community cafe business plan uk

Advice on setting up a community cafe

Guide published: 14 may 2020 updated: 27 jan 2023  minute read.

This guide looks at various ways that community businesses can earn money from setting up and running cafés.

This resource is designed to help you make the right choices for your organisations. The guide looks at factors including: your café model, your target customers, your premises

The guide is of use to anyone running or considering starting a community café.

What will I learn?

• The difference between running a café for social and commercial purposes
• Pricing and profitability
• The difference that can be made by your location and premises
• What to think about in terms of your workforce
• Different income streams

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How to start a café or coffee shop

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In recent years, the UK had been steadily moving towards the kind of well-established café culture that our European cousins are famous for. These independent brewers have taken a hit due to the ongoing cost of living crisis, but the industry is readying for growth and recovery in 2024.

In April, the UK economy grew by 0.2% thanks to a boost from the nation’s humble hot coffee makers. And, according to an economic report by UKHospitality, the sector has the potential to increase its contribution to create half a million new jobs by 2027.

It’s also now easier than ever to set up a simple store or pop-up with limited equipment – taking payment on your phone using a mobile card reader , for example. This means that starting your own café or coffee shop is becoming an increasingly accessible (and affordable) venture.

Still, future cafe owners need to be aware that consumer behaviour, and buying habits, have changed. Although convenience and cost are still big drivers, brand identity and aesthetic now play a huge part in a customer’s purchase decision – making marketing a crucial consideration for wannabe baristas.

Below, we’ll outline exactly what you need to know to take your café or coffee shop business plan from bean, to cup.

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There’s a huge amount of planning that needs to go into launching a coffee shop. Thankfully, one area which needn’t cause undue stress is creating a website to promote your business. Thanks to modern templates like the one below , you can create one of your own in under an hour.

At Startups.co.uk, we test and rate website builder tools, and we’ve identified Wix as one of the best you can choose for creating a business site. Wix even has a selection of  custom website templates designed specifically for cafes – you simply drop your own menu, location, wording and preferred imagery into your chosen template. Better still, it’s completely free to try for yourself.

Read on to find out more…

How to write a café or coffee shop business plan, market research, financing your café or coffee shop business, concept, branding and design, waste disposal, equipment, utilities and supplies, taking payments, recruitment, regulations, useful links.

At Startups.co.uk, we’re here to help small UK businesses to get started, grow and succeed. We have helpful resources for helping new businesses get off the ground – you can use the tool below to get started today.

What Does Your Business Need Help With?

When writing a business plan for a café or coffee shop specifically, you’ll need to consider:

• The overall industry, and how your business will fit into it – are you catering to the growing trend for premium products? Are you offering an independent alternative in an area with a lot of chain brands?
• Competitor analysis – following on from the above, the business plan needs to show a clear understanding of your intended area and customer base, as well as how your café will cater to a gap in the market
• Sales and marketing – for a coffee shop, this means outlining how you plan to price products, along with which items will be available on the menu. Similarly, if you have any ideas for promotions or other purchasing incentives (such as deals or loyalty schemes), include them in this section. See the dedicated marketing section for more information

This is in addition to the standard requirements of any business plan, such as account information and financial forecasts, as well as details of the management structure and operations plans. 

You can learn more about what to include, and get help to create your coffee shop business plan, using our business plan template page.

Sarah Heward, founder and co-owner at The Real Food Caf é tells Startups : “I had to think about the main players in the business and their backgrounds. I then conducted market research before focusing on design, including building a website and menus. My SWOT analysis came next, followed by timeline and financials.

“We made some basic errors – one was getting carried away with our enthusiasm and not doing our homework thoroughly enough, which led to some costly adjustments and mistakes.”

While choosing a convenient location is key, when it comes to running a café, coffee quality is still paramount. With the continued interest in premiumisation and sustainability in the industry, people are becoming increasingly aware of where their coffee is sourced and how it’s roasted. This connects with the growing conscious consumerism movement.

However, while some coffee brands are expanding rapidly, it appears that customers are nonetheless enticed by the intimacy of an independent coffee shop.

Starbucks struggled through the recession, and was forced to close a number of stores across the UK. Fast forward to 2019, however, and the company now has 995 UK stores – the second highest number of outlets for coffee shops in the country. 

While the estimated value of the UK coffee shop market stands at £10.1bn (according to the Allegra Project Café UK 2019 report), there are still opportunities within the sector. Indeed, approximately 95 million cups of coffee are drunk each day in the UK. 

What’s more, high street café culture is booming – according to data published by The British Coffee Association , 80% of people who visit coffee shops make a visit at least once a week, while 16% visit each day.

Cafe owner Heward  continues:  “I feel that the customers are now more into the quality of the coffee and they are conscious about reducing plastic waste. Artisan coffee producers are now more favoured over the bigger brands; people know the blends that they like and where to find it.”

Need help staying organised?

Starting a cafe or coffee shop takes time, and there are a number of steps to take.

We think project management software is a great way to keep everything on schedule. Whether you’re working alone or with other people, you can streamline processes, assign times and track progress to keep everything moving efficiently in the right direction.

Find out which project management tool we think is best .

Premises, equipment, staff… all of these things take money. Fortunately, there are a number of options available if you’re just starting a business and need to raise finance. While many people start businesses using their own savings, or money borrowed from family, there are also various other paths to pursue.

Despite the phenomenal success of Costa and other chains, coffee shops are not the kind of business to set up if you’re expecting a quick multi-million pound exit. Profit margins will only become significant if you open multiple outlets, and even then, your initial costs will be considerable. If you’re feeling particularly ambitious, it may be worth investigating if you can get a business loan to help you get started.

However, if you’re after a lifestyle business which provides you with a modest income, then setting up a coffee shop could be a great decision.

Startup loans – the Startup Loan company is a government-backed scheme, where you can borrow up to £25,000 with a fixed interest rate of 6% p.a.

Business loans – business loans are similar to startup loans, except they are not just for new businesses and don’t have the same caps.

You should also consider how you will keep track of your finances. It’s best practice to use a business bank account to separate your personal and business expenses and income, and you’ll have to if you’re starting a limited company. Nerdwallet compares leading UK business bank accounts if you need to find one.

Consider lighting, layout, and furniture when creating your café’s concept

Managing your money

Starting a business takes money and time, and accountancy software can help with both.

Whether you’re running your cafe alone as a sole trader, or with a staff, you’ll need to stay on top of your finances. If you’re not ready to employ an accountant to help out, then we suggest using an online accountancy tool.

Accountancy software is designed to simplify the complex processes related to money. From tracking your outgoings – whether that is salary or other necessary costs – to managing your taxes, you’ll find any finance process simpler with the right tools in place. Take a look at the accountancy software that we’ve rated best .

Or, take a quick look at our top recommended picks for accounting software that’s best suited to small and fledgling businesses below:

It’s not vital for you to have worked in a café before, but as with any business, industry experience goes a long way . If you don’t have any prior experience, it’s a good idea to spend at least a few weeks working in a similar establishment to the kind you want to open. 

If you choose a business to learn from that’s in a different geographic area, there won’t be any issues with competition, and you’ll find people are surprisingly receptive to offering advice if you’re honest about what you’re planning to do.

When doing her research , Sahar Hashemi , the co-founder of Coffee Republic, spent a day on the Circle Line, getting off at each of the 27 stops to investigate what type of coffee was on offer. It’s important to make sure you’ve spent some time considering the business from more than just a customer’s point of view.

This includes thinking about the type of company you want to create: do you have plans to become a big brand eventually? Or do you want your coffee shop to keep its small and local vibe for the foreseeable future?

And in turn, consider what your café can bring to the scene : whether that’s a focus on a certain type of bean or drink, a particular atmosphere you want to create, or an overarching ethos (e.g. charitable, eco-friendly).

As part of the design process , you’ll need to create a floor plan – you can either hire a professional to do this for you, or use floor planning software to do it yourself. Some of the most well-known software packages are RoomSketcher and CADPro.

Essentially, a floor plan will divide the space into customer-facing areas and dedicated work spaces. Ensure you meet any legal requirements, such as building and accessibility regulations. 

Also, think about the layout of the space, including decoration , along with how your staff will interact with customers. You should also consider what your logo will look like, and where it will be positioned. These are some of the main points to consider when creating your café concept, and contribute to how your coffee shop will be branded and designed.

One of the most well-known coffee brands around the world is Starbucks. For inspiration and advice that could benefit your own brand, think about the beverage giant’s marketing strategy, and the process it followed to create such a remarkable brand .

Ozkan Ozdemir is owner of Emy’s Kitchen, a Turkish cafe based in Islington. Ozdemir tells Startups  said :  “The idea to start Emy’s Kitchen was on our mind for many years. My mum, Emy, is a really good cook and we knew her food would be appreciated by other people too.”

Your café stands to benefit from having a website that provides the key details that your customers need to know. This includes contact information, opening hours, what’s on the menu, and where to find the café.

But a website goes beyond a business listing: think of it as an opportunity to further showcase your brand and reach a wider audience. As your coffee shop grows, you could write a blog that responds to industry developments, or highlights the social good your café is doing. Be sure to include any awards or nominations that your café may receive, too. 

An ‘About us’ section is a great way to connect with customers and create a sense of community. Plus, it’s an opportunity to reinforce your café’s USP. 

If you want to sell products online (such as coffee beans or bespoke cakes), then you’ll need to set up an online shop. Not sure which platform is best for your business? Check out our guide to the best ecommerce platforms for more information.

Also, if you want to host events (whether personal or private hire), then a website will allow you to easily and quickly manage registrations and bookings.

If you’re wondering how to create a business website , it can either be designed professionally, or you can use a website builder to make your own. 

Location and size are key when choosing a premises

The biggest decision you’ll have to make when thinking about how to start a coffee shop is regarding your premises. When looking at prospective sites, location and size are the two main factors you need to consider.

Mintel research found that 79% of Brits purchased an out-of-home hot drink in 2017, while this figure increased to 90% for younger millennials aged 18-27.

Ozkan Ozdemir, founder of Emy’s Kitchen, recalls: “Our biggest challenge was finding a good premises. As the business was a whole new concept we had started, we didn’t actually know which area in London would be best.”

So when choosing a café location, it may be worth looking for a busy urban area with a lot of foot traffic. However, these types of properties are expensive and the amount of square feet you will be able to get will be less than if you choose a more suburban or rural location.

Equally, you may have envisioned a spacious, airy coffee and tea shop with room for large sofas and coffee tables covered in newspapers or books – bear in mind that this may come at a price. 

And as the premiumisation trend continues, it may even be more profitable to forsake the perfect location in favour of investing in better beans. The important thing is to be flexible – focus on visiting a range of properties, big and small, in busy and quiet locations. 

Researching your market is essential: look into the locations that are popular among branded coffee shops, as these are the areas that have been identified for drawing in a good trade. If these shops are too busy during peak times, there could be room for an independent alternative. 

It is also important to know your competition. Consider what the most popular brands are offering, and how you could improve upon that.

While the size of the property you will buy or rent is intrinsically linked to its location, you should know roughly what sort of size and square footage you need. You should also be aware of how many covers (i.e. people seated) it can accommodate, as this will help you when going through property adverts. 

You need to be clear about your requirements: you’ll require a large seating area, a kitchen, a coworking area, a performance space, and/or a small retail section. A rough guide to café sizes is as follows:

Think about what you need from your coffee or tea shop, what is already provided, and what you would need to add yourself. When viewing properties, take the layout into careful consideration. Imagine your service area is fully staffed, and that you’re dealing with a bustling sitting space decked out with tables, chairs, and lots of customers in need of a caffeine injection.

Ozkan adds: “After we had started the business, we realised that the location wasn’t really that important as we have customers travelling from all around London for our breakfasts.”

As part of getting your café up and running, you’ll need to ensure you dispose of its commercial waste correctly. Whether you choose to hire a private company to collect it, or opt for the service provided by your local council, this is an essential part of operations. 

Some providers offer specific services for the hospitality sector, such as collecting glass, food waste, or coffee grounds. To help you choose a provider, read our guide to the best waste management companies . 

Of course, it’s ideal to reduce the amount of waste created in the first place as much as possible. Not only does this help to save money (less waste means fewer collections), but it’s good for the planet, too. Look for a provider that offers coffee cup recycling, and learn more about business recycling in general.

Before you negotiate the lease or purchase of a property, you must also check what commercial classification it currently falls under. If the property does not already have the correct classification for a coffee or tea shop, you will need to get planning permission from your local authority. You can use the Gov.uk licence finder to help you.

A café or coffee shop will most probably be classified as an A3 use class, although this will depend on the local authority. Planning permission for A3 use permits the sale of food and drink to be consumed on premises. For example, if you take on a property with a different class (e.g. a shop, which falls under category A1) and want to use the premises as a café, you’ll need to get the planning permission to change it to an A3 use class. 

To learn more, and to apply for a licence, visit the Gov.uk page on food business registration . 

Here, we outline the equipment, utilities and supplies you’ll need to start your own coffee shop. We’ll also look at the process of sourcing equipment, utilities, and suppliers.

Opening a café or coffee shop requires a lot of equipment. Some of it you’ll need straightaway, while other items you may be able to get further down the line, depending on your business requirements.

Essential kit includes:

• Coffee makers – espresso machines, as well as drip and cafétieres, plus equipment for any other specific drinks you offer e.g. pour over/filter
• Coffee grinders – ensure these are suitable for commercial use
• Cooking devices – e.g. ovens, toasters, sandwich presses
• Cooling and storage – e.g. refrigerators, freezers, shelving/cupboards
• Food containers – for syrup, ingredients, milk etc.
• Security devices – e.g. alarms , CCTV cameras , water detectors  
• Payment equipment – this includes a card reader, an iPad and/or a till, plus software. For more information on payment equipment, read our guide on small business POS systems

You can choose to buy some items outright from the beginning, or you can hire them on a rental or lease basis. For example, espresso machines are notoriously expensive, and it may be more sensible to rent one. By contrast, food containers are likely to be cheaper to purchase. 

Utilities 

You’ll need to get connected with business gas and electricity suppliers – be sure to compare energy suppliers to get the best packages for your small business.

Supplies/suppliers

You’ll need to think about the type of coffee you’ll choose for your café. Consider which (and how many) strengths will be on offer, and do your research about where it comes from and how it’s produced. When choosing suppliers, be sure to do taste tests (with coffee that’s been correctly prepared) so that you can know what your customers will experience. 

Also, check out a supplier’s record – have they won any awards or other industry recognition? Are they FairTrade and/or organic certified? Be sure to review the contract from a potential roaster as well – would you prefer an exclusive supplier, or to be able to use beans from multiple roasters?

Beyond this, the supplies you’ll require will depend on the type of café you run. For instance, the supplies used in a café that specialises in plant-based foods compared to a coffee shop that offers rum and other alcoholic beverages (like London-based Grind ) are going to be very different. 

You’ll also need to factor in non-edible supplies, like plates and cutlery, including both those used in-store and for takeaway. Plus, take into consideration the aprons or other items that your staff will need to wear or use.  

You can find suppliers in the following ways:

• Asking other small business owners for recommendations
• Attending trade shows and industry events (such as Caffé Culture , Coffee Shop Innovation Expo , and European Coffee, Tea & Soft Drinks Expo )

The Real Food Cafe founder, Sarah   Heward, advises:  “Speak to industry leaders with a lot of experience – they will challenge your thinking and not just tell you what you want to hear! Listen to them and prepare to be flexible

A card machine is an essential piece of equipment for your café. While cash is still popular, it’s good business sense to offer customers as many payment options as possible. Read our guide on how to take card payments to learn more.

As well as the device itself, you may need to enable online payment methods, such as a payment gateway . This will be the case if you’re offering online ordering or other ecommerce options.

Baristas, kitchen staff, and waiters are some of the roles to hire for in a café

Any business in the catering or hospitality industries involves hard, physical labour. Unless you can afford to employ staff from the outset, running a café will involve standing on your feet for the vast majority of the day.

Taking on staff is a highly legislated area, so you’ll need to understand and follow regulations on everything from health and safety to managing holiday requests . How much of the process you do yourself, and how much you outsource to a HR company , will depend on you, your vision for your business, and your budget.

Some top tips to consider when recruiting in the hospitality sector include:

• Culture – what type of atmosphere do you want to create, for both your staff and customers?
• Attitude – café staff are the face of your business, so it’s crucial to hire people who reflect its ethos and brand
• Experience – want perfect latte art with every pour? In need of standout dishes? If so, seek out experienced candidates for more skilled roles (such as baristas and chefs) so that your café can offer top-quality produce from the outset (and while other team members receive training)

Product images and other visual, shareable content are great for social media marketing

Emy’s Kitchen owner, Ozkan Ozdemir points out: “The food industry is very hard and you only have 20-30 mins to make customers happy, so you need a good team to achieve that goal.”

There are a number of ways to promote your café, including:

Social media

Loyalty programmes

Traditional marketing

When it comes to marketing a café or coffee shop, be sure to use social media. Creating content tailored to your target audience and the platforms they use is an essential part of social media marketing . 

Whether you film your baristas making the perfect cup of coffee, or share photos that your customers have taken, this type of business is highly visual – making it ideal for social media platforms. But it’s more than that just advertising – social media also offers an opportunity to engage and interact with your customers.

Whether you opt for a card that’s stamped per purchase, or a digital app that allows customers to collect points, loyalty programmes are a key part of marketing a café or coffee shop. 

Not only is this an incentive for people to return to your coffee shop, but if you use a digital system you can collect valuable information as well, such as common orders or popular visiting times.

