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New business idea - looking for help
Options

CTID86
Posts: 36 Forumite
Hi all,
So having quit my job after growing tired of the office life I am considering a few options:
1. Re-train in a new area of work
2. Complete some sports coaching qualifications (mainly to coach as a sideline/hobby, not as a full time job)
3. Use some savings to have a crack at my own business
Option 2 I will definitely do. I may well also do option 1 whilst looking further into option 3 to makesure I have a steady salary.
The reason I am keen to start my own business is that it is something I have always wanted to do, I am not work shy and would happily work 60+ hours a week as long as I knew I was the one reaping any rewards and that my time was being spent building my own business that I can be proud of. Something about working for the multi billion dollar corporation that I just left made me dissatisfied as I just felt like an employee number not making a difference, and motivation was hard (not helped by not enjoying my work).
Anyway, I have a few ideas but I am unsure that some of them would work out long term but all my ideas involve renting a shop of some description so we are not talking about much online work (apart from a website that I can easily build myself).
My main idea was kind of an independent Starbucks/Costa place but selling Bubble Tea, fruit tea, some basic coffees (maybe), soft drinks/milkshake, sandwiches, sushi, soup and cakes. It would have a few tables and chairs inside for shoppers/people on dinner breaks.
I know that coffee shops and cafes are ten a penny but in my local area I dont think anywhere sells bubble tea within about 15 miles! I would say sushi is the same. We do have a number of cafes and coffee shops.
My questions are:
If I rent a shop, does anyone know the typical cost of having it fitted? I have friends who could help with the actual fitting, I am more talking about the cost of the actual fittings needed, I know this would be expensive for a food and drink place.
I am assuming I would need some sort of food hygiene certificate? Is this expensive?
Is there much profit in this kind of thing now with all the huge chains? I know someone who opened a small cafe about 10-15 years ago and it ending up folding. I assume its mostly about location and reputation?
Anyone who has experience in this field or runs something similar, your advice would be great!
I have a few other ideas that would be much cheaper to start up and require much less shop fittings, but I just thought that this was quite a niche idea for the area that I live. I like the idea of having my own shop, I am just not sure what to put in it haha.
So having quit my job after growing tired of the office life I am considering a few options:
1. Re-train in a new area of work
2. Complete some sports coaching qualifications (mainly to coach as a sideline/hobby, not as a full time job)
3. Use some savings to have a crack at my own business
Option 2 I will definitely do. I may well also do option 1 whilst looking further into option 3 to makesure I have a steady salary.
The reason I am keen to start my own business is that it is something I have always wanted to do, I am not work shy and would happily work 60+ hours a week as long as I knew I was the one reaping any rewards and that my time was being spent building my own business that I can be proud of. Something about working for the multi billion dollar corporation that I just left made me dissatisfied as I just felt like an employee number not making a difference, and motivation was hard (not helped by not enjoying my work).
Anyway, I have a few ideas but I am unsure that some of them would work out long term but all my ideas involve renting a shop of some description so we are not talking about much online work (apart from a website that I can easily build myself).
My main idea was kind of an independent Starbucks/Costa place but selling Bubble Tea, fruit tea, some basic coffees (maybe), soft drinks/milkshake, sandwiches, sushi, soup and cakes. It would have a few tables and chairs inside for shoppers/people on dinner breaks.
I know that coffee shops and cafes are ten a penny but in my local area I dont think anywhere sells bubble tea within about 15 miles! I would say sushi is the same. We do have a number of cafes and coffee shops.
My questions are:
If I rent a shop, does anyone know the typical cost of having it fitted? I have friends who could help with the actual fitting, I am more talking about the cost of the actual fittings needed, I know this would be expensive for a food and drink place.
I am assuming I would need some sort of food hygiene certificate? Is this expensive?
Is there much profit in this kind of thing now with all the huge chains? I know someone who opened a small cafe about 10-15 years ago and it ending up folding. I assume its mostly about location and reputation?
Anyone who has experience in this field or runs something similar, your advice would be great!
I have a few other ideas that would be much cheaper to start up and require much less shop fittings, but I just thought that this was quite a niche idea for the area that I live. I like the idea of having my own shop, I am just not sure what to put in it haha.
