another developer can take over later.
10. Who owns the custom code and database.
11. What paid plugins/licences are required.
12. Whether Stripe can be added later.
13. Whether an API can be added later for a mobile app.
14. How future event applications will connect traders and events.

Before full development, I would also like a simple database/ERD diagram showing how users, traders, trading units, organisers, events, applications, suppliers, staff, jobs and marketplace listings connect.

The key requirement is:

I do not want Stage 1 built cheaply and then later discover that future features require the whole website to be rebuilt.

Please quote separately for:

Phase 1 — technical planning/database structure
Phase 2 — MVP build
Phase 3 — future optional features

The initial MVP should focus on trader profiles, organiser/event listings, supplier profiles, staff profiles, search/filtering, basic marketplace, basic forum, announcements and admin management.