While it’s easy to focus solely on digital marketing, remember that cafés and coffee shops are often central places in a local community. Be sure to connect with people face-to-face as well.

Options include printing and handing out flyers in your local area, as well as printing banners and posters. Plus, reach out to nearby offices and other companies to let them know you’re new in town.

Currently, there is no law that states you must undertake formal training to open a café or coffee shop. 

However, you must ensure that you and anyone else working with food at your business has the appropriate level of training and/or supervision to do their job properly. The legal responsibility lies with the business owner, so make sure you have all the information you need. 

You’ll need to be clued up on the basic principles of food preparation. Make sure you check out our restaurant and sandwich shop guides, as many of the principles for those kinds of businesses will also apply here.

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) is the body appointed by the government to be responsible for all food safety standards. The FSA can provide you with advice on all food hygiene matters, and offers an information pack called ‘Safer food, better business’ , which will help you to comply with the law and make your premises safe for the public. The publication covers key aspects of serving food, including contamination, cleaning, chilling, cooking, management, and keeping a food diary. 

Your business must also be registered with the local authorities. You can and likely will face inspections in the future, and a failed inspection is bad for your café in a number of ways: either legally (you could be closed down), in terms of business (bad publicity and referrals) or morally (as people could be taken ill or even die from contaminated food). 

In order to avoid such pitfalls, you should follow the Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) . This is an internationally recognised and recommended system of food safety management that focuses on identifying the ‘critical points’ in a process where food safety hazards could arise, and puts steps in place to prevent things from going wrong.

Take a look at the rules and regulations section of our catering guide , as the same restrictions on food preparation will apply. 

Your café or coffee shop will need to be appropriately insured – this is to protect you, as well as your customers. 

There are a range of providers out there who can offer cover that is tailored to your unique business requirements. However, you’ll usually need the following types of insurance:

• Building contents – this protects your café’s stock 
• Business interruption – with this type of cover, you’re insured for profit losses if you’re made to stop trading temporarily
• Employers’ liability – cover for the health and safety of your employees

Sarah Heward, founder and co-owner at The Real Food Café has this positive final message for Startups readers  comments :  “Starting your own business and seeing it go from strength to strength is an incredible sense of achievement. Hopefully, the long-term financial benefits make it all worthwhile.”

Here’s a recap of some of the most useful links from throughout the article:

• Gov.uk Licence Finder
• Gov.uk Food Business Registration
• Safer food, better business
• HACCP guidance

In addition, check out the links below to learn more about relevant industry organisations and events:

• British Coffee Association
• Specialty Coffee Association (UK Chapter)
• Caffe Culture Show
• Coffee Shop Expo
• European Coffee, Tea & Soft Drinks Expo

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Related articles.

Setting up a Café Business

All you need to know about starting and running your business.

In this article

What is a Café Business?

There are more than 25,000 cafés and coffee shops in the UK, with the industry worth an estimated £4.4 billion. A café business is often a staple of the local community, with many people visiting cafés to eat, drink, socialise and work.

95 million cups of coffee and 100 million cups of tea are consumed in the UK every day. These statistics, combined with the UK’s love of eating out, explain why the café industry remains strong, despite the decline of the high street.

The term café can have many different meanings but typically refers to a small eating and drinking establishment which serves a variety of drinks, snacks and light meals.

There are many different foods and beverages which can be served in cafés, but the most popular are:

• A variety of teas, e.g. English Breakfast, green, mint and fruit tea.
• A variety of coffees, e.g. cappuccinos, lattes, Americanos, flat whites and iced coffees.
• Other hot beverages, e.g. hot chocolate.
• Cold beverages, e.g. milkshakes, juices and soft drinks.
• A variety of cakes, pastries, cookies, desserts and other baked goods.
• Hot and cold sandwiches.
• Afternoon tea.
• Breakfast foods, e.g. bagels, Full English breakfast, pancakes, waffles and avocado toast.

Some cafés choose to offer a varied menu with a wide range of food and beverage options. Others choose to focus their menu on a specific type of food or beverage.

If you are thinking about starting up a café business, you will first need to decide what type of café you want to set up.

There are many different types of cafés, for example:

A café bakery

As well as hot and cold beverages, café bakeries specialise in baked goods, such as sandwiches, cakes, pies, muffins, cookies, doughnuts and pastries. You may offer a sit-down and takeaway service to target a variety of customers.

A themed café

As the name suggests, themed cafés focus on a particular theme and create their brand around the theme. They usually design and decorate their café to fit their theme and may also serve themed food and drinks. Examples of themed cafés include a cat café, an Alice in Wonderland café and a jungle café.

A grab-and-go café

This type of café isn’t designed for people to spend long periods of time, instead, it targets takeaway customers. Although you may have a seating area, this will be smaller than a regular café and the area will be less cosy and comfortable so as not to encourage customers to stay for a long time. You will likely utilise takeaway cups and paper bags and boxes so customers can take their food and beverages with them.

A hangout café

This is the opposite of a grab-and-go café and instead encourages customers to socialise, work and hang out. You will likely offer free Wi-Fi, comfortable seating areas and inviting décor.

A speciality coffee shop café

A speciality café usually focuses on speciality coffee – premium coffee that has been grown, cared for and sold with specific care and attention. The coffee you serve must score above 80 points on a 100-point scale. The coffee will likely be organic, and your business will have a barista who operates as a coffee aficionado. Although coffee will be your main priority, you may also serve other items.

A niche café

This type of café will focus on a specific niche or speciality to attract a specific type of customer. For example, you could open a vegan café, a gluten-free café or a French Patisserie café.

The type of café you choose to open will have a significant impact on the types of food and beverages you serve, your décor and aesthetic, your typical customer base and your price points. When deciding the type of café business to set up, consider your location, your local competition, the demand and your experience and abilities. For example, if you are located on the seafront, you may opt to set up a beach-themed café with a variety of food options and lots of areas for your customers to sit and relax, whereas if you are located in a business district, a grab-and-go café that targets busy professionals on their lunch break or after work may be more beneficial.

There are many different responsibilities associated with running a café. These responsibilities can vary depending on the type of café you set up, the size of your café and the number of employees you hire, the types of food and beverages you serve and how involved you are in the day-to-day running of your café.

The typical responsibilities associated with running a café include:

• Sourcing and ordering stock and ingredients.
• Purchasing, cleaning and maintaining equipment and machinery.
• Preparing, cooking and baking any food and preparing beverages.
• Ensuring the cleanliness of your café, including the kitchen area and the café.
• Complying with all legal guidelines and health and safety requirements.
• Pricing your products.
• Packaging and displaying any pre-prepared products.
• Speaking to customers, taking orders and handling payments and receipts.
• Serving or packaging food and drinks.
• Handling customer collections and deliveries (if applicable).
• Marketing and advertising.
• Completing business and administrative tasks.

You do not need any formal qualifications to open a café. However, you will need the necessary skills required to bake, cook and prepare beverages, a high level of knowledge in the café industry and an understanding of how to run a café. If you have strong business skills, a solid business plan and are a sociable person who enjoys working in a face-to-face capacity, then starting up a café business can be extremely rewarding.

Types of Customers

Cafés are frequented by people of all ages and demographics. However, determining the types of customers your café is likely to appeal to can help you to plan your advertising and marketing strategies, focus your business and maximise your profits.

Multiple factors can determine your typical customer base, for example:

The type of café you run

This will have a significant impact on the type of customers you are likely to attract. For example, a hangout café may be more likely to attract university students and groups of friends whereas a themed café may be more likely to appeal to tourists and people celebrating a special event or looking for a unique experience.

Your location

This will be one of the biggest determiners of your typical customer base. Many people visit a café that is conveniently located near their home, place of work or study, an area they are visiting (for example, a beach, a lake or a popular walking destination) or a popular tourist destination. For example, if you are located close to a train station, you are more likely to attract commuters, whereas if you are located close to a park, you may be more likely to attract families.

Cafés located in busy areas with high footfall (such as a city centre) are more likely to attract passers-by so should focus on how to appeal to these customers, whereas cafés located in a village are more likely to attract local residents. Consider people who typically visit the area close to your café when identifying your typical customer base.

The types of food and beverages you sell

This is another important factor that will influence your typical customer base. Some cafés offer a varied menu with a large number of food and meal options. Others offer a smaller menu that mainly focuses on drinks and baked goods. Alternatively, you could offer a specialised menu, such as a specialist coffee or vegan food. The types of food and beverages you sell will significantly impact your customer base.

Your business brand and aesthetic

Your branding and aesthetic are key to attracting customers. Your business name, logo, and the design of your café are all key to the types of clients your business will appeal to. Consider the outside of your café, your café window and your décor, furnishings and accessories.

Whether your café is dog friendly

This is something that many café owners don’t consider but can be a major factor in your typical customer base. This is especially true if you are located in the countryside or in an area with local walks or popular outside areas (such as a beach, lake or park). Dog owners often search online for a café that allows their dogs onto the premises, and cafés that go the extra mile to welcome dogs, for example, by providing water bowls, dog treats or even a doggy menu, are likely to be even more popular. The UK is a country of dog lovers (with more than 12 million pet dogs), and the rise of the ‘puppuccino’ shows how popular it is becoming to bring your dog along to a café with you.

Your pricing strategy

Your price points will be a key determiner of your customer base. Customers can typically be separated into three pricing categories:

• Budget: This type of customer is looking for the lowest-priced food and drink and is usually happier with a more basic menu and a simpler café.
• Mid-range: Mid-range customers are looking for a combination of quality and affordability. Although they don’t want to pay premium prices, they don’t look for the cheapest option and instead look for quality service at a reasonable price.
• Luxury: This type of customer wants the highest quality, best-tasting food and drink with a luxury experience and is willing to pay higher prices. They are more likely to look at factors such as the aesthetic and design of your café, your furnishings and your menu, rather than your prices.

Equipment You Will Need

The type of equipment you require will depend on the type of café business you set up, the size of your business and the types of food and drink you offer. Choosing the right equipment is essential, as without it you will not be able to operate your business.

Although your equipment requirements can vary, below is a list of equipment typically required by a café business.

Kitchen Equipment

An industrial fridge and freezer

A fridge and freezer are essential in your café. You will need to store any perishables and fresh stock or ingredients in your fridge or freezer. Consider how much you will need to store when considering what size you will need. Ensure both the fridge and freezer are set to the correct temperature.

An industrial oven

The type of oven you purchase will depend on the types of food you plan to make. Most bakery cafés opt for a convection oven, which uses internal fans to circulate the air to create even browning and uniform baking. However, other types of cafés opt for a different type of oven. For example, a conveyor oven.

A dishwasher

A dishwasher is a necessity, not only because it will help you to save time in the kitchen and reduce your kitchen duties, but also because it will demonstrate the hygiene standards and cleanliness of your café. Opt for an industrial sized dishwasher to allow you to clean a larger amount at one time.

Depending on what you cook in your kitchen, there are several different pots and pans and other cookware you may require, including:

• Frying pans.
• Grill pans.
• Sauté pans.
• Baking trays.
• Roasting pans.

Bakeware is the type of equipment you will use to bake your products. Investing in quality bakeware is recommended as it will likely be heavily used and can be susceptible to dents and warping.

Some pieces of bakeware you may need to purchase include:

• Bread pans.
• Muffin tins.

Shelving creates a safe and organised area for storing non-perishable ingredients (such as bread, seasoning and coffee beans), as well as equipment, accessories and utensils. Shelves also allow you to maximise the space in your kitchen.

Sheet pan racks

If you are baking large quantities of food at one time, a sheet pan rack allows you to cool multiple products at the same time. You could choose a tiered rack, allowing you to conserve space, and a rack that is on wheels, enabling you to transport your products around your kitchen more easily.

Kitchen accessories

Some kitchen accessories you may require include:

• Chopping boards.
• Kitchen knives.
• Mixing bowls.
• Food processors, mixers and blenders.
• Temperature gauges.
• A strainer and colander.
• Weighing scales, measuring cups and a measuring jug.
• Oven gloves.

Cooking utensils

Some cooking utensils you could require are:

• Stirring spoons.
• Peelers and graters.

Dough proofer

If you make baked goods in your café, including sandwiches, pizzas, pastries and cookies, dough will be an important ingredient and you will likely need a dough proofer. A dough proofer can help to simplify the dough-rising process, helping you to ensure your products are uniform in shape and size, and that the production process is streamlined.

Storage containers

Storage containers can be used for safely storing any opened stock, to prevent spoilage or contamination. You can also use the containers to store any cooked or pre-prepared food, such as salads, to keep them fresh for longer. Ensure your storage containers are strong and airtight.

Date labels

These are necessary to label when ingredients were opened and when certain items were cooked. It ensures that all stock, ingredients and food products are completely safe to use and that your kitchen is operating in line with food safety and hygiene guidelines.

Stainless steel worktops or worktables

You will use the worktops for all your food preparation tasks. Your worktables should be stainless steel as this material is non-porous, meaning it is resistant to most bacteria and germs. It is also easier to clean and will help you to maintain high standards of hygiene.

Equipment sink

This sink should be used specifically for cleaning, disinfecting or storing food equipment and utensils and should not be used for handwashing. You must ensure the sink has both hot and cold running water. Depending on how big your café is, you may require two sinks for equipment.

Handwashing sinks

You will need separate handwashing facilities and cannot use the same sink for handwashing and food preparation or equipment. This sink must be exclusively used for handwashing.

Kitchen Display System (KDS)

This is a digital screen that is used instead of handwritten or printed orders. A KDS manages your orders and helps you to prioritise, edit and track your orders. It creates a more streamlined ordering system that can help your café to be more organised and efficient.

Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)

PPE is a necessary purchase for all food businesses, as it helps to protect your food from contamination. PPE can also protect you and your staff from harm (e.g. when using sharp instruments or hot equipment). Some PPE you may require includes hairnets, gloves, oven mitts, anti-slip footwear and aprons.

Rubbish bins and a waste disposal system

You will need rubbish bins in all food preparation areas. You will also need different bins for different items to ensure you are disposing of rubbish correctly and following recycling guidelines. Colour-coded bins are the easiest way to ensure your waste disposal system is operating correctly.

Cleaning equipment

Keeping all areas of your café clean is imperative. Food preparation, cooking and storage areas are particular areas that should be cleaned regularly throughout the day, to avoid cross-contamination and the breeding of bacteria. You will likely need different cleaning materials for different parts of your café. You may need to invest in cloths, sponges, antibacterial surface cleaners, bleach, sanitiser, dishwashing soap and a sweeping brush and mop.

Café Equipment

Coffee machines

There are many different types of coffee brewers and coffee machines. Depending on the type of café business you set up, you may opt for one type of coffee machine or purchase multiple.

The most popular types of coffee-making facilities are:

• An espresso machine: An espresso is a typical Italian coffee, which has grown extremely popular. This machine uses high pressure to force pressurised water through finely-ground coffee beans in a few short seconds. The end product is a small coffee (‘shot’ size) that is rich and creamy in flavour and has a thicker consistency. It can be drunk alone or used as a basis for other types of coffee, such as cappuccinos, lattes and macchiatos.
• A drip coffee machine: This is a system through which water automatically drips into a heating tube and is then poured onto ground coffee. It then goes through a filter before being poured into a cup. This type of machine usually makes a larger amount of coffee, allowing you to serve multiple customers at one time. Drip coffee has a stronger coffee taste.
• Coffee bean grinders: Some coffee machines come with an in-built bean grinder, whereas others require a separate piece of equipment. A coffee bean grinder is used to grind whole coffee beans into a small, uniform size ready for brewing.
• A coffee machine: A coffee machine can usually make a variety of different coffees, such as cappuccinos, lattes and macchiatos. Many coffee machines can also make other hot beverages, such as hot chocolate. They often include a milk frother.

Coffee accessories

With the rise in popularity of specialist coffees and flavoured coffees, there are several different types of equipment and accessories you may require, including:

• Coffee cups.
• Flavoured syrups and syrup dispensers.
• Coffee beans.
• A milk frother.
• Coffee stencils.
• Coffee spices and flavours (e.g. powdered chocolate, cinnamon and nutmeg).
• Coffee spoons and stirrers.

Tea-making and serving equipment

Tea is a quintessentially British drink and there are multiple pieces of equipment and accessories your café could need, including:

• Cups and saucers.
• Tea strainers.
• Tea baskets (to hold the tea while it is steeping).
• Sugar dispensers.
• A tea bag dispenser and display unit.

Blenders and juicers

If you are making fresh milkshakes or juices in your café, you will require a blender and/or juicer. A blender can also be used to make soups and smoothies.

Display cases

If you sell any pre-packed food, such as sandwiches, cookies and muffins, or pre-packed drinks such as cans or bottles of juice or fizzy drinks, you will need glass-fronted display cases to store your products. You may opt for a refrigerated display case for perishables and a room-temperature display case.

Shelves may be required to store a variety of non-perishable food, utensils and equipment. You may have shelving behind the counter and on your shop floor area. Shelves can also be used to decorate your café and you can add decorative items, plants and flowers to your shelves.

Tables and seating areas

The majority of cafés offer a seating area for their customers. Choose tables and seats that fit the design and aesthetic of your business and portray the type of café you are choosing to set up. You could opt for traditional wooden or plastic tables and chairs, sofas, armchairs, booths, long banquet-style tables, high-top tables and stools and outdoor seating. Some cafés even offer alternative seating options, such as beanbags, hammocks and sofa cushions. You may also offer outdoor seating options and high chairs for babies and toddlers.

