Buying a coffee shop

Savvy_Sue

nickj wrote: »

i would have thought the main problem with opening a coffee shop , is saturation of the market , in my local town there are at least a dozen , which when things are good is surprisingly sustainable , however over the last 6 months a couple have bit the dust

Agreed, there's a little shopping 'hub' a couple of miles away from me which has always had 3 proper 'coffee shops' and several other bakeries / take away coffee facilities. In the last month Costa has opened, and another independent. I can't see 5 being sustainable. If there aren't any rivals, there may be a market, but who knows when Costa will arrive?

Conrad

I arrange a lot of business fiance and my experience is that MOST people in catering get it wrong.

They lack the requsite attention to detail.

Usually it's down to a combination of factors, but could be sumarised as the owner bascially lacks attention to detail, for example the loo isn't 100% spotless / the lighting is too bright / the staff serve incorrectly / music too loud / walls not scrubbed every morning / light fittings have cobwebs / unmatching surfaces throughout the property / unmatching fittings for example brass door handles yet silver window handles / food the wrong temperature / cold plates / rust and dirt marks on the cieling - often I notice this / staff don't write down every request customers make so they forget things etc.

Unless you have an unswerving dedication and attention to detail you'll probably fail

utero

Does she know anything about coffee..to survive in the coffee shop market amongst the big boys you really need to know your beans so to speak.

paulwf

Savvy_Sue wrote: »

Agreed, there's a little shopping 'hub' a couple of miles away from me which has always had 3 proper 'coffee shops' and several other bakeries / take away coffee facilities. In the last month Costa has opened, and another independent. I can't see 5 being sustainable. If there aren't any rivals, there may be a market, but who knows when Costa will arrive?

Similar story in my town. There were a couple of independent coffee shops and a bakery/coffee shop as well as a few other places doing hot drinks as a sideline. Costa only had a concession in Waterstones.

The main independent took over next door and doubled in size. Costa opened a 2 floor store across the road from them. Next Nero have opened opposite Costa. Rumours are Starbucks are looking for a site. It's all getting a bit silly!

I'm not in a commuter town but Nero and Costa open 7am to 7pm weekdays, it is very hard to find a niche that you can use to compete against them as they have lots of seating and such long hours.

heathcote123

paulwf wrote: »

Similar story in my town. There were a couple of independent coffee shops and a bakery/coffee shop as well as a few other places doing hot drinks as a sideline. Costa only had a concession in Waterstones.

The main independent took over next door and doubled in size. Costa opened a 2 floor store across the road from them. Next Nero have opened opposite Costa. Rumours are Starbucks are looking for a site. It's all getting a bit silly!

I'm not in a commuter town but Nero and Costa open 7am to 7pm weekdays, it is very hard to find a niche that you can use to compete against them as they have lots of seating and such long hours.

I'd guess just not being costa or starbucks may be a workable niche in itself! I prefer to use (real) local businesses where possible.

CKhalvashi

nickj wrote: »

i would have thought the main problem with opening a coffee shop , is saturation of the market , in my local town there are at least a dozen , which when things are good is surprisingly sustainable , however over the last 6 months a couple have bit the dust

I’m sat in a coffee shop now, with one over the road doing the same thing, that’s set up opposite an established coffee shop with an established Portuguese community. The one opposite has been there for a year, been bailed out twice by owners parents and has had the owner arrested for fraud (I’ve heard in a professional capacity, but am not 100% of this, so I’ll give no location)

This shop has been here for over 10 years, has an established client base and is making profit for an owner with a young family, has parking, an alcohol license and an owner with a much better attitude (!). I know where I’d rather go.

muckybutt

With coffee shops its about pitch and customer satisfaction.

Your MIL has to look to see if there is an opening for a coffee shop in the area for starters.

The next thing is you really need a good coffee blend, just any old bean wont do, I used to run a coffee van so know what it takes to get the grind and the bean right.

It looks simple making coffee's but doing it all day long IS hard work believe me, do you or the MIL have any Barista training ? if not then you really need to look into getting onto a proper barista course, there you'll know about the beans, profit calculator, correct grind etc etc

If you get the coffee wrong to begin with then you'll be on a looser from the start !