2016 extra earnings
Ciao: £43.12
ProlificAC: £20.55
Ciao: £43.12
ProlificAC: £20.55
0
Comments
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You could start by speaking to the council about what food safety certificates you need, what you should be looking for in terms of premises and what equipment you need.do some market research to see if people are interested in what you will be offering. Good luck!Loving the sunny days!0
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As suggested speaking to the council environmental health would be a good place to start.
You'd also need to get an idea of local rents, and talk to builders/shop fitters to get an idea of costs.
Have you done any market research in the area? If you're surrounded by building sites and factories bubble tea and sushi might not be a winner!! ;-)0 -
Even the smallest cafe's can set you back £20-£30k to fit out from scratch and that's with second hand equipment. You'd be far better to find a cafe that's either recently closed down or is being sold as a going concern, so you can benefit from their setup. It's not just about needing better quality/larger fridges, drinks machines, etc., it's the cost of needing the floors and walls to be covered properly in "hygienic" material, i.e. aluminium splashbacks etc,. which are usually a requirement of the local authority. I know you said you'd do some yourself and with friends, but please check it out with the LA before you waste your time and money putting down flooring which isn't compliant with their rules (I've seen it several times!). Counters are ruinously expensive as they need to be strong as well as look good, so can easily be a few thousand for something basic.
Your running costs will also be high. You need to pay for trade waste disposal, credit card terminal, security, insurance, power, rent, business rates and water charges, all of which are far higher than a domestic house not only because of higher use but because tariffs are always higher.
Realistically, you need somewhere between £25-£50k to set it up from scratch to include the upfront costs and the first couple of months of running costs (whilst you'll be making a loss or breaking even). Many smaller, run down, cafes are on the market for around £25k, so if you found one with the right equipment and fittings, it could well be worth buying rather than doing it yourself from an empty shell.0 -
Get some of experience of working in a coffee bar and see the set up from the otherside of the counterNever pay on an estimated bill. Always read and understand your bill0
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It is exciting to consider setting up your own business, but just a word of caution;
Firstly, demand! Why is there nowhere selling bubble tea (whatever that is) nearby? It could well be because there is no demand for it!
Setting up shop selling something that few people want would be a heartbreaking and very expensive endeavour.
Secondly, is this a sector you have any experience in? If not, how can you even plan what to do? I've seen many people start businesses because they like the idea of it even though they haven't got the first clue about that particular business, and inevitably they fail.
The ones that I've seen be successful are those based on passion, experience, and expertise. For example the gas engineer who has worked for British Gas for 10 years, knows his job inside out and starts his own boiler servicing company.
Or the woman who has been keenly interested in essential oils for years and knows all about them, which are the best ones, where to get them, and what they do. Then starts selling them herself online.
Those are two examples I've seen of people I know who've been successful starting businesses. The point is, there was underlying expertise, they didn't just pick a random business that sounded fun.
I knew a couple who quit their jobs and bought a guesthouse on the coast. They loved the idea of living by the sea, and thought the idea of looking after travellers would interesting and fun.
Only they discovered it was anything but fun, and within a year were desperate to get out of it, heavily in debt, and thoroughly miserable.
Getting some experience working in a cafe for a few months is very good advice.0 -
Bubble Tea is a hard sell. I live in a city with a pretty high Asian population (university has a translation course and heavy tourist footfall), and yet I have seen several bubble tea shops come and go - usually at the exact 6 month mark when they have (I guess) some kind of break clause. Everyone does coffee and teas already. What can you do differently to attract people to you rather than 20m down the road?
Having chairs and tables means extra rates and space to maintain and fit out - so if a cup of tea has a profit margin on say £1 and takes 20 minutes to drink, that table has to be 100% full and cost you less than £3/hour (including staff, heating, amortised insurance, etc) overall to even stand still.0 -
Thanks guys for the detailed replies and advice. After looking into it some more and speaking to a couple of other people about it, I don't think it is the right business for me, its a nice idea and something I would enjoy running but the risk factor and cost involved is very high.
I have a couple other ideas floating around in my head along the more conventional lines of a shop (i.e no food hygiene needed or tables and chairs or coffee machines) that should be much cheaper to start, I just need to give them serious thought as to whether I can make a go of it.2016 extra earnings
Ciao: £43.12
ProlificAC: £20.550
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