This is where your customers will place their orders. It will likely include an area for you to stand behind and may feature display cases and shelving, your till and a menu that clearly displays your products, prices and any allergen information. You may opt for a long counter to give your customers a place to queue or a smaller counter.

Cash register and Point of Sales (POS) system

This can help you to record sales and manage the financial aspects of your café. Your payment system should allow customers to pay cash, debit card, or credit card for their purchases.

Cups, utensils and cutlery

Depending on the type of café business, you may only need to buy takeaway cups, packaging and wooden stirrers for your customers. If your café business offers a sit-down area, you may also need to invest in reusable or porcelain plates, bowls, mugs, cups and sauces and glasses and cutlery. If you are happy to spend a little extra, you could choose cups and cutlery that matches your brand or are branded with your business name.

Other equipment

Some of the other equipment you may require for your café business includes:

• Napkins and linens.
• Table cloths.
• Paper straws.
• Decorative items and accessories (to fit the aesthetic of your business).
• A sanitising station.
• Bins (recycling and non-recycling).
• Serving trays.
• Signs (inside and outside your café).
• Menus and menu holders.

Food labels

All food businesses in the UK must ensure their food is properly labelled and includes information about any of the 14 allergens. Invest in labels or a labelling system that securely attaches to your products and is easily readable.

A CCTV system

A CCTV system is necessary for protecting your café from theft and burglaries. It can also help to protect you in the event of a threatening customer or an allegation against your business. A CCTV system can cost between £300 and £5,000 depending on the specification of the equipment, how many cameras you require, and the installation costs.

A fully stocked first aid kit

A first aid kit is a necessity, as you will be working with potentially dangerous equipment and products. A first aid kit can also be used if any customers sustain an injury in your café. Ensure your first aid kit is restocked regularly and is easily accessible.

If your café features a seating area, your customers will expect you to provide Wi-Fi. Because multiple devices will be connecting at one time, you will need a Wi-Fi system that is reliable, fast and can handle a higher capacity. Depending on the size of your café, you may require multiple routers or Wi-Fi boosters.

A music system

Cafés generally play music as background noise. You may require a music player and multiple speakers, depending on the size of your café.

Typical Costs

When you are setting up your business, an important consideration you will need to make is the approximate costs associated with starting up and running this type of business. Calculating your typical costs allows you to estimate your initial investment requirements, any monthly and annual costs, your pricing strategy, your profit goals and your acceptable profit margins.

There are multiple costs associated with setting up and running a café business. Some of these costs will be one-off initial costs that you will need to pay when you are setting up your business. Other costs will be ongoing costs you will need to pay regularly – usually weekly, monthly, quarterly or annually.

Although typical costs can vary, depending on the type of café you set up and the size of your business, the typical costs you can expect to be responsible for include:

Your café premises

Your business location will likely be your biggest expenditure. You will need to rent your premises on a monthly or annual basis. Rental prices can vary significantly, depending on the location and the size of the premises. City centre locations and newly built premises usually have the highest rental costs. Rental costs are often calculated per square metre. They can range significantly, from £500 to £15,000 per square metre annually. Your rental cost may be higher if you are renting an already established, refurbished or equipped café.

Refurbishment and installation costs

Unless your premises previously operated as a café, you will likely need to refurbish or convert your venue to install the equipment and furniture you need for your business and make the area fit for purpose. You will also want to refurbish and decorate your premises to fit the aesthetic of your business and make it attractive to customers. Renovation costs can vary, from £500 to £20,000 depending on the level and scale of work required. As part of your renovation costs, consider how you can make your café easy to clean and ensure it is safe and in line with health and safety regulations.

Your equipment is an important purchase, as without it you will not be able to run your café. The cost of equipment can vary based on how large your café is and the type of equipment you require. The bigger your premises and the more customers you want to accommodate at one time, the more equipment you will require. You may choose to purchase less equipment initially and expand your equipment as your business grows. Equipment for your café business can cost between £5,000 and £50,000.

Maintaining, repairing and replacing equipment

Repairs, maintenance and replacements are ongoing costs you will need to factor into your budget. Although some of your equipment and machinery will come with warranties, repairs and replacements are inevitable – particularly because the equipment will experience heavy use. Cleaning and maintaining equipment and ensuring it is used correctly can extend its life, but potential repairs and replacements should still be factored into your budget.

Stock and ingredients

This is an ongoing cost you will have to factor into your budget. It includes any stock and ingredients you will need to create your products, such as eggs, milk, coffee beans and vegetables. Because many of the ingredients you require are perishable, you will need to order stock regularly (you will likely take stock deliveries at least twice per week). You can reduce the cost of your stock by buying wholesale, buying in bulk and shopping around. To maximise your profits, your food stock cost should be no more than 30% of your food sale price. The higher the return, the higher your profits will be. Some stock will be more expensive, for example, organic coffee beans.

Running costs

These are the day-to-day costs associated with running your business. Some running costs are paid monthly, and others are paid quarterly or annually. Your running costs can include electricity, gas, water, council tax and insurance. To maximise your profits, try to keep your running costs as low as possible.

You will need to hire staff such as chefs and other kitchen staff, front-of-house staff and cleaners. You will need to pay any staff you employ at least the national minimum wage of £9.50 per hour and account for other expenses such as holiday pay, sick pay, maternity/paternity pay, National Insurance and any company pension contributions.

When creating your brand identity, consider how you want your business to be perceived by potential customers. When creating your brand, consider the type of café you are setting up, the food and beverages you sell and your typical customer base. Branding can include creating your business’s visual identity, design and aesthetic, your business name and logo, your signage and your website. You could hire a professional to help you with branding or do some or all of the work yourself. Branding can cost between £500 and £10,000, depending on the level of work required.

Advertising and marketing

To ensure your café attracts customers and creates maximum profits, you will need to spend money on advertising and marketing. It is recommended that you spend between 1%-3% of your annual turnover on marketing. For example, if your annual turnover (or your desired annual turnover) is £100,000, you should spend between £1,000 and £3,000 on advertising and marketing. You may need to invest more money when you initially set up your business or when you are trying to grow your business. To reduce your costs, capitalise on free marketing strategies, such as on social media or in your local community.

You and your employees will need to obtain food hygiene training before you open your business. You will also need to refresh your training regularly (at least every three years). You may also opt to undertake other training courses, such as manual handling, first aid and electrical safety. You can expect to pay approximately £20 per training course per person.

Business insurance

There are multiple coverage options available for a café business, including:

• Public Liability Insurance.
• Employers’ Liability Insurance.
• Product Liability Insurance.
• Equipment Insurance.
• Building and Contents Insurance.
• Business Interruption Cover.
• Personal Accident Cover.

Insurance prices can vary, depending on your insurance provider and the level of coverage you require. Prices typically start from £15 per month.

Typical Pricing for Customers

Once you have calculated the typical costs associated with setting up and running a café business and the approximate costs of your stock and ingredients, you can then determine your price points. Each item on your menu will be priced individually and you may also offer your customers the option to add extra items to their order for an additional cost, for example, by adding caramel syrup and oat milk to their coffee or halloumi to their breakfast sandwich.

The price of your ingredients and the time taken to make each item will be the biggest factor in your pricing. For example, a chicken and bacon ciabatta has more expensive ingredients and involves more preparation and cooking compared to a cheese sandwich. Consider your ingredient costs and your time when pricing your menu.

However, there are other factors that will influence your pricing strategy, including:

Cafés located in a desirable location, such as in a city centre or close to a famous landmark or tourist attraction, typically charge higher prices. Your location can also mean you are more likely to attract budget, mid-range or luxury customers.

The type of café you set up

Different types of cafés have different pricing structures. For example, niche cafés (such as a vegan café) and themed cafés can typically charge higher prices as they have less direct competition and may be more likely to attract customers who are happy to pay higher prices. Additionally, the price points for grab-and-go cafés are usually lower than for hangout cafés as customers are typically looking for convenient food and beverages at an affordable price.

Your furniture and décor

Customers are usually willing to pay higher prices in cafés that are aesthetically pleasing, comfortable and well-designed. Consider your signage, your café window, your décor and your furniture (particularly the tables and chairs your customers will sit on) when creating your pricing plan.

Safely Running a Café Business

Safe practices in your café help to protect the health, safety and well-being of you, your staff and your customers. They can also help to protect your business. Some ways you can safely run your café business include:

Safely store food

All food must be stored safely to prevent contamination and ensure any food and drink is of good quality and safe to consume.

Some safe storage practices you can follow include:

• Keep storage areas clean and tidy.
• Check food deliveries are safe and of good quality before accepting them.
• Follow the First In First Out (FIFO) stock rotation system.
• Pay attention to use-by and best-before dates.
• Ensure fridges and freezers are set to the correct temperature.
• Follow the storage instruction on pre-packaged food.
• Store raw food and high-risk food correctly (e.g. below ready-to-eat foods).
• Keep foods that contain allergens separately.
• Store any chemicals away from food.
• Label any chilled or frozen food with the date.
• Ensure hot hold food is kept at the correct temperature (63°C and above).

Use a chemical safety data sheet (SDS)

If you store any chemicals, you should create safety data sheets to list the properties of each chemical, any potential physical, health and environmental hazards and any safety precautions for handling, storing and transporting the chemicals. An SDS can help to prevent exposure and reduce hazards and prepare emergency responses and procedures.

Ensure the personal hygiene of all staff

Good personal hygiene is essential when working in the food industry. Good personal hygiene can include:

• Following handwashing procedures.
• Tying back hair or covering hair.
• Not wearing false nails or nail varnish on your fingernails.
• Not wearing jewellery or watches when preparing or cooking food.
• Not wearing strong perfume or other chemical products that could contaminate the food.
• Wearing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE).
• Following good habits, such as not coughing or sneezing near food and refraining from touching your hair or face.

Be aware of staff illnesses

If any of your staff are ill, they should not be working around food or near your customers as this can compromise food safety. If any of your staff have an infection or gastrointestinal symptoms (such as vomiting or diarrhoea), they should not handle food and should not attend work. Any cuts or sores should also be covered with brightly coloured, waterproof plasters or dressings.

Implement pest prevention and control methods

Pests can be a major issue for food businesses and can result in contaminated food and your café being shut down by an Environmental Health Officer (EHO).

Some ways you can prevent pests are:

• Fill any gaps or holes in your building.
• Keep your external areas free from food, rubbish or vegetation.
• Dispose of food properly in closed bins.
• Keep your premises clean and tidy.
• Store food in sealed containers.
• Use fly screens on open windows or doors.
• Check your deliveries for signs of pest damage.

Be aware of food hazards

Food hazards are any contaminants that could enter food and cause harm to consumers. The main food hazards are:

• Biological: These hazards are microorganisms that contaminate food, usually during the cooking, reheating, chilling, storage or defrosting processes. Biological hazards can also occur through cross-contamination. Examples of biological hazards are bacteria, fungi and viruses.
• Chemical: Chemical hazards occur when naturally occurring or human-made chemical substances contaminate food. For example, chemicals from cleaning products, toxins produced by animals, plants and microorganisms or chemicals that are added to food and drink.
• Physical: This refers to foreign materials or objects that enter food or drink during preparation or handling. Physical hazards can include natural hazards, such as bones, shells and pips, and unnatural hazards, such as hair, fingernails, plastic and wood.
• Allergenic: Allergenic hazards can cause an allergic reaction or anaphylaxis in people with allergies. Allergenic hazards can occur through cross-contamination, such as the foods being prepared in the same workspace.

Ensure correct cooking temperatures

All food businesses, including cafés, must ensure they are cooking and baking at the correct temperature. This is to reduce or eliminate the risk of food poisoning. Ensure your oven or other cooking equipment is set to the correct temperature and use a food thermometer to ensure food is thoroughly cooked.

Cleaning and washing of equipment and surfaces

Having effective cleaning procedures is essential to any food business. It is recommended that a cleaning schedule or cleaning policies are in place that cover the cleaning of equipment, surfaces, and food preparation and storage areas.

Conduct risk assessments

Although not a legal requirement for businesses with fewer than five employees, risk assessments can help to eliminate risks and ensure safe practices in your café. As part of your risk assessments, you should:

• Identify hazards.
• Determine who could be at risk.
• Evaluate any potential risks.
• Implement relevant safety measures.
• Record the results of the risk assessment.
• Review the risk assessment regularly.

You should keep physical records of your risk assessments as evidence of your commitment to safe practices.

Keep clear and accurate records

When you are inspected by the EHO, they will likely request to see up-to-date records of your business’s cleaning schedules, risk assessments, health and safety policies, allergen information, and temperature checks. Keeping such records not only helps to protect your business and improve the likelihood of you receiving a higher score, but it also ensures procedures are followed at all times.

Wear Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)

Some of the PPE you may require include latex gloves, protective aprons, hair coverings and protective footwear. PPE can help to prevent cross-contamination of the food and help to protect you and your clothing.

Implement security measures

Security measures can be implemented to protect your business. Your café will likely store a lot of expensive equipment and may keep cash on site. Some ways you can protect your business include installing a CCTV system, using secure and reliable locks and installing an alarm system.

Legal Requirements

Complying with legal requirements is essential when setting up and running your café.

Some legal requirements you should be aware of are:

Comply with the Food Safety Act (1990)

The Food Safety Act applies to any business that sells food. It covers food safety, consumer protection and food information. It makes it an offence to make or sell any food which could be harmful to health and lays out hygiene practices you should follow.

There are several responsibilities laid out in the Act, including:

• Not taking away or adding any ingredients that could cause the food to become harmful.
• Not treating the food in any way that could cause it to become dangerous.
• The nature, substance and quality of the food must be to the standard that customers expect.
• Your labelling and presentation of the food should not be false or misleading.

Comply with the Food Safety and Hygiene Regulations

These regulations specify the standards relating to the control and management of the steps that are critical to food safety, including the cleanliness of your premises and equipment and temperature control in food preparation, storage and serving.

The regulations differ depending on where in the UK your business is located:

• England: The Food Safety and Hygiene (England) Regulations 2013.
• Scotland: The Food Hygiene (Scotland) Regulations 2006.
• Wales: The Food Hygiene (Wales) Regulations 2006.
• Northern Ireland: The Food Hygiene Regulations (Northern Ireland).

Comply with The Food Information (Amendment) Regulations 2019

These regulations set out the responsibilities of food businesses to provide information regarding the 14 allergens (celery, cereals, crustaceans, eggs, fish, lupin, cows milk, molluscs, mustard, nuts, peanuts, sesame seeds, soya and sulphur dioxide). The regulations were updated in 2019 to include Natasha’s Law. You must ensure that any packaging, menus, signs or labels clearly state if any of these allergens are present.

It is also a legal requirement that pre-packed for direct sale (PPDS) food is labelled with:

• The name of the food.
• A full list of ingredients.
• Any allergens that are present.

Obtain Food Hygiene training training

Any employees who prepare, handle or sell food must be supervised, instructed and trained in food hygiene. Although a food hygiene certificate isn’t a legal requirement, it is the easiest way to demonstrate your compliance to the Environmental Health Officer (EHO) that will inspect your business. Training will need to be refreshed regularly.

Implement a waste management system

Café businesses should have appropriate provisions for the separation, storage and removal of waste.

Some guidelines you should abide by include:

• Have appropriate bins inside and outside your café which are sufficient in number and specified for different types of waste.
• Do not allow waste to accumulate.
• Use bins that have fitted lids and foot pedals.
• Have a specific waste disposal area.
• Do not dispose of food waste in the sink.
• Use commercial sink strainers to prevent fat, oil, grease and small bits of food from entering the sewer network.
• Apply for a waste carrier registration if you transport any waste.

It is also recommended that you clean and disinfect bins regularly.

Comply with premises regulations

When choosing or refurbishing a commercial location, there are some guidelines and regulations you should comply with. These guidelines ensure your business is in good condition, clean and maintained and allow you to follow good hygiene practices.

• Handwashing facilities: There should be separate handwashing facilities with hot and cold running water and materials to allow hands to be washed and dried hygienically.
• Changing facilities: There should be adequate changing facilities if a member of staff needs to change their clothes.
• Ventilation, lighting and drainage: Your premises must have adequate ventilation, lighting and drainage in all relevant areas.
• Food preparation areas: – Floors and walls must be in good condition, easy to clean and frequently disinfected. – Ceilings must be in good condition, easy to clean, free from condensation and mould and free from flaking paint or plaster. – Windows and doors must be easy to clean and disinfect and if they open to the outside, fitted with removable insect-proof screens. – Surfaces should be maintained in good condition, easy to clean and frequently disinfected.
• Facilities for washing food: You should have separate sinks for washing food and cleaning equipment. These sinks should have hot and cold running water that is of drinking quality.
• Equipment: Any equipment that comes into contact with food must be in good condition and cleaned and disinfected frequently.

Register as a food business

Any business in the UK that sells food must register as a food business with their local council. You must apply for your food registration business at least 28 days before you begin trading. You can apply for your registration on gov.uk , and it is free of charge.

Display your food hygiene rating

Once you have registered your business, you will receive an inspection from the Environmental Health Office (EHO) to determine your food hygiene rating.

The inspector will assess your:

• Food storage.
• Food handling.
• Food preparation.
• Food cleanliness.
• Food safety management system.

Once you have received your food hygiene rating, this information should be clearly displayed on your premises.

Comply with the Bread and Flour Regulations (1998)

If you bake bread or other baked goods, you must follow The Bread and Flour Regulations . The regulations state the nutritional value of bread and flour that must be adhered to.

These regulations also cover information such as:

• Essential ingredients.
• Iron powder specifications.
• Non-permitted ingredients.
• Composition of flour.

