Best time to open a coffee shop - Barista Exchange2024-03-29T11:56:03Zhttps://www.baristaexchange.com/forum/topics/best-time-to-open-a-coffee?commentId=1688216%3AComment%3A462203&feed=yes&xn_auth=noWorst I image is Jan Feb when…tag:www.baristaexchange.com,2009-05-17:1688216:Comment:4683832009-05-17T19:05:19.101ZDenise Smithhttps://www.baristaexchange.com/profile/DeniseSmith
Worst I image is Jan Feb when budgets are the tightest after Christmas and it's cold and miserable outside... I like to hibernate between New year and Valentine's Day. If you will have cold beverages of gelato as well as your coffee drinks spring summer could be good.<br />
Any food offerings or are you a coffee only kind of place? What is your target market... old, young, teen , college? each have there own quirks. Learn your market and what their habits are. It's like gardening you look through all…
Worst I image is Jan Feb when budgets are the tightest after Christmas and it's cold and miserable outside... I like to hibernate between New year and Valentine's Day. If you will have cold beverages of gelato as well as your coffee drinks spring summer could be good.<br />
Any food offerings or are you a coffee only kind of place? What is your target market... old, young, teen , college? each have there own quirks. Learn your market and what their habits are. It's like gardening you look through all the catalogs, draw out sketches and make plans but ultimately it comes down to where you get your plants (equipment) from, do you have a green thumb (do you know what your doing) and will your soil even grow anything ( is their a customer base that will grow)?<br />
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Just because you love to watch the gardening shows on TV doesn't mean you can garden...<br />
Just because a person loves coffee doesn't mean they run and operate a coffee house.<br />
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I spend more time on schedules, paperwork, banking and legal stuff then I do anything else. I fill in with the food orders and have had no time to perfect my barista skills. I only get to cook or bake in my own kitchen once a week because I'm too busy running the business.<br />
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Know the scope of your dream. Be prepared to change it as it grows and changes. Plan ahead and have a business plan!!! ANd that budget you worked so hard on... triple it... at least! I think that if you can affor…tag:www.baristaexchange.com,2009-05-12:1688216:Comment:4627862009-05-12T12:57:00.965ZJesse -D->https://www.baristaexchange.com/profile/JesseDarrow
I think that if you can afford to there are advantages to opening in a slower time. Mark made a great point about first impressions, and no matter how good you are you will make mistakes and changes in the beginning. If you open in a slower time of year, then you can fine tune your operations and really be on top of your game when your first "busy season"hits rather than just jumping into the fire.
I think that if you can afford to there are advantages to opening in a slower time. Mark made a great point about first impressions, and no matter how good you are you will make mistakes and changes in the beginning. If you open in a slower time of year, then you can fine tune your operations and really be on top of your game when your first "busy season"hits rather than just jumping into the fire. Oh, but how charming is your…tag:www.baristaexchange.com,2009-05-11:1688216:Comment:4622032009-05-11T21:53:19.572Zteresa pilarzhttps://www.baristaexchange.com/profile/teresa98
Oh, but how charming is your place!! Judging by the photo, you did well. I'd still say it's better to get out of the box running than to be dead in the water from Day 1. Hope it's working out well for you.<br />
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<cite>CoffeeLady said:</cite><blockquote cite="http://www.baristaexchange.com/forum/topics/best-time-to-open-a-coffee#1688216Comment462194"><div>Definitely not 4th of July weekend, in heavily populated coastal village running ramped with tourists - as we crazy fools did!</div>
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Oh, but how charming is your place!! Judging by the photo, you did well. I'd still say it's better to get out of the box running than to be dead in the water from Day 1. Hope it's working out well for you.<br />
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<cite>CoffeeLady said:</cite><blockquote cite="http://www.baristaexchange.com/forum/topics/best-time-to-open-a-coffee#1688216Comment462194"><div>Definitely not 4th of July weekend, in heavily populated coastal village running ramped with tourists - as we crazy fools did!</div>
</blockquote> Definitely not 4th of July we…tag:www.baristaexchange.com,2009-05-11:1688216:Comment:4621942009-05-11T21:45:51.130ZThe Village Beanhttps://www.baristaexchange.com/profile/coffeelady
Definitely not 4th of July weekend, in heavily populated coastal village running ramped with tourists - as we crazy fools did!
Definitely not 4th of July weekend, in heavily populated coastal village running ramped with tourists - as we crazy fools did! Now.tag:www.baristaexchange.com,2009-05-08:1688216:Comment:4601802009-05-08T23:52:14.441ZThe Barista Formerly Known As JavaJhttps://www.baristaexchange.com/profile/JValenta
Now.
Now. Thanks for the great feedback…tag:www.baristaexchange.com,2009-05-08:1688216:Comment:4600622009-05-08T22:02:49.705Zteresa pilarzhttps://www.baristaexchange.com/profile/teresa98
Thanks for the great feedback, people...and to the much appreciated humor, Nick!
Thanks for the great feedback, people...and to the much appreciated humor, Nick! The best time to open is in t…tag:www.baristaexchange.com,2009-05-08:1688216:Comment:4600242009-05-08T21:14:00.261ZNick Chohttps://www.baristaexchange.com/profile/NickCho
The best time to open is in the morning.<br />
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(sorry)
The best time to open is in the morning.<br />
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(sorry) In my opinion the best time t…tag:www.baristaexchange.com,2009-05-08:1688216:Comment:4599902009-05-08T20:23:54.692ZChrishttps://www.baristaexchange.com/profile/Chris24
In my opinion the best time to open has very little to do with the time of year. It really has a lot more to do with how much money you have to keep the doors open until you figure out what it takes to at least break even at the end of the month. We opened our shop last September in a small mountain town in southern California. Most of the other business owners here in town thought that it was both a good time to open and also a bad time. We felt we would have an instant following because we…
In my opinion the best time to open has very little to do with the time of year. It really has a lot more to do with how much money you have to keep the doors open until you figure out what it takes to at least break even at the end of the month. We opened our shop last September in a small mountain town in southern California. Most of the other business owners here in town thought that it was both a good time to open and also a bad time. We felt we would have an instant following because we were opening up in a good location in the middle of town where another coffee shop had recently closed. I will say that you should use your local economy as a gauge, so that you you have a good idea of what to expect throughout the whole year. Also remember that the coffee biz doesn't always follow the retail norms. January through March can often be painfully slow, I think mainly because most folks are trying to recover from the Holiday spending season. What ever you do give yourself and you staff time to get comfortable before the busiest time of your year. When you are 100% ready. Only…tag:www.baristaexchange.com,2009-05-08:1688216:Comment:4598682009-05-08T18:33:16.838ZMarkhttps://www.baristaexchange.com/profile/Mark28
When you are 100% ready. Only 1 chance to make a first impression
When you are 100% ready. Only 1 chance to make a first impression Quite a number of shops repor