Implement a Food Safety Management System (FSMS)

Food businesses in the UK must implement a Food Safety Management System. An FSMS is a systematic approach to controlling food safety hazards. It ensures that your business is following safety protocols and will influence your food hygiene rating.

Comply with the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR) 2013

RIDDOR states that you must report all injuries, diseases and dangerous events that occur in your business. Reports must be made to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) using an appropriate recording document. These regulations apply to any incidents that involve employees or customers.

Comply with the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) Regulations 2002

The COSHH regulations state that you must control any substances that are potentially hazardous. You should also assess, control and reduce any risks or potential hazards and protect people from harm.

Some hazardous substances you should be aware of are:

• Flour dust.
• Concentrates of flavour, citrus oils and spices.
• Cleaning substances.

Comply with the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations (PUWER) 1998

PUWER regulations apply to you and any employees you hire. You must ensure any equipment in your café is fit for purpose and is maintained and inspected regularly. You must also ensure that health and safety risks are minimised to an acceptable level, that you have the correct knowledge and training to use the equipment, and that protective measures are put into place. Equipment should also be used under appropriate conditions.

Comply with the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989

The Electricity at Work Regulations state that any workplaces that use electricals must construct electrical systems in a way that prevents danger, maintain electrical systems to ensure they are safe, ensure electrical equipment is checked by a competent person annually and conduct Portable Appliance Tests (PAT). This includes any electrical equipment in your kitchen.

Comply with gas safety regulations

If you have a gas boiler you will need to have it inspected by a gas-safe engineer. If your equipment is deemed safe to use and complies with government requirements, you will be issued a Gas Safety Certificate. You will need to display your gas certificate clearly for your guests and other visitors to your business to see.

Comply with fire regulations

As the business owner, you are responsible for fire safety measures in your café. There are multiple fire regulations you must ensure you comply with. For example:

• Perform a fire risk assessment.
• Comply with the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 .
• Implement any necessary fire safety measures.
• Implement emergency procedures and ensure these are clearly displayed.

Comply with the Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992

Manual handling regulations can help to protect you and your employees from sustaining an injury or illness as a result of manual handling tasks. The regulations apply to the lifting or moving of any objects, bending down and reaching high and repetitive movements. You will likely be performing manual handling activities when performing tasks such as kneading and rolling or carrying heavy pots or trays of food.

Appoint a competent person

A competent person should be appointed to help your business meet your health and safety legal duties. You can act in this role yourself or appoint another person to fulfil this role. The competent person should have the skills, knowledge and experience to identify any hazards in your business and put controls in place to protect people from harm.

Prepare a health and safety policy

The law states that every business in the UK must have a specific policy for managing health and safety. Your policy should state exactly how you will manage health and safety in your business and state who is responsible for specific tasks and how and when these tasks are completed. Follow the recommended tips from the Health and Safety Executive on how to write a health and safety policy.

Comply with employment legislation

If you employ any staff, you must ensure you follow employment legislation, including the Employment Rights Act (1996 ) and the National Minimum Wage Act (1998) . You must also comply with legislation relating to recruitment, working hours, sickness, discrimination, dismissals, and maternity or paternity pay.

Register your business

You must register your business with HMRC before you begin operating. You can register as a sole trader or as a limited company. You will need to register your business name and any other relevant information. You will also need to register for self-assessment tax.

Positives of Owning a Café Business

Running a café can be rewarding in many ways. Some of the main pros associated with this type of business are:

Be part of your local community

Cafés are a fantastic social hub. Owning a café will give you the opportunity to meet new people, get to know your customers and socialise while you are at work. A café is an important part of the community and can act as a central hub for people of all ages. You can create rewarding social and professional relationships in your community.

Fewer food options

Even if you love cooking and baking, ordering stock, preparing food and cooking, baking and decorating can be extremely time-consuming. Cafés typically offer fewer food options than other food establishments, such as restaurants, which can save you money, time and effort. Having a less extensive menu also reduces your food waste.

Work in your dream industry

If you love food and drink and spending time with people from all walks of life, running a café can be very rewarding, Running your dream business can make your job feel less like work and more like a vocation.

Customer loyalty

If your customers enjoy your food and drinks and the atmosphere of your café, they are likely to return time and time again. Many customers return for their favourite cup of coffee daily or lunch with a friend every week. Not only does this give you the opportunity to get to know your customers, but customer loyalty can also help you to grow your profits. Loyal customers may even recommend your café to other people which can help you to grow your customer base.

Be creative

You can be creative with your food and beverages. You have the opportunity to be creative with your designs and decoration and the flavours, textures and ingredients to create the perfect products. If you love being creative and artistic, running a café can be enjoyable and rewarding. Creativity can even happen in small ways, such as a fun design on a cappuccino or a well-decorated table.

Create your dream business

You will have complete control over all business decisions, allowing you to set up your dream business, in line with your business goals and vision. You can decide the type of café to set up, the products you will sell, your brand and the café culture you want to create – the opportunities are endless. Owning your own café gives you the opportunity to be creative.

Hands-on work

As a café owner, you won’t be sitting around staring at a computer screen all day. You’ll be active for a lot of the day, involved in different tasks, running your café and talking to staff and customers. This is great for people who don’t want a traditional office job.

Create a positive work environment

You will be responsible for hiring staff and creating staff policies. This gives you the opportunity to create a positive work environment. You could hire staff that you know will bring positivity to your café and will be an asset to your business. Your staff will also likely be like-minded people who are also passionate about food and beverages and also enjoy talking to customers.

Face-to-face interaction

If you are an outgoing person and you enjoy speaking to people from all different walks of life, you will likely enjoy working in a customer-facing business. You can get to know your customers and spend time talking to them every day. Because café businesses usually experience a lot of repeat business, you can really get to know your customers.

High profit margin

Many of the products you sell will have a high profit margin, meaning the price of your products will significantly exceed your costs. For example, a cup of coffee can have a profit margin of 70%, once you factor in the cost of the ingredients and your time. A high profit margin can help you to maximise your profits and increase your business’s income.

Potential for growth

There are many potential ways you can grow your business. You could extend your premises, grow your menu, hire more staff and even open additional café franchises. Even Starbucks started out as one coffee shop and now has more than 35,000 locations worldwide. Having multiple options for growth gives your café business an unlimited income potential.

Free advertising on social media

You can easily gain exposure on social media by posting photos or videos of your café and arty or appealing pictures of your food and beverages. Your customers may also post pictures to their own social media accounts which will be seen by their followers. This can help you to gain exposure and be noticed online. Social media is a form of free advertising which can help you to grow your customer base and increase your income.

Choose your own schedule

You can choose which days your café opens and the hours you want to work. You can choose the opening hours, based on your busiest days and your own preferences. As your business grows, you can also work fewer hours and allow your employees to handle the day-to-day running of your business.

Be your own boss

You can make all key decisions yourself and steer your business in whichever direction you choose. You can choose how involved you want to be, the type of café you open, the food and beverages you sell and how you want to run your café. You can make the best decisions for you and your business.

Seasonal opportunities

Holidays and celebrations such as Christmas, Valentine’s Day, Halloween and Easter can result in a huge increase in business. You can decorate your café and sell themed products, such as Valentine’s Day cupcakes and Christmas cookies. You can even offer deals or special events at these times of year to help attract customers, for example, a chocolate egg hunt or breakfast with Father Christmas. Capitalising on special occasions can help you to attract new customers and increase your profits.

Negatives of Owning a Café Business

Although owning a café can be rewarding in many ways, there are some potentially negative aspects to running this type of business that you should be aware of.

Lack of work-life balance

There are a lot of business and administrative tasks associated with running a café that can be time-consuming. Not only will you be responsible for the day-to-day running of your business, but you will also have a large number of administrative tasks to handle, such as ordering stock, completing staff rotas, advertising and marketing and ensuring health and safety. Being responsible for such a time-consuming enterprise can negatively affect your work-life balance.

High start-up costs

The equipment needed for a café business can be expensive. You will also be responsible for the rent and renovation costs. The high start-up costs mean you may need to source outside investment. It will also take longer for you to begin turning a profit.

Ingredients and stock can be expensive

Depending on your menu, you may require expensive ingredients, such as speciality coffee beans and expensive cheeses. Although you can price your menu accordingly, prices that are too high will deter customers. Expensive stock and ingredients can affect your profit margin and your overall income.

Spoilage can affect your profits

You will be dealing with a lot of perishable ingredients and baked goods which spoil quickly. Some of the products you make will need to be sold the same day to prevent them from spoiling or going stale and becoming food waste. This can have a significant impact on your profits, as the ingredients and time required to make them are wasted.

Accountability and liability

The food industry is highly regulated with a large number of laws and regulations you must be aware of. You need to ensure you follow all policies and procedures, particularly those relating to health and safety. Not only can it be time-consuming (and sometimes expensive) to ensure compliance, but failure to comply, even unintentionally, could have serious consequences. If a customer contracts food poisoning after eating at your café, you could be held liable.

Highly competitive

Not only are you competing with other local cafés, but you will also be dealing with popular chain cafés and coffee shops, such as Starbucks and Costa. You will also have competition from local restaurants, bars and other food establishments. Having such high competition can make it more difficult for your business to succeed, particularly if your local competition is popular and well-established.

Managing staff

You will have a lot of responsibilities in relation to staffing, including hiring and firing, payroll and managing your staff. This can be stressful and time-consuming. It can also be difficult if the motivation of your employees doesn’t match your business values. If your employees demonstrate a poor attitude or don’t complete their tasks in line with your expectations, this can be viewed negatively by customers and can result in negative reviews.

Issues out of your control

This can be one of the most frustrating aspects of running a café, as things that are outside of your control can have a negative impact on your business and your profits. For example, your supplier raising their prices, your stock delivery being cancelled or your equipment breaking can prevent you from properly running your business, which could not only affect your profits but also result in negative customer reviews.

Difficult to grow your business

Many new café businesses fail to succeed because they find it difficult to successfully market a new business and grow their customer base. Successful cafés may spend years building up their client base. This could mean you initially receive less custom and earn a lower income. If you have invested a lot of money into your business, this could result in your business failing.

Long working hours

Your café could be open 7 days a week, including weekends and, depending on your location, may be open early in the morning to target workers grabbing a morning coffee or breakfast. You may find yourself working long hours which can not only be tiring but can also impact your personal life and family life.

Physically demanding

Working in a café can be physically demanding. You will be spending long hours on your feet every day and will be engaged in many physically demanding tasks, such as reaching high and bending low and carrying heavy items.

This can cause multiple health concerns, such as:

• Neck or back pain or strain.
• Pain, strain or injuries to your fingers, hands and wrists.
• Pain in your feet or legs.

It can be stressful

There are many responsibilities associated with running a café which can be stressful. Not only will you be responsible for the day-to-day running of your business, but you will also need to ensure your customers are satisfied. You are also responsible for your business’s success, which can be stress-inducing.

A lot of skill, knowledge and experience are required

To help your business succeed, you will need to be highly proficient in a variety of skills and will need to have a lot of experience with different foods and beverages. You will also need to have extensive experience working in a café and have a high level of knowledge about health, safety and hygiene legislation. It can be time-consuming to gain the appropriate skills, knowledge and experience to make your business succeed.

High risk of your business failing

Starting up a café business can be risky. Many new businesses fail which could result in you losing money or getting into debt. Your business could fail for several reasons, such as high local competition, an ineffective business plan or if the UK encounters another recession or period of financial difficulty. Because your premises and equipment will require a high initial investment, if your business fails, you will potentially lose a significant amount of money.

Complying with legislation

There are many different pieces of legislation and legal guidelines you will need to comply with. Not only can this be complicated and time-consuming, but any non-compliance (even if this is accidental) can be punished with a fine or the forced closure of your business. Some types of legislation also require you to go through specific training and/or gain a qualification, which can be costly and arduous. A café can have high liability which can be a lot of stress and pressure on a business owner.

No benefits

As you are self-employed, you won’t receive benefits such as pension contributions. You will also be responsible for doing your own taxes and organising your National Insurance contributions. You will also have a lack of job security.

Bad reviews

Although the majority of customers leave honest reviews, some customers are difficult to please and will leave a negative review because of the smallest complaint (even if it is something outside of your control, such as other customers being too loud). Sometimes a fake customer also leaves a fake review, which can be extremely difficult to disprove and remove. Negative reviews can be extremely damaging to your business, particularly if your business is new or you’ve had relatively few reviews.

Planning Your Café Business

An effective and well-designed business plan is essential to the success of your café. A business plan can help you to focus on the specific steps that will help your business succeed, plan your short-term and long-term goals, determine your financial needs and help your business to grow.

When creating your business plan, ensure it contains information such as:

• Your company information.
• Your company description.
• The services you will provide.
• Your branding, marketing and advertising plan.
• The structure of your business.
• The operational plan for your business.
• The financial plan for your business.

Some of the factors you will need to consider when creating your business plan are:

Your business summary

Your business plan should include a detailed overview of your business, including your location, the size of your business, the type of café, the products you will sell, your equipment and your business goals.

The type of café you are going to set up

Deciding what type of café you are going to set up is the first step you will need to make when creating your business plan. For example, you could choose a grab-and-go café or a hangout café. Alternatively, you could opt for a themed café or choose to operate in a specific niche, such as gluten-free or vegan. The type of café you set up will impact your premises, staff requirements, your target customers, and the types of products you sell. Consider your local competition, your budget and your own skills when deciding what type of café you will run. You should also ensure the design and aesthetic of your café fit in with your chosen niche.

The food and beverages you will sell

Cafés generally have a smaller menu than restaurants and other food and drink establishments. You may choose to offer a limited food menu and mainly focus on speciality coffee, tea and other beverages. If you plan to sell food, you must decide whether to offer a more extensive food menu, such as soups, sandwiches and breakfasts or only sell baked goods, such as cakes, brownies and cookies or pre-packed foods. Some cafés choose to specialise in a particular product, whereas others offer a more varied menu.

Your local competition

Being aware of other cafés in your area can help you decide what type of business to run and how much to charge your customers. If your local area already has several successful cafés, you may want to focus on an untapped niche and target different customers. On the other hand, if there is already a vegan café operating close to your chosen location, you may opt to open a different type of café.

Your target market

Determining your target market is a key step to helping your business succeed. Different types of cafés, different foods and beverages and different designs and aesthetics are likely to attract different customers. Your pricing strategy will also be a key factor in determining your target market. Once you have identified your typical customers, you can then focus on how to attract them to your business.

Your equipment and stock requirements

Consult the list above to determine your equipment requirements. The equipment you require will depend on the type of café you set up and how big your premises is. Once you have determined your equipment requirements, you can then calculate the initial costs of purchasing the equipment and the monthly replenishment costs, e.g. for stock and ingredients.

Your business location

Your location will have a significant impact on the types of customers you are likely to attract. It will also impact your premises’ rental costs. If your business is located in an area with high footfall or a place popular with your target market, the increased custom and higher profits will be extremely beneficial to your business. Consider your rental budget and your size requirements when choosing your premises.

Your start-up costs and running costs

Consult the list above to help you calculate the approximate costs of setting up and running your business. Determine what equipment you need and the amount of equipment, as well as the cost of your premises, to help you determine your start-up costs and what your initial investment requirements will be. You can then calculate whether you can finance your business yourself or whether you need to source outside investment, for example, from a bank or an independent investor. Determining your start-up costs and running costs can also help you to create a budget and predict when you will begin to turn a profit.

Your sales forecast

What is your average footfall likely to be? How many sales do you predict you will make each day and week? As your business grows, your sales forecast is likely to change. You should also consider whether certain times of the year are likely to have increased sales, for example, if you are located close to a beach you will likely be busier during Spring and Summer.

Your strategy for growth

Your strategy for growth is the actions you will take to realise your goals for expansion and any potential challenges your business could face and how you will avoid or overcome them. For example:

• Expand your menu.
• Hire chefs or bakers.
• Open another café location.

Creating your brand is a key way to ensure you stand out from your local competition. Branding can help you to focus on your target customers, attract clients and concentrate your marketing and advertising strategies. Some ways you can create your brand are by focusing on your business’s visual identity and creating a brand story. Your business name and logo are also part of your branding so ensure you consider these when creating your business plan.

Your business goals

Determining your business goals is an essential part of creating your business plan. Your business objectives highlight the targets and goals of your café business and help you to create a one-year, three-year and five-year business plan.

Your business objectives should be SMART:

• S = Specific
• M = Measurable
• A = Achievable
• R = Realistic
• T = Time-bound

Legal requirements

Consult the list of legal requirements above to check you have complied with all requirements and regulations and that all your paperwork is accurate. Failure to comply with legal requirements could have a detrimental effect on your business or could result in a fine, the forced closure of your business or, in serious cases, prosecution.

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Top tips for community cafes  

Roisin Tobin, business manager at community-run café and shop  Buzz Lockleaze in Bristol shares with us some top tips on setting up and running a successfull community café.

Buzz Lockleaze in Bristol is embedded in the local community. It delivers positive social benefit in areas such as social isolation and food culture. We also aim to support the local economy by delivering employment and enterprise support.

Our shop window is a community café where we serve a range of delicious food and drinks sourced from local suppliers. The café is a key source of income for Buzz Lockleaze and helps us to deliver the positive social impact in our community.

Here are my tips for making a success of a community café:

• Allow yourself enough lead-in time to ensure that the necessary engagement is delivered within the community. Consulting with your community about exactly what they want to see from a particular community asset or social space is crucially important. The success of any community business requires garnering that community buy-in from inception.
• Secondly, be flexible and evolve with the needs of your community. At Buzz Lockleaze, we deliver a lot of wellbeing activities from our café, many of which started with one idea in mind. Our weekly games club, for example, was designed as a space for families to come together to play games and socialise. But, once we started the activity, it became apparent that the residents who were coming along were mostly residents with learning difficulties from the local supported living accommodation. We had to develop our services to match local demand. It’s now one of our most successful clubs!
• Lastly, take your time to reflect on your strategy and initial business plan. When we first set up the café, we were hoping to provide an accessible supply line to affordable, healthy, nutritious food for local people. To do so, we offered food in both our shop and café at a very low mark-up. But, we also operate in a very low income neighbourhood, so it proved difficult to generate a sustainable business model from that. We had to spend a lot of time reflecting on other financial models that more suit the neighbourhood in which we are based.

You can hear more about community cafés in the latest episode of the Community Business Fix Podcast . Alternatively, find out more on what it takes to run a successful community café in our Community Business Success Guide to Cafés .

Loneliness in the countryside: How to set up a community café

An excellent way to help combat rural loneliness

When The Hub was created in St Peter’s Church in Herefordshire’s Golden Valley, it transformed the building from a community space to a community place, says Reverend Simon Lockett. “In many rural areas, we have seen the loss of a way of life that was much more community-orientated. At The Hub, people can meet and connect with others.” Recently, they have even secured Big Lottery funding, meaning they can pick up people who may find it difficult to get there.

The café at The Hub has taken another step to tackle loneliness by joining the Chatty Café scheme , where one or two tables are set aside (every other Wednesday at The Hub) for people who would like some company with their tea and cake. The scheme was thought up by Alex Hoskyns as she sat in a supermarket café with her baby.

“My son was four months old and I was craving simple conversation. As I looked around, it seemed the other people sitting at tables, also alone, were just as much in need of a chat as I was,” she says. “Most people feel awkward about approaching others, so I encouraged cafés to have special tables – designated Chatter & Natter – where people who welcomed conversation could sit and see what happened. The scheme isn’t about making life-long friendships, just connecting with another person over a coffee.”

How to set up a community café

Reverend Lockett from The Hub shares his step-by-step advise on how to set up a café in your community.

1. Visit similar projects and gather information. We found everyone was willing to help, even organisations like Environmental Health .

2. Choose your place/site and furniture and fixtures carefully – ambience and aesthetics are all important.

3. Old buildings such as churches can be ideal, especially for getting the above point right.

4. If you’re hoping to site your community café in a church, you will need one with suitable facilities and heating and a space with no pews.

More from our loneliness campaign:

• How to set up a community shop
• How to set up a community choir

5. If you have pews or any other need to change the fabric of the church, you will need a ‘faculty’ – a Church of England planning licence .

6. If you are lucky and you have space and facilities like us here at The Hub, you can set up a ‘pop up café’ with an Archdeacon’s licence .

7. Remember that a community café is as much about purpose as profit. The purpose can be environmental, community building and combating the effects of austerity.

8. Marketing is so important, both digital and word of mouth. Set up a sturdy communication plan and consider a website or Facebook page.

9. Good volunteers are at the heart of a project like this – look after them and provide training. Volunteering opportunities are endless, from waiting on tables to cake baking to cooking or just being there with a listening ear.

11. Involving the community is key to transforming a space into a community place. A willingness to listen to people’s views from the outset of the project helps to engage residents and, in turn, creates a place which everyone within the community feels proud of.

12. Let the Vicar be involved in cake tasting.

Look out for the Chatter & Natter table at the Country Living Fair in April (countrylivingfair.com). You can also encourage your local café to sign up to the Chatty Café Scheme for just £10 - more info here.

This campaign is from Country Living magazine. SUBSCRIBE HERE

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CAFE BUSINESS PLAN: How to Write With Templates & All You Need

• by Folakemi Adegbaju
• August 10, 2023
• No comments
• 8 minute read

Table of Contents Hide

Why do you need a cafe business plan, tips for writing a cafe business plan, #1. executive summary, #2. business description, #3. industry research, #4. the marketplace, #5. swot analysis, #6. marketing plan, #7. financial plan, #8. operational plan, cafe business plan template, is a cafe a profitable business, how do i start a cafe idea, is it hard to open a coffee shop, how do you attract customers to your coffee shop, do cafes make money, how much does a cafe owner make a month, final thoughts, why do most cafes fail, what does a coffee shop owner do, what are the duties of a café manager.

The first step to a successful cafe is developing a business plan. Make sure your cafe business plan is prepared if you intend to pitch investors for financing because they will undoubtedly request to view it. This article discusses how you can write an impactful cafe business plan for your cafe, and it comes with a cafe business plan template checklist to help you arrange things accordingly.

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 Let’s start the journey.

What Is a Cafe Business Plan?

A cafe business plan is a simple way to show how serious and committed your business is. It outlines your devotion as a business owner and can be compared in order to gauge how successful your cafe is. It includes an executive summary, an overview, and a description of a coffee shop business, market data, marketing strategies, business operations, and financial plans, among other essential components of a solid cafe business plan.

A cafe business plan is not only necessary to keep your business on track for success, but it also demonstrates your commitment as a business owner. You can sketch out and examine all conceivable outcomes in your cafe business plan, from the advantages to the challenges posed by competitors. Without one, determining whether your company is flourishing might be difficult.

A cafe business plan gives your cafe shop a clear direction while also emphasising any obstacles and competitive businesses you may face. With this knowledge at your disposal, you may determine ahead of time what solutions you will require for any issues you might run into, thus increasing your chances of being a successful business owner.

You can now begin creating your business plan for a coffee shop. Here are some helpful suggestions to help you write more effectively:

• Gather helpful materials to aid you in your writing. This can include how-to manuals, market studies, emerging trends, and real or hypothetical sample company plans. All of these can serve as your source of inspiration and be incorporated into the relevant areas of your cafe business plan.
• Write as much as you can without censoring yourself. Once everything is laid out, you may decide which elements apply to which sections of your cafe business plan.
• Avoid being too focused on a single piece. If you run into writing difficulties, make a note and move on to the next paragraph. When you have more knowledge or are more certain, you can go back and review it.
• Every worthwhile thing requires time. Your cafe business plan will too. If it takes longer than you anticipated, don’t be concerned. You’ll be able to hone your message and articulate your ideas in a cogent and concise manner as time goes on and you continue to work on your plan.

How to Write a Cafe Business Plan

There are numerous approaches to writing a cafe business plan, and we provide important advice from subject-matter experts to get you started. This will help you write the perfect cafe business plan.

Although the executive summary should be the first section of your business plan, it should actually be the last section completed because it provides a summary of the entire cafe business plan. It should be no more than one page in length and is the most crucial section of your business plan. To help your audience save time, the goal is to outline the key ideas of the plan. If they wish to learn more, they can then go back and examine the portions that most interest them. Keep this section brief while still being inspirational.

Your cafe’s concept will be realized in this part. It’s important to give a thorough description of your business, including specifics like how the concept will look, where it will be located, and the type of atmosphere or brand you plan to establish. Your company’s description paints an accurate image of your mission and objectives.

This entails gathering in-depth information about nearby cafes, their average foot traffic, break-even points, and other important insights that can help you run your own cafe successfully. Determine possible locations by analyzing and making a list depending on your target market. The majority of cafes perform better in locations with heavy foot traffic, like malls or shopping centres. The site ought to be convenient for customers and reasonably close to your suppliers and vendors.

Determine possible locations by analyzing and making a list depending on your target market. The majority of cafes perform better in locations with heavy foot traffic, like malls or shopping centres. The site ought to be convenient for customers and reasonably close to your suppliers and vendors. The competitors you face should be mentioned in your cafe business plan.

You want to show in this area of the cafe business plan that you have done a comprehensive analysis of your target market and that you can show there is a market for your product or service. Analyzing your competitors’ strategies is a smart way to collect intelligence. Visit your competition, make notes about their menu items, marketing strategies, operational procedures, pricing, and brand positioning, and then do a thorough analysis of your results.

You can also inquire about the performance of local companies from residents in the neighbourhood where you intend to live. Your marketplace analysis will be realistic and more clearly depict how your business can succeed if you gather as much information as you can.

Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats are referred to as SWOT. A thorough examination of the numerous aspects, including market- and regulatory-related changes, that may have an impact on how your cafe is run must be included in your cafe business plan. You can make sure that you are better equipped to manage risks by performing a SWOT analysis. It will also provide you with a greater understanding of the industry and enable you to better plan for unforeseen circumstances that can negatively impact your café.

If you don’t advertise your café effectively, it might not be profitable. You should therefore set aside money in your budget specifically for marketing. This should be mentioned in the cafe business plan to provide a thorough account of your marketing plan.

The financial plan is the most crucial part of your business plan for your cafe , especially if you require loan funding or are trying to convince investors to invest. Your financial strategy needs to show the expansion and profitability potential of your company.

For your cafe to be successful, you must have a solid operations plan. This needs to contain every component necessary for you to operate your café successfully every day. These would consist of:

• Choosing the Right Employees: This is essential to running your cafe. All potential avenues for finding suitable staff should be covered in a thorough hiring plan, including recruiters, employee recommendations, and advertising in newspapers, job sites, or on other social media platforms.
• The most important duty, after hiring the correct workers, is to train them. For your personnel to follow, develop Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and a training manual. Techniques for managing crises and disasters must be included in the training.

Download our cafe business plan template.

It is important to note that aside from having a business plan, there are more crucial steps to how you can start a cafe business. The essence of this cafe business plan template is to ensure that you follow all the necessary steps that can help you start your business. The checklist below will serve as a reminder. 

• Create a concept
• Select a name
• Compose a business plan
• Have financial projections
• Approved legal aspects
• Employ your management team
• Promote your business
• Provide your menu

Download our cafe business plan template .

Yes, a cafe business is a very profitable business. Depending on food production costs and other KPIs, most coffee shops turn a profit during their first few years of being in business. A cafe can anticipate a double-digit increase in sales by the fifth year. You should also budget carefully for unforeseen expenses, startup fees, and the costs associated with your first year of business.

Following the right steps when you are about to start a cafe business is very important. Succeeding in business will surely be easier once you follow the right steps. We’ve listed below some of the steps you can follow when you want to start your cafe business:

• Define your vision.
• Create a detailed business plan.
• Choose a location.
• Find the best suppliers.
• So source commercial equipment.
• Design your café
• Create a menu.
• Hire the right people.

Even though opening an independent cafe requires a lot of labour, the process doesn’t have to last for a very long time. You’ll position yourself for success early on if you concentrate on building these fundamental components while creating your cafe business plan.

What is the essence of your cafe if you have no customers or an overflow of customers? Here are some steps you need to take to attract customers to your coffee shop:

• Look at your pricing.
• Start a loyalty card program.
• Run a competition, particularly if you can get the local press to give you coverage.
• Tap up your suppliers for marketing materials
• Consider branded takeaway cups

Cafes can have gross margins of up to 85%, but small cafés often have operating incomes of just 2.5% of gross sales on average. Despite the financial obstacles, if you create a cafe, you might discover that you’re doing work you enjoy and making a gathering place that serves as a focal point for your neighbourhood.

A modest independent coffee shop’s typical annual revenue is between £100,000 and £150,000, and 22% of all cafés and coffee shops reach this level. However, just 12% will earn more than £250,000, while only 5% have a turnover of £25,000 or less.

If you’re thinking about opening a cafe, the first thing on your priority list should be preparing a business plan. Keep in mind that you are preparing the way for success. As a result of having your finances in order, you’ll be able to save money and actually obtain funding from banks and investors. The general message you want to convey must be woven into your business plan.

Coffee shops close their doors for a variety of reasons, including weak management, insufficient revenue to pay expenses, unreliable staffing, poor customer service, and excessive debt.

The choice of what kind of coffee to sell at your shop is entirely up to you as the owner. You must also make sure that your brewing procedures are excellent. However, coffee cannot generate all of the sales by itself. In actuality, only around 40% of a coffee shop’s overall sales come from coffee.

Managers of cafés are in charge of day-to-day operations. In addition to ordering café supplies, they hire, train, and oversee café staff, handle client complaints, and make sure that food safety and health rules are followed.

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How to Write a Coffee Shop Business Plan

Have you always dreamed of opening a coffee shop? Then you’ve come to the right place.

Starting a coffee shop business plan is the first step to success. If you’re planning on raising startup capital by pitching to investors , make sure your coffee shop business plan is ready because they will definitely ask to see it.

If you’ve never seen a coffee shop business plan before, here’s a sample you can use (along with the template below) to get you started. It covers all the basic elements of a proper business plan, including an executive summary, overview and description of a coffee shop business, marketplace information, marketing initiatives, business operations, and financial plans.

In this article, we provide a step-by-step approach on how to write a successful coffee shop business plan. We outline each section needed in a good plan, explain that section’s purpose, and provide an example you can use as a starting point.

6 things to consider before  writing your coffee shop business plan

Before you start actually writing your coffee shop business plan, there are a few things you want to nail down first that will save you time and make communicating your vision a lot easier.

Make sure you can answer each of the following questions:

1. How long should a coffee shop business plan be?

A business plan can be anywhere from a few sheets to hundreds of pages long, depending on the size of your proposed business.

For a relatively small business like a coffee shop it’s best to keep the plan as brief and succinct as possible. We recommend 30 pages or less – especially if you intend to submit it to financial lenders for debt or equity financing. They will be looking for solid research, analysis, and strategy written in a concise form.

2. Who’s going to read your coffee shop business plan?

Take into consideration the audience of your coffee shop business plan. Will you be approaching financial lenders or investors? Or is your plan specifically for you and your management team? Just like creating a marketing plan , you need to adjust your writing style and messaging to match the audience’s interest. Certain sections might need more emphasis over others depending on your primary audience.

3. Where will your coffee shop be located?

If you aren’t ready to choose an exact location for your coffee shop , you should at least know which neighbourhood you’re targeting. The location you choose will determine important elements of your coffee shop business plan, such as your competitive analysis and venue type.

4. What is your venue type?

It’s important that you have a clear idea or concept of the type of coffee shop you want to open . What you need to cover in your coffee shop business plan will depend on whether you’re opening a small intimate cafe, gourmet food stand, or craft microbrewery. These can all be considered coffee shops. Sometimes it’s helpful to create Pinterest boards to help you fully visualize your concept.

5. What are your business goals?

Do you have any ideas of what your short- and long-term business goals are for your coffee shop? Are you going to start with one location and then expand a year after launching? Do you want to start off smaller with a food stand and then, once you have enough sales, open a sister coffee shop in a different neighbourhood? Be as specific as you can when communicating your vision and the goals you’re aiming to achieve.

6. What are your credentials and experience?

Have you ever worked in the coffee shop industry? Do you have any certifications? Consider the skills and experience you have that would give your audience confidence that you’re the right person for the business.

If you’re confident you have the skills and experience, then it should show in the coffee shop business plan. But if you’ve never spent any time working in the foodservice industry, you may want to get some hands-on experience so that, at the very least, you know what you’re getting yourself into.

5 Tips for Writing a Coffee Shop Business Plan

So now you’re ready to start writing your coffee shop business plan. To make the writing process easier for you, here are five useful tips:

• Collect relevant resources (in addition to this article) that will help you when writing. This can include how-to guides, research and trends, and sample business plans – real or imagined. You can use all of these as inspiration and include them in the appropriate sections of your business plan.
• Write down as much as you can without filtering yourself in the first round. Once everything is out, you can then determine which parts are relevant to which part of your business plan.
• Don’t let yourself get stuck on one section. If you get writer’s block, make a note and move on to the next section. You can revisit it later, once you have more information or clarity.
• Use visuals such as graphics and images to clarify your message wherever appropriate. As you write your coffee shop business plan, pull images from any Pinterest boards you created while visualizing your venue and concept.
• All good things take time. So will your coffee shop business plan. Don’t worry if it takes longer than what you were hoping for. As time passes and you continue to work on your plan, you’ll be able to fine-tune your message and express your thoughts in a cohesive and succinct way.

Coffee Shop Business Plan Template

1. table of contents.

Even for a small coffee shop, your business plan is going to be a long document. A table of contents makes it easier for someone to find specific sections as they read through your plan.

2. Executive Summary

While the executive summary should appear at the beginning of your business plan, it’s the last thing that should be written because it’s an overview of the full business plan. It’s the most important part of your business plan and should be no longer than one page. The purpose is to summarize the main points of the plan, which helps save your audience time. They can then review the sections that are of most interest to them if they want to learn more. Remember to keep this section concise yet inspiring.

3. Business Overview

This section should include a list of basic information about your business. Refer to our coffee shop business plan template to see what it should look like when it’s fully fleshed out.

Below are common details that should be included in your plan, especially if you’ll be seeking bank loans or pitching to investors:

• Legal name of business
• Trade name of business (doing business as)
• Business address (or potential business address)
• Nature of business
• Structure of business
• Date business was established
• Current mailing address
• Phone number
• Banking details (branch and banker’s name)
• Social media handles

4. Business Description

This section is where your coffee shop concept comes to life.

It’s time to describe your business in great detail: elements like what the concept is going to look like, where it will be located, and the kind of vibe or brand you’ll be creating. Your business description provides paint a clear picture of your vision and goals.

Here’s what to include in your business description:

Will your coffee business be a sole trader, partnership, limited liability partnership or limited liability company? What people will be involved and what are their roles? Will some wear multiple hats? Be concise – you’ll go into more detail about the team later on.

Your coffee shop concept is your big idea . Take the time to describe why your idea is unique and what differentiates you from other coffee shops. Why should coffee drinkers choose your shop over the one down the street or two blocks over? Also, consider what kind of experience you want to create for your customers. Having a restaurant is not just about what you serve to customers but how you serve the whole experience.

Mission statement

Your restaurant mission statement  is one sentence that describes what your coffee shop will achieve. Think of your end goal as the ultimate driving force behind your business. Your mission statement should be something that can be displayed on marketing materials, so keep it short and straight to the point. It needs to easily express to people what your business is about.

Short- and long-term goals

In this section, you’ll want to mention any relevant personal and/or business goals. Your short-term goals describe your first year as a coffee shop owner. Long-term goals involve bigger picture thinking. They are things like how to scale your business or expand into new markets. Be descriptive in this section, but also realistic (i.e. stay within the scope of your financial projections ).

Menu and services

Include a sample menu and discuss your concept in greater detail. If you’re going to offer catering, delivery, or any other services, also include details about complimentary parts of the business in this section. Describe anything else you’ll be selling, such as pre-packaged foods, canned or bottled drinks, or retail products.

You probably haven’t secured a location or negotiated a lease just yet. No problem. Instead of those details, mention the neighbourhoods you’re considering for your venue and why. Answer the following questions and consider the effects they will have on your business:

• Attraction: Which features of the neighbourhood will affect your coffee shop?
• Competition: What other coffee shops or related businesses are located in the area?
• Demographics: What kinds of people live, work, or visit the neighbourhood?

Describe your concept with as much visual detail as possible. Communicate why these details are important and how they relate back to your brand. If you’re working with a design agency or interior designer, mention them in this section and include their visual proposals or mockups.

Business description summary

This section covers a lot, so briefly sum it all up at the end. The business description tends to be filled with a lot of necessary details, so a summary will help your audience understand the main points.

5. The Marketplace

For this section of the coffee shop business plan, you want to demonstrate that you have thoroughly analysed the target market and can prove there is a demand for your business.

A good way to gather intelligence is to do a competitor analysis . Visit your competition, document their menu items, marketing tactics, business practices, pricing, and brand positioning, then analyze your findings from a variety of different angles.

You can also ask people in your prospective neighbourhood about how businesses perform in that area. By gathering as much information as you can, your marketplace assessment will be realistic and paint a clearer picture of how your business can be successful.

The marketplace section is another lengthy part of the coffee shop business plan, that includes the following components:

Market segment

In this section, you should provide an overview of your target audience. Consider details like demographics, psychographics, and segments of your target market.

It’s time to put your target customers under the microscope, show how well you know them. What types of people will frequent your coffee shop and what similarities/differences do they share? Get qualitative and quantitative data, and reference external resources that provide statistics about your customer segments and any other relevant information. Note that each customer segment within your target demographic will most likely have specific needs.

Market Trends

Include relevant statistics about past and current trends within your targeted marketplace. Anything that relates to the demand for a coffee shop business, as well as social and economic factors that have affected similar businesses in the area. Also mention if you’ve conducted your own research or hired a third-party to conduct research on your behalf.

Competition

In this section, you’ll want to be specific about who you consider to be competition. You’ll have both direct and indirect competition within your chosen neighbourhood. Your direct competitors are the coffee shops that offer similar customer experiences and types of cuisine. Indirect competitors may be different from your coffee shop concept but still compete for your target market’s attention and spend.

Now that you’ve analysed the competition, you should be able to articulate what makes you stand out from the others. What does your coffee shop offer to your target audience that no one else currently provides? Why should someone choose your business over another?

Opportunities

Taking into account your competition and customers, you should see where the gaps lie between supply and demand. Use this knowledge to fine-tune your concept and provide a better option for customers. From the menu to opening hours, whatever your coffee shop can do better than everyone else should be highlighted in this section.

Now consider the flip side: what advantages do your competitors have over your business? What do they offer to the market that your coffee shop doesn’t? Provide rationale as to why your coffee shop faces these barriers and, most importantly, how you’ll tackle them once you’re officially open.

Marketplace summary

Time to sum it all up. Expect this section to be a long one, because you’ve got to summarise everything you’ve outline in regards to your marketplace. Highlight the pieces of information that will have the most impact on your audience, such as the demographics of your target market, advantages, and opportunities.

6. Marketing

You may be an amazing barista who can make a killer cappuccino, but without consistent customers and sales, your business isn’t going to last for very long. You need a marketing strategy to keep people coming through the doors.

In this section, we’ll provide an overview of what to include in your marketing strategy, which you can use later on as the framework for your full restaurant marketing plan .

Positioning

Describe how you’ll appeal to your target customers and stay top of mind. Use the differentiators you outlined in the marketplace section to guide your positioning strategy. What do you offer that your target customers can’t get anywhere else? How will you communicate these offerings?

Describe your pricing strategy and how it compares to competitors. The most common question small businesses owners have is, “How do you know what price to charge?”

Questions that will help you decide on a pricing strategy include:

• What are your food costs? (the total amount spent on food and beverages)
• What are your food portion costs? (the sum total of all ingredients in one menu item)
• What is the market price of similar menu items? (i.e. your competitors)
• How does your pricing compare to the market price?
• How is your pricing competitive?
• What kind of return on investment do you expect with this pricing strategy, and within what time period?

Once you’ve determined your pricing strategy, make sure it aligns with your financials. The prices you charge have to be competitive but still allow you to make a reasonable profit.

Online promotion

• Social Media: If you plan on creating and maintaining social media accounts like Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook, explain how you’ll use them to promote your business and brand.
• Website: Describe your website’s overall concept and how it aligns with your brand. Provide visuals of the main elements and design style. Also, mention if you plan to built the site in-house or pay for professional services.
• Advertising: List all of your paid digital promotions such as review sites, email marketing, and social media ads, as well as any agencies you’ll work with to develop and execute your digital marketing initiatives.

Traditional promotion

Will you be hosting an event for coffee lovers? Running a free coffee for a month contest? What about mailing printed ads to tempt locals with photos of your pastries? It’s always a good practice to have a mix of promotional tactics, so if you plan on utilising traditional channels as well as digital, list all your planned traditional ones here.

Marketing summary

Again, here’s your opportunity to briefly summarise your overall marketing strategy and describe which channels you’ll be investing in the most. Emphasize why your marketing strategy is the best approach for both the type of coffee shop you’re opening and the neighbourhood.

7. Business Operations

You’ve described your vision, the marketplace, and how you plan to market your business. Now it’s time to outline how you’ll actually execute your plan. This means outlining who will operate the day-to-day of your coffee shop.

Describe the main business management categories relevant to your coffee shop and identify the core team members who are going to have responsibility for each category. Introduce everyone on your payroll, from your restaurant consultant to management team to star baristas. List everyone’s qualifications, skills, and responsibilities, placing emphasis on how each role will help you reach your business goals.

List your suppliers according to type. Include descriptions of how each supplier will serve your coffee shop’s needs , as well as their credit and payment terms. This will include everything from food to technology to takeout coffee cups – even landscaping, if you location needs it. Consider how these suppliers may fit into your overall brand, in terms of what quality they are and how they’re sourced.

Since your coffee shop needs insurance coverage , conduct research to determine what’s mandatory. From general liability to workers’ compensation, getting the right insurance will help you sleep at night knowing you’re covered if something goes wrong (a big knock on wood here). Be sure to check with local and national requirements because these requirement may vary. Also, compare quotes from insurance providers. List each type of insurance your coffee shop will need and include what’s covered.

Figuring out what licenses your coffee shop will need is similar to insurance requirements (though this list may be longer). Required licenses and permits can be everything from a business license to food handler permits to music licenses. Start your research as soon as possible by checking your local government office website. List all of the licenses and permits required for your coffee shop and staff in this section.

Business operations summary

Summarize the main points discussed in the Business Operations section. This should be fairly straight forward, as it’s more fact-based than other sections.

8. Financials

The financial plan is the most important section of your coffee shop business plan – especially if you need debt financing or are trying to pitch to investors. Your financial plan has to demonstrate your business’ potential for growth and profitability. To do this, you will need to document your forecast in four main parts:

• Revenue (forecasted sales)
• Controllable costs (food and beverage costs, cost of labour)
• Expenses (rent, supplies, utilities, marketing, etc.)
• Start-up costs (costs related to opening your coffee shop, such as capital improvements and training)

For new businesses, a good rule of thumb is to underestimate revenues and overestimate expenses – the age old “under promise, over deliver” strategy.

We’ve created a forecast within our coffee shop business sample plan to demonstrate what numbers need to be included. Once you understand the sample forecast, you can then create your own forecast sheets and add in your numbers to project how profitable you’ll be.

9. Coffee Shop Business Plan Summary

Your business plan summary needs to tie together the overall message you’re trying to communicate. Use this final section to highlight how your coffee shop is different from what’s currently available in the market. It’s an opportunity for you to reiterate the most important points about your business.

Make sure to include the following sections:

• Why your business will be successful: In a few sentences, repeat how your coffee shop is different and why your business will work.
• What you need to be successful: If you’re asking for funding, repeat that ask here.
• A thank you note: Thank your audience for reading your coffee shop business plan and remind them that you value their time and feedback.

If you’re thinking about opening a coffee shop then creating a business plan needs to be at the top of your priority list. Remember: you’re building a foundation for success. This includes saving money – because you’ll have your financials organized – and being able to actually get funding from banks and investors.

It’s a lot of work, yes. But keep in mind that you’re working toward making your dream a reality. Any time you can put in now, and we highly recommend additional research wherever possible, will benefit you on the other side – from the first cup to that last drop.

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The Watertower Cafe

Executive summary executive summary is a brief introduction to your business plan. it describes your business, the problem that it solves, your target market, and financial highlights.">, opportunity.

The Sweet Auborn District in Atlanta Georgia is in need of a cafe that serves the residents and people that work in the area. The population is growing and the places where people can get a meal are over crowded. The cafe that was serving the function,  Cafe Apres/Diem moved out of the area leaving a opening.

The Watertower is a full-service restaurant/cafe located in the Sweet Auburn District of Atlanta. The restaurant features a full menu of moderately priced “comfort” food influenced by African and French cooking traditions, but based upon time honored recipes from around the world. The cafe section of The Watertower features a coffeehouse with a dessert bar, magazines, and space for live performers.

The casual dining/full service restaurant market is a $100+ billion industry in the United States, with annual increases in revenue outpacing 5% yearly. More and more people are choosing to eat out. One of the most common reasons cited by restauranteurs and industry associations is that women have joined the workforce in record numbers. In fact, from 1955 to 1995, the dollars spent for food away from home rose by almost 20%, coinciding with the number of women entering the work force. With two income earners per household, neither person may have time to fix meals. Since the 1950s, commercial food service sales have continued to rise as more and more people find that eating away from home suits their lifestyles

Competition

The general nature of the competition is typically a 70 to 150 seat restaurant with outdoor seating. The menu prices for entree’s range from $7.00 to over $25.00. All of the surrounding establishments serve, at a minimum, beer and wine. Most serve liquor-spirits as well.

The Watertower will provide accessible and affordable high quality food, coffee-based products, and entertainment to the thousands of residents and hotel visitors located within a five-mile radius. In time, The Watertower will establish itself as a “destination” of choice to the many residents of the greater Atlanta metropolitan area, as well as numerous out-of-town visitors.

Expectations

We expect income to approach $2.1 million for calendar for the first year in business. It should increase to $2.57 million by the end of the third year.

Financial Highlights by Year

Financing needed.

We will start with getting $214,000 dollars to get going.  That is $124,000 from investor 1 and $64,000 from investor 2. We will also be getting a $30,000 loan. We will be able to pay the loan and the investment back by year 3

Problem & Solution

Problem worth solving.

The Sweet Auborn District in Atlanta Georgia is in need of a cafe that serves the residents and people that work in the area. The population is growing and the places where people can get a meal are over crowded. The cafe that was serving the function,  Cafe Apres/Diem moved out of the area leaving a opening. 

Our Solution

The Watertower concept is built upon the success stories of Atlanta’s many casual dining and coffeehouse venues. Located in the Sweet Auburn District of Atlanta adjacent to the Studioplex on Auburn residential loft development, The Watertower will provide accessible and affordable high quality food, coffee-based products, and entertainment to the thousands of residents and hotel visitors located within a five-mile radius. In time, The Watertower will establish itself as a "destination" of choice to the many residents of the greater Atlanta metropolitan area, as well as numerous out-of-town visitors.

The establishment will provide a "complete, high-quality" evening experience for those searching for something that is rapidly becoming popular among Atlanta diners. Not only will patrons be able to dine on "comfort" food based upon time honored recipes from the world over, they will do so in a facility containing ample patio space for a favorite pastime of Atlanta’s residents: alfresco dining. Patrons will also have the option of enjoying coffee, desserts, and live entertainment in The Watertower’s coffeehouse or, a relaxed game of bocci in the gardens located adjacent to the patio space.

The cafe’s aim is simple. It will provide a completely sophisticated, sensual, yet casual dining and/or coffeehouse experience for the many Atlantans and visitors who frequent the city’s casual dining spots and entertainment venues. It will be an affordable venture for patrons, one that will encourage them to return on many occasions. The menu will feature hearty fare of the type that is frequently out of the reach of the typical young professional…out of reach because time frequently prevents her/him from cooking hearty meals like those featured on our menu.

Finally, and quite significantly, The Watertower will provide a much needed neighborhood-based retail food operation that is currently unavailable to the southern end of Atlanta’s Old Fourth Ward neighborhood. Not only is it projected that the business will generate 21 new jobs, the partnership responsible for creating The Watertower will generate additional revenue specifically dedicated to assisting the Historic District Development Corporation in its efforts to bring affordable housing, new jobs, and commercial activity to the Old Fourth Ward.

Target Market

Market size & segments.

Market Segmentation

The  "Market Opportunity Analysis for Residential and Commercial Uses along the Auburn Avenue Corridor,"  written by Robert Charles Lesser & Co., makes the following points about food retail for The Watertower at the Studioplex on Auburn site:

Studioplex is in proximity to new and existing residences, including the affluent, and immediately adjacent Inman Park neighborhood; a restaurant would be a destination space within the neighborhood.

A restaurant/coffeehouse would provide one of the best food and beverage opportunities for the more than 500,000 annual visitors to the Martin Luther King Historic District.

Location is close to employment centers or within retail corridor.

Studioplex patrons and residents will provide primary support; secondary support will come from area residents and hotel visitors/conventioneers.

Cross-selling opportunities exist with coffee beverages and magazines.

The coffee shop and the magazines sold there will be positioned to fill a niche demand for people interested in art, architecture, design photography, and home and garden pursuits.

Target market audience is a mix of Studioplex residents, artists, patrons, intown residents, downtown hotel visitors/conventioneers, and workers.

The immediate market area is within a four-mile radius of The Watertower and Studioplex and includes the neighborhoods of Sweet Auburn, Fairlie Poplar, Downtown, Grant Park, Inman Park, Poncey Highlands, Virginia Highland, Little Five Points, Lake Claire, Midtown, East Atlanta, Candler Park, Morningside, Cabbagetown, Druid Hills, and adjacent neighborhoods.

Target Market Segment Strategy

The Watertower will appeal to urban professionals residing in the targeted intown neighborhoods, the many downtown hotel visitors/conventioneers, and workers who desire a sophisticated yet casual eating, coffeehouse entertainment experience. The business will also meet an under-served need for a pedestrian-friendly dining/coffeehouse establishment for the numerous residents in the area, particularly newcomers to the immediate area.

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Current Alternatives

Current alternatives to the Watertown Cafe: 

Loca Luna:  Located in the heart of Midtown, this establishment features a Latin house band which is often a group of four Brazilian musicians. The menu is primarily a Spanish tapas style menu with other entree offerings. The venue also features a small dance floor.

Yin Yang Cafe:  Located on Spring Street, just north of Atlanta’s landmark Varsity restaurant, the club features a limited menu and a regular offering of acid jazz, hip-hop, and R&B acts.

Kaya:  A bistro and large scale nightclub located on Peachtree Street in Midtown, Kaya boasts an impressive array of entertainment, from Latin music, to hip-hop, disco, and live bands. The restaurant is located on the Peachtree Street side of the club. In the evening, the restaurant generally features a dj or a live band, while the large club portion in the rear of the establishment features a large dance floor and a dj.

Cosmopolitan:  Cosmopolitan is located in a converted house in Midtown. It is a very small venue featuring a casual-upscale dining menu. The club is converted to a cocktail bar/nightclub in the evening with a small dance floor. It has no designated parking.

The Somber Reptile:  Located in downtown Atlanta on Marietta Street, the club features live rock bands and a cajun oriented menu. The clientele is growing steadily as the club’s reputation grows. It offers an alternative to the traditional Atlanta nightlife scene.

Cafe/Apres Diem:  Cafe Diem, the first coffeehouse/restaurant to be located south of Ponce De Leon Avenue on the northeast side of Atlanta, has enjoyed extraordinary success. Formerly located on Highland Avenue, the business recently (and reluctantly) located to a strip mall in midtown after a lengthy dispute with its former landlord. It’s departure from the immediate area provides an extraordinary opportunity for The Watertower to capitalize on an even greater unmet need for a casual restaurant/coffeehouse experience.

Highland Bagel/Caribou Coffee:  Located on North Highland Avenue, this is a traditional corporate coffeehouse which provides morning coffee and sandwich service. The owners are currently expanding to provide evening service.

Our Advantages

The Watertower maintains a competitive edge in several significant areas:

• The facility’s location puts it into close proximity to substantial populations of affluent Atlantans.
• The owner, a 16-year-resident of Atlanta, was educated in and works professionally in northeast Atlanta. His early work experience included a substantial period working within a casual/upscale restaurant in the mid-to-late 1980s in Virginia Highland. As the Dean of Students at Emory University School of Law, he has conferred over 1,300 law degrees during his tenure, most of them have remained in the Atlanta area. His position at Emory also required him to manage significant catering budgets. The owner, through his business, academic, and community activities, maintains a substantial Atlanta-based network of professionals.
• The facility’s construction will easily allow for flexible dining/coffeehouse/entertainment options making it attractive to numerous populations.
• The facility’s location in an Empowerment Zone and local Enterprise Zone provides significant tax advantages.

Keys to Success

The keys to success in this business are:

• Product quality: We think our customers will appreciate quality: Food, coffee-based beverages, and entertainment are our products. They must be of the high quality and value. We buy they pay, we will watch inventory and make sure that it turns over before the food goes bad. 
• Service: Our patrons are paying to have a good time. Their experience will suffer if service is not of the highest caliber. Each member of the staff will be courteous, efficient, and attentive. These will be measured by word of mouth, return customers, reviews on Facebook and Twitter. We will be very aware of what is being said and will be making constant changes to make sure our customers know they are being heard. 
• Marketing: We will need to target our audience early and often. While the business is located in a central and accessible location, many people will have to be re-introduced to the neighborhood surrounding the Martin Luther King National Historic Site and Auburn Avenue. This will be measured by the number of business lunch reservations, have a delivery service, and Social Media will run a campaign allowing them to get a discount if they use certain codes the first time. Credit card reciepts will keep track of our return customers. 
• Management: Proper inventory, employee management, and quality control is central to our business. We will keep a very close eye on our business operations  so that we can keep our prices competitive

Marketing & Sales

Marketing plan.

 Our food, beverage, newspaper/magazine, and entertainment products must first sell themselves through word of mouth.

We plan on running a social media campaign. We will be running a Twitter Facebook and Instagram campaign. We want our clients to let us know their favorite dishes and drinks. We will also encourage our customers to share positive reviews with each other and will address any negative reviews we see. We always want to make our service and our dishes better. 

Next, the packaging of The Watertower’s concept and external messages have to fit our positioning. We offer an upscale feel without a required "pinch" in your wallet. We then communicate this through the free weekly media ( Creative Loafing , Southern Voice , and others), radio advertising on particular jazz, acid-jazz, Latin, and dance-oriented music shows, and traditional public radio sponsorships.

Through establishing relationships with the concierges of the local hotels and with the Atlanta Convention and Visitors Bureau, we will then attempt to create opportunities for visitors to the city to look forward to experiencing The Watertower.

The first category of our sales strategy is to establish and maintain a position with our primary constituents: intown Atlanta residents within a 4 mile radius of The Watertower’s location. We will depend upon keeping these people happy with our food and beverage products and entertainment options.

Our second strategy is to utilize the downtown hotel/convention business through developing and maintaining close relationships with the planners of upcoming conventions and their respective attendees in order to create a "private function/party" option for corporations visiting Atlanta during the early part of the week, as well as encouraging individual visits by conventioneers later in the week. This strategy will also target the many hotel concierges who are available to promote dining options located within two miles of downtown hotel venues.

Our third strategy targets the more than 500,000 visitors to the Martin Luther King National Historic Site. This segment provides mainly lunch business.

Fourth, the restaurant will target sales to downtown and midtown businesses (particularly law firms) for regular business lunch and dinner entertaining.

Locations & Facilities

The Watertower will be located in a newly renovated facility designed by the architectural firm of Richard Rauh & Associates, Atlanta, GA.

The facility’s perimeter will feature a simple garden and bocci courts which will provide comfortable waiting areas during the warm weather months.

Finally, an historic 200+ foot watertower forms the centerpiece of the grounds immediately adjacent to the proposed business. This watertower, constructed in 1906, features extraordinary cathedral-like interior space. It is our hope that our construction plans will support dramatic lighting of the tower after sundown, creating a rather visible nighttime landmark for northeast Atlanta.

The Watertower logo is protected by federal trademark laws. All of our menu creations will not necessarily have the same protections, however, when possible, popular "trade-names" will be protected. The business of The Watertower is not dependent upon process technology or patentable inventions.

Milestones & Metrics

Milestones table, ownership & structure.

The Watertower is a privately held limited liability corporation wholly owned by David N. Patton IV(80%) and the Historic District Development Corporation (20%).

Management Team

David N. Patton IV – Owner and General Manager:  Mr. Patton worked for 6 years as the Dean of Students for Emory University School of Law. While working at Emory, he was responsible for special event planning and catering, particularly related to student centered events. Mr. Patton is the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Historic District Development Corporation, an organization devoted to the redevelopment of the properties and neighborhood surrounding Atlanta’s Martin Luther King National Historic Site and Preservation District. He is also a member of the Advisory Board for the Atlanta Executive Network, a 1,000+ member business organization in Atlanta, and the past Chairman of the Board of Directors for Fulton County Court Appointed Special Advocates. Prior to his position at Emory, Mr. Patton worked as an attorney for a Cincinnati, Ohio-based law where he specialized in litigation and small business development. Mr. Patton received his law degree from the University of Georgia in 1991 and his undergraduate degree from Emory University in 1988. Mr. Patton put himself through college working in a casual dining establishment in the Virginia Highland neighborhood in the late 1980s.

The following potential managers are under consideration for employment

Nicolas Godebert – Chef:  Mr. Godebert is currently the Executive Chef of the Chanteclair Restaurant, St. Martin, F.W.I. He has been in this position since 1997. Prior to this appointment, he was the sous-chef at Dessirier Restaurant, Paris, France and the sous-chef for the Raphael Hotel Restaurant, Paris, France. He received his apprenticeship and cooking school certificate from the Sous l’Olivier Restaurant and the Ecole de Paris des Metiers de la Table in 1993, respectively.

Cristina Brito – Manager:  Ms. Brito, currently a food and beverage supervisor for the Westin Atlanta North hotel, received her start in the hotel and restaurant business in Recife-PE/ Brazil. At the Mar Hotel, she was responsible for the sales and marketing of a five-star establishment. She maintained extensive contact with corporate clients, thus requiring her to speak English, French, Italian, and Portuguese fluently. Ms. Brito has extensive experience in Atlanta’s catering industry dating from 1988, as well as experience as a chef.

Personnel Table

Financial plan investor-ready personnel plan .">, key assumptions.

The most important indicators in our case are are daily seating "counts" and weekly sales numbers. We must also make sure that we are turning our inventory rapidly so as to avoid food spoilage.

We must target net profit/sales figures toward the 14% level with gross margins around  45%. Marketing costs should never exceed three percent of sales. We will use Social Media Facebook Twitter and Instagram to reach to the community and listen to our customers while keeping the costs down. 

Revenue by Month

Expenses by month, net profit (or loss) by year, use of funds.

We will use the funds to: move into a space that has enough room for a restaurant and coffee service. renovation, buy all the equipment we need to set up, and decorate as well as train our people to give really good service. 

Sources of Funds

We plan on getting 180,000 dollars from two investors. We will also get a 30,000 dollar loan that will be paid off in 2 years. 

Projected Profit & Loss

Projected balance sheet, projected cash flow statement.

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How Much It Costs To Own A New Cafe? (6 Countries?)

If you’re dreaming of opening a coffee shop the first questions you’re probably asking yourself are: How much does it cost to open a coffee shop?

There’s no hard and fast answer on how much it costs to start a coffee shop. Your costs will depend upon the type of coffee shop you want to open, the costs of retail space in your community and many other variables.

How Much It Costs To Start A Cafe In USA?

Here are some ranges for the costs of opening various types of coffee businesses in USA:

• Coffee kiosk: $60,000 to $100,000
• Mobile coffee food truck: $50,000 to $100,000
• Coffee shop with seating: $80,000 to $250,000
• Coffee shop with seating and drive-thru: $80,000 to $275,000

If you already own a suitable building or have a complementary business such as a bakery, your costs might be much lower. If you want to add a brew bar to your coffee shop, add about $5,500 to $20,000 to your initial costs. In addition to start-up costs, you should have cash on hand to cover all of your operating expenses for the first six months.

Read the full article from  www.crimsoncup.com

Start-up Cost To Own A New Cafe In UK?

The lowest amount you could probably get away with is £20k. A big coffee shop on the high street could easily cost you £50k and of course, you could spend even more if you want to.

These are just rough estimates and there will be many more things to spend your money on but we hope it gives you a rough idea.

• £2,500 – £10,000 for espresso equipment
• £1,000 – £2,500 for dishwashers
• £1,000 – £2,000 for flooring
• £500 – £2,000 for ceiling
• £100 – £500 for painting
• £500+ general building work
• £500 – £3,000 for AC
• £250 – £1,000 for crockery
• £250 – £2,000 for a till
• £500 – £1,500 for accountancy
• £500 – £2,000 for a solicitor
• £500 – £1,500 for insurance
• £1,000 – £3,000 for initial stock
• £100 – £2,000 for signs and marketing
• plus working capital, deposit, rent, rates, planning applications, change of use, professional advice etc etc

Read the full article from  www.howtostartacoffeeshop.co.uk

Starting Your Own Coffee Shop: Opening & Running a Successful Coffee Business

How much it costs to start a cafe in singapore.

To start a decent cafe in Singapore, we are looking at a minimum sum of S$120,000 to S$150,000. The amount can vary quite a bit depending on the scale of your cafe. Some cafe owners spent S$120,000 while there are others who pumped in more than S$250,000.

The odds are very much stacked against independents who do not have sufficient financial capital and liquidity, the proper experience of running an F&B establishment, bargaining power, as well as the right connections to sustain their businesses. Moreover, many new hipster cafes are too often more hype than substance by focusing too much on the aesthetics and miscellaneous furbishing instead of working on the more important factors like food and service.

Read the full article from  www.ladyironchef.com

A Cafe Startup cost In Malaysia

First things first, you have to be financially secure to start a cafe. Investing in a cafe business will cost you at least RM500,000 to RM600,000 to cover your location rental, deposit, labour costs, equipment and supplies, amongst many other things.

That’s not all. Competition in the cafe and F&B industry is quite high these days so the chances are, you may not be making a lot of money starting out.

Read the full article from  says.com

How to Start a Cafe Plus Business Plan

• Everything you Need to Know About Starting a Cafe.
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• 9 Chapter Business Plan (MS Word) - Full Industry Research - Included In the Guide!
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How Much It Costs To Start A Cafe In Australia?

Starting up your business in Australia is a big investment, and needs to be taken very seriously. Besides the existing competitions between surrounding cafes (more than a thousand in Brisbane alone) and budgeting for land space, there are many more factors which can alter the cost needed.

That being said, all costs are still depending on individual cafes (as all cafes are special and unique), but the basic expenses are still more or less the same. To have a better overview, below is a list of main expenses, broken down to stages.

The total cost will round up to approximately 200k to 500k, so plan, plan, and plan again for your business!

Read the full article from  surpass.com.au

Start-up Costs For A Small Café In Japan

Here is the information to start a small cafe in Tokyo:

• 8-seater café in Meguro-ku with 2 staff, took 15,000,000 JPY in start-up costs (about $185,000 / £119,000). Monthly sales goal of 2,000,000 JPY ($25,000/£16,000), with current estimated sales at 680,000 JPY ($8,500/£5,300).
• Café with 20-seats in Setagaya-ku, 4 staff. 10,000,000 JPY cost at start-up ($125,000/ £79,000). Monthly sales goal 1,800,000 JPY ($22,600/£14,000), current estimated sales of 1,512,000 JPY ($19,000/£12,000).
• Café in Ishikawa prefecture with 28-seats and 2 staff took 8,000,000 JPY to get started ($100,000/ £63,000). No monthly goal stated, but current estimated sales of 600,000 JPY ($7,500/£4,700).

Read the full article from  alittleshopintokyo.blogspot.my

Think Twice Before Starting A Cafe

As you can see, there is no a fixed cost to start a new cafe but it is quite hard to own a cafe no matter where you are!

If you still consider starting a cafe business, we highly recommend you to read our article on  What You Need To Know To Start A Coffee Shop?

8 Things To Learn From John Letoto About WBC ?

Black Coffee ☕ Americano vs Long Black

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Money blog: A third of people make this mistake when booking their holiday - and how to avoid it

A third of travellers are making the same mistake when going on holiday, figures show. Read about this and all the latest consumer and personal finance news in the Money blog - and leave a comment or your money problem in the box below.

Thursday 16 May 2024 10:30, UK

• Almost a third of travellers make this insurance mistake - here's what you need to know
• How much the price of packed lunches has soared - and the cheapest supermarkets to buy a healthy one
• Major firms release financial updates
• UK economy in safe hands 'whoever wins' election, top bank chief tells Sky News

Essential reads

• How much do buskers actually make - and what's it like?
• The best bank accounts for your kids
• Basically...  What is PIP - and what could government changes mean?
• How to make sure your car passes its MOT
• Cheap Eats:  Michelin-star chef reveals his top steals in London - including an unbeatable sub sandwich
• Money Problem: My workplace wants to pay us by the minute - what can I do?
• Best of the Money blog - an archive

Ask a question or make a comment

Tesco has recalled its sandwich pickle over fears it may contain glass.

The supermarket has pulled its 295g jars of Tesco Sandwich Pickle with the batch code 3254 and best before date of 11 September 2025 due to the concerns of glass traces.

The Food Standards Agency has said on its website: "This product may contain pieces of glass which makes it unsafe to eat."

Last year, the supermarket chain had to recall pastry products, including sausage rolls and steak and ale pies, over fears they contained pieces of metal and plastic.

A Tesco spokesperson told Sky News: "We've been made aware that a specific date/batch code of Tesco Sandwich Pickle may contain small pieces of glass. Therefore, this product could pose a safety risk if consumed.

"Please do not consume this product and instead return any affected product to store where a full refund will be given. No receipt is required.

"Tesco apologises to our customers for any inconvenience caused."

By Ed Clowes, news reporter

The FTSE 100 has remained stable out of the gate this morning after hitting a record high on Wednesday as better-than-expected inflation data in the US raised hopes of an interest rate cut in September.

It's been a busy start to the day with financial updates from BT Group, Premier Foods, Sage Group, and easyJet.

We'll start with easyJet, after the airline announced that its chief executive officer, Johan Lundgren, would step down in January 2025.

Mr Lundgren, who has served as CEO since 2017, will be replaced by the carrier's finance boss Kenton Jarvis.

In a financial update on its performance throughout the first half of the year, easyJet reported slightly higher revenues than anticipated, while cutting its losses compared to the same period last year.

The airline's share price fell by 6% in early trading this morning.

Elsewhere, telecoms giant BT said it had completed a £3bn cost-cutting programme ahead of schedule, and announced a further £3bn in planned savings by 2029.

The company told Sky News that the planned reductions in spending would not lead to more job losses, after BT announced last year that it would eliminate 55,000 roles.

Incoming boss Allison Kirkby said she wanted the business to prioritise the UK, with some analysts expecting BT to look at the futures of its Italian, Irish, and American divisions.

And last but not least, one of Europe's largest sellers of Rolex watches has said that sales in the UK are still down because some tourists don't want to buy here "due to the lack of VAT free shopping".

Nice for some.

The price of a healthy packed lunch has soared by around 45%, according to new research.

A lunch of wholemeal bread and fruit is more expensive for parents to put together than less nutritious versions with chocolate spread and crisps, The Food Foundation charity has found.

Unhealthy lunches for the research were made up of white bread with chocolate spread instead of wholemeal with cheese, flavoured yoghurt rather than a plain, unsweetened version and snacks such as crisps as opposed to the four portions of fruit and vegetables incorporated into the healthy lunch.

And when it came to the cheapest supermarket to buy a healthy packed lunch, Tesco topped the list with a weekly cost of £8.56 as of this month.

Morrisons was the most expensive retailer, with the price of a healthy packed lunch per week coming in at £11.72, although this was down slightly from £11.80 in October.

The equivalent cost at Sainsbury's was £10.47, Aldi was £10.08 and Asda was £9.18.

Research also showed the largest price rise in recent months was at Sainsbury's, where customers have to spend 9% more than they did at the start of the academic year in September (£9.61) for the same packed lunch.

Shona Goudie, policy and advocacy manager at The Food Foundation, said, the government's stringent eligibility criteria to qualify for free school meals was "leaving hundreds of thousands of children" who are living in poverty "at risk of malnutrition".

"No one should be priced out of being able to provide healthy food for their children and retailers need to do more to support families to afford the food they need," she said.

By Bhvishya Patel , Money team

We spoke to three buskers to find out what it's like performing on the street in the UK.

Amir, 29, came to UK from Pakistan with passion for music

Amir Hashmi moved to the UK in 2022 to study, said he began busking in central London 10 months ago because "music was his passion".

"In Pakistan there are many problems so I decided to leave and move to London. I feel I can do better in London than my country," he said.

He said busking was now his primary income but at times he did jobs at warehouses to get by.

"I never started this for money, I started because it is my passion but now this is my main job as well," he said.

Amir, who often performs in the capital's Piccadilly Circus or along Oxford Street, said often he returned home with just £10-15 in his pocket after a day's busking.

He said: "Many times I sleep without food and sometimes I sleep on the floor of the road when I have no shelter.

"I don't have my own place to live but I have friends who often let me stay with them. They don't charge me any rent - they look after me.

"Sometimes I do private shows for income but it's very hard because the cost of living is increasing. If I go somewhere then most of the time I prefer to walk. I walk with my speakers and carry my gear."

Despite his financial struggles, Amir said he wanted to continue performing on the street as his "goal was to make people happy".

He said: "With busking, there is no stage and you can just start performing. Whenever I am performing, I connect with the people who have come to listen. If I feel people are not enjoying it, I change the song and try and make them happy."

Earlier this year, Amir recorded a song with Neha Nazneen Shakil, a Malayalam actress from India, who approached the singer three months ago in Oxford Street.

"I wrote that song 12 years ago and after all these years my song has been recorded now in London," he added.

Jade, 24, quit retail to busk

Jade Thornton, from Amersham, started busking in 2017 with a friend after leaving college at the age of 17 and quickly realised it was something she enjoyed doing and could make a living from.

She began doing it full-time at the end of 2018 but when the pandemic hit she described becoming "unemployed overnight" and having to take up retail jobs to support herself.

"I chose not to go to university - I just thought it wasn't for me so I went straight into some part-time retail jobs," she said.

"I take my cap off to anyone who does retail - it is one of the most gruelling jobs. People who do retail don't get nearly as much respect as they deserve. 

"Some of the customers I was facing were not that kind and I thought this is making me miserable, so I just thought 'if I don't leave now then when?'"

As the global economy slowly began to recover, she decided to leave retail and pursue music full-time in 2022.

"It is hard to switch off - I do busking but I am constantly messaging clients, writing set lists and learning songs," she said.

When it came to finances, Jade said there was no average to how much she could earn but it could fluctuate from £15-100 day-to-day depending on a number of factors.

"It relies on the time of month, whether the sun is out, if people have been paid, if Christmas is on the way or if Christmas has just passed," she explained.

The musician said she did struggle initially when she began busking but her parents were always supportive.

She said: "You obviously get a few questions from people asking 'are you sure you want to quit your job and sing on the street?'

"I lived at home for a long time and I'm grateful my parents could support me in that way because I know not everyone has that opportunity."

While performing outdoors is now Jade's full-time job, she said some months were more difficult to make money than others.

"If I'm being brutally honest in months like January and February it would be super difficult. This year I had enough gigs in December to cover me for January," she said.

"Last year from June-July and December I did not have to go busking because I got so many gigs through busking. I'm part of a lot of online agencies and I also do lots of pub gigs, weddings, birthdays and other events."

Jade noted though that the cost of living crisis had made things harder.

She said: "A few pub gigs I've had have been cancelled because they've had to rethink their strategies but if somebody cancels then I can just go out busking. There has been a slight dent when it comes to finances but that's from COVID as well - with COVID I was unemployed overnight."

The young musician went on to say she was "very grateful" when somebody did tip her and even small gestures like sitting, listening or just a smile were "currencies in themselves".

"It's escapism for me as a singer and then it's escapism for the audience as well," she added.

"Children also have such a great time listening to buskers and some may not have an opportunity for many reasons to go and see live music so if they can come across it in the street and that can spark something that's a wonderful thing to think I'm a little part of that."

Charlotte, 34, long-time busker

Charlotte Campbell, 34, who usually busks along the Southbank or in the London Underground, said she started busking during the 2012 London Olympics and while "busking used to be enough", more recently she has had to take on more gigs in the evening.

"A typical day is usually busking until around 6pm and then a gig in the evening - 8pm onwards," she said.

"I could still probably make a living from busking but I've taken on more paid gigs since the pandemic because everything became so uncertain. I think that uncertainty has just carried through now - that seems to be the way of life now."

The musician said tips for her CDs, which she puts on display during her performances, ranged between £5-10 and in the current cashless climate a card reader was "essential".

She said she pre-sets her card reader to £3 when playing on the Southbank and £2 when busking inside the London Underground "because people are rushing".

While she described her earnings as a "trade secret", she said the busker income had "definitely gone down" but this was due to a few factors - the pandemic, people carrying less cash and the cost of living crisis.

"Also, a lots of pitches have closed which means there are a lot more buskers trying to compete for one spot so all of those things have impacted my living as a busker," she said.

"I would say even though my income is primarily from busking I have had to subsidise it with more paid gigs than before. I just haven't felt as secure in my living from busking in the last couple of years.

"Most of the gigs I have are booked by people who have seen me busking so indirectly busking is my entire career- if I don't busk I wouldn't get the gigs I play in the evening. So directly and indirectly busking is my entire income."

In spite of uncertainty, she said it was freeing to be able to go out and perform for people in an intimate way.

"You are not up on a stage and there is no separation between you and them.  It's a really great connection you can make - I want to be able to hold onto that," she added.

Every Thursday  Savings Champion founder Anna Bowes  gives us an insight into the savings market and how to make the most of your money. Today she's focusing on children's accounts...

While the rates on adult savings accounts have risen and fallen over the course of 2024, the top rates on accounts for children have remained stable - but are pretty competitive once again, as other account rates have started to fall. 

And there are plenty of different types of savings accounts to choose from, from the tax free Junior ISA, to children's regular savings accounts, fixed term bonds and easy access accounts.

Those who are able to start saving for their children early, could significantly improve their financial health in the future – especially when taking compounding interest into consideration.

If you were to save £50 a month from birth, you could give them a gift of more than £17,250 at age 18, assuming a tax-free interest rate of 4.95% - which is currently the top Junior ISA rate available.

If you, your friends and family were able to gift a total of £9,000 a year to a child (the current Junior ISA allowance), at the same rate, you could give them almost £265,000 when they reach 18. 

Now that's a gift worth having!

Children have their own personal allowance, so for the majority there will be no tax to pay on their savings interest. 

However, parents should be aware that there may be a tax liability to themselves on the interest earned on any money they gift to their children, until they reach the age of 18. 

If the gross interest earned is less than £100 for each parent's gift, it will be treated as the child’s under a 'de minimis' rule. 

This means that provided the interest earned does not make the child a taxpayer, they will be able to offset this against their personal tax allowance, so it will often be free of tax. 

But if the interest is more than £100 for each parent's gift, then it will be treated as that parent’s interest for tax purposes and therefore they may need to pay tax at their marginal rate - if it takes them above their Personal Allowance and/or Personal Savings Allowance.

Gifts from any other family members or friends will not be viewed in the same way. Instead, any interest earned will be treated as belonging to the child themselves and therefore can be earned tax free if they are non-taxpayers.

The exception to this rule is on funds deposited into a JISA, Child Trust Fund or NS&I Premium Bonds.  The returns from these are tax free for all.

Almost a third of people are making the mistake of buying their travel insurance on the day of their trip, data from Go Compare has shown.

The figures found that just 17% of people took out their policy within six months of their holiday.

While you can buy travel insurance right up until the moment you leave the UK, doing so risks some key areas being missed off your cover.

Go Compare's Rhys Jones says it can result in cancellation cover not being included, and this is one of the main reasons people claim on their insurance policy. 

Pre-existing conditions might be missed off as well. 

"If you have a pre-existing condition that could flare up and cause complications, a last-minute travel insurance policy may not cover it," he said. 

"So while you can buy insurance right up until the moment you travel, it's often best to get it earlier so that you have more options and more cover available." 

If you are looking to buy travel insurance while you're already abroad, you may have to purchase a specialist post-departure travel insurance policy instead. 

This type of cover is only available from a few companies, so there are fewer options available, and they are generally more expensive. 

It's also worth noting that if you do buy this policy, you may have to wait 24, 48 or 72 hours before it begins. 

Rhys recommends organising your insurance as soon as you have booked your trip, saying it "could save you considerable money and stress". 

A record 3.1 million emergency food parcels have been handed out in just a year, according to a charity.

The Trussell Trust says 3,121,404 were distributed by its network of 1,300 food banks in the year to the end of March.

Some 1,144,096 were for children and nearly two million for adults. The total is nearly double that of five years ago.

The number of parcels given out during the 12 months to March 2023 was just under three million.

You can read more here...

Nearly 40% of money laundering around the world is flowing through London, overseas territories and crown dependencies, the deputy foreign minister has said.

In a speech at the Bright Blue thinktank, Andrew Mitchell said the dirty money was passing through the capital and that "crown dependencies and the overseas territories have not yet done as much as they must do", The Guardian reports.

"If these overseas territories and crown dependencies want to have our king and our flag, then they must also accept our values, which is why we are so intent on ensuring dirty money cannot flow in and from there," he said.

The comments come a month after Mr Mitchell promised to work with the international community to tackle illicit flows of money "through increased transparency of company ownership".   

Feel like you've been on hold to the taxman for hours? You're not alone.

Customers spent around seven million hours collectively waiting to speak to HMRC in 2022/23, the spending watchdog has revealed.

That's more than double the time spent waiting in 2019/20, which was around 3.2 million hours.

It's the equivalent of 798 years.

Once answered, calls more than doubled to over 23 minutes in 20022/23, up from just over 11 minutes.

Advisers also answered 22% fewer calls.

HMRC's strategy is to encourage customers to turn to its digital services first - but it is not clear how far and fast digital services will reduce demand for telephone and correspondence services, the National Audit Office said.

And the move to digital services has not eased pressure on traditional services as much as HMRC expected.

Gareth Davies, head of the NAO, said: "HMRC's telephone and correspondence services have been below its target service levels for too long.

"While many of its digital services work well, they have not made enough of a difference to customers, some of whom have been caught in a declining spiral of service pressures and cuts. HMRC has also not achieved planned efficiencies.

"HMRC must allow more time for these services to bed in and understand the difference they make before adjusting staffing levels."

New York has topped the list when it comes to the world's wealthiest cities, with 349,500 millionaires and 60 billionaires. 

In its latest report,  Henley & Partners  found the Big Apple's millionaire population has surged by 48% in the past decade.

And San Francisco came in second place, with 305,700 millionaires and 68 billionaires.

Meanwhile, Tokyo has seen its millionaire population declining by 5% to 298,300 people.

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Byzantium Restaurant

Ratings and reviews

Location and contact.

We visited the restaurant three times and each time we were so excited by the incredibly friendly reception of the owner and the owner! The food was always fantastic, served like mom's at home, but cooked very professionally. The environment is tastefully and cosily furnished... and looking at the kitchen, it is clear that the hygiene is at a high level. I recommend the restaurant for breakfast, lunch, but also for a gala dinner. The owners also met our wishes outside the usual assortment of the restaurant. We will definitely not miss this business on our next visit to London! More

We were Chicagoans spending Christmas in London on 12.25.2021. As Greek Orthodox Christians we went to the Greek Orthodox cathedral on Christmas morning. After liturgy, we walked down the street and spotted this gem of a Greek bakery!!! We went inside to buy some traditional... Greek pastries including melomakarona and kourambie and we were delighted! So delicious. The shop is newly renovated and beautiful. Equally inviting are the new owners, husband and wife Kaloudis and Kyriaki who had just opened three weeks prior. This bakery is a gem offering everything from traditional Greek pastries to home cooked delicious meals including vegan options. I highly recommend Byzantium. More

The moment you enter this charming little restaurant/cafe/shop you feel like being on holiday on a Greek island. The most delicious Greek home cooking style dishes served in a most pleasant atmosphere. The best Moussaka in London. Great vegetarian dishes too. Beef and pork meals... cooked to perfection. Most dishes are for take away as well. Great service. Always very friendly staff. Such a gem in this area! More

Most of the food was available as "family style" dishes, where you could take a half order (sufficient to share between 2-3) or a full order (sufficient to share between 4-5). We were a family of 4 and tried two half orders, one with beef,... vegetables and potatoes and one with beans and vegetables. Both were delicious. There were many vegetarian and meat options available and it seems like they change regularly. You can also purchase individual greek salads and there were some other options for single diners. The cafe has a couple of large tables inside and some smaller tables outside. It is beautifully decorated and you really do feel like you are eating home cooking. Service was quick and friendly. Highly recommended. More

I certainly used to be someone who thought to know what greek food tasted like. That was until I discovered with family, this restaurant Byzantium, Moscow Rd, Hyde Park. The restaurant has an unusual look, seen from the streetside. Once inside, warm atmosphere all over... the place, authentic kindness, and than… the most surprising part of the experience is the very exceptional cooking art of the chef ! Ways of serving and cooking I did not associate with greek life style. Plates served by a very friendly greek lady. We were all very happy with this discovery. There is really no reason to hesitate. Just go ! More

Food is superb. Lovely atmosphete. Friendly staff. Greek family running the restaurant make you feel very welcome. You will not regret having a meal here. Also try some of the lovely Greek wines.

We visited this restaurant many times during our stay in London. Breakfast and lunch dishes were delicious. It is beautifully decorated, and everyone at the restaurant were sooooooo nice, warm, and welcoming. It is a little gem just around the corner from Bayswater underground station.

Such an improvement from the old Bynantium. The food is delicious, the service great and the place is lovely inside and out. One of the best places for Greek food. Highly recommend it!!

a true delight… inviting ambiance… the menu featured a wide variety of traditional Greek delicacies with aromatic dressing… loved it!

Cool setting and athmospere, but somehow remanding modern Greece. They offer take away too. You can enjoy breakfast or lunch as well as dinner, choosing frome salads, pies, pastries and cakes and daily specials. These ones are not divided by portions, but only by trays,... so you can enjoy them only if you're two or three. We ate slow cooked beef with mash. The beef was good, even if it seemed more a Piedmont brasato than a greek stifado, but we didn't like mashed potatoes, because there was too much nutmeg for us. Anyway we found quite high quality, quite low prices and absolute kindness. Would go here again! More

This cafe had beautiful style and made me feel very welcomed. The employees were extremely lovely, I especially loved the delicious coffee and food. I can’t wait to go back very soon!

BYZANTIUM RESTAURANT, London - Notting Hill - Restaurant Reviews, Photos & Reservations - Tripadvisor

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Anti-cafés: The Russian phenomenon taking the UK by storm

You know the feeling - you walk into a café, order a cappuccino, and as you open up your laptop and ask for the WiFi code, you briefly catch a discerning look on the manager’s face. After an hour of slow sipping, you’re asked: “Can I get you anything else?”

Feel uneasy yet? Enter the anti-café: a unique Russian concept where everything, including coffee and nibbles, is free. You just pay for the time you spend there. We look at why the idea is catching on in the UK and Ireland.

Cafés re-imagined by Russian youth

While the concept of the anti-café is novel for most Brits, these hangouts have for some time already been ten a penny in the Russian capital. In 2012, trendsetter Ivan Mitin opened Ziferblat (Russian for ‘clock face’) as a place for customers to “become themselves”. Since then, over 200 similar joints have sprung up around the country, with varying degrees of eccentricity (one even offers its customers the chance to relax alongside owls).

The core idea is simple: you eat what you want, drink all the coffee your veins can take, relax or work (it’s up to you), and pay for the pleasure by the minute. Since both the customer and owner benefit from you spending longer there, it redefines the structure of the typical café by providing a more welcoming approach to service. In fact, it uses the title of “café” very loosely, as the focus is usually more on the use of space than on the quality of the coffee, which is often from a jar. As Ziferblat branch owner Colin Shenton said, “It’s more an experience in human nature than in coffee.” Coffee snobs, beware!

Ziferblat, London

In Russia, the appeal for the anti-café comes from student culture, as twenty-something members of the intelligentsia living in “obshagas” (Russian student dormitories) tend to be situated deep in the suburbs of their cities, therefore needing a kind of home-away-from-home when visiting the city center. As a result, anti-cafés tend to feel more like house parties than cafés. Although some joints, such as Moscow’s Rabochaya Stantsia (Work Station) are more populated by stressed-out looking groups of MacBook owners, you’re more likely to find shisha smoking, poetry slams and Wii Golf tournaments in the average Russian anti-café. “I always go there to work, but end up seeing a load of people I know and playing [PlayStation soccer game] FIFA instead,” explains Pyotr, a student at Moscow’s Higher School of Economics.

Culture Clash

Ziferblat first came to the UK only a year after opening in Moscow, cutting the ribbon for its café in Shoreditch, London in 2013. Financially, the venture has been successful and has led to branches opening in Liverpool and Manchester. Ziferblat’s acclaim has also inspired copycat anti-cafés, such as Tempo in Aberdeen.

However, this has not been without its fair share of difficulties for Ziferblat, as the tendency to shy away from collectivist culture in the UK has forced Mitin to alter his business model, instead opting to target his business towards young professionals. The London branch, for example, is undeniably more professional than its Moscow counterparts: In spite of the laid-back, rustic interior, you’re much more likely to see the afternoon clientele huddled over their iPads than playing the guitar. Even in the Manchester outlet of Ziferblat, situated in the hipster paradise of the Northern Quarter, the customers’ priorities are clearly a far cry from the anti-café’s original de-stressing conception: “To be honest, I like the pay-per-minute aspect because it makes me work faster,” Molly, a Manchester-based writer, tells us.

To find a more socially oriented atmosphere reminiscent of the open Russian model, it might be worth traveling across the water. Dublin’s The Clockwork Door, which opened in 2016, operates on a system of six separate rooms such as a “study room” and a “games room” for workers and 'unwinders' to create their own isolated environments. “It’s more of a venue,” owner Ciaran Hogan says. “We have co-working spaces, but it was originally intended to be a social, city-center alternative to a pub or café. Most customers come in the evening, when we have gigs and other events.”

The Clockwork Door, Dublin

Although the anti-café’s shift westwards has somewhat diluted its collectivist roots, the very Russian sense of comfort around others in confined spaces has clearly struck a chord with Brits tired of the social barriers found to modern cafés, which often no longer feel like the welcoming public spaces they should. Watch this space: the anti-café is unlikely to stop bringing Brits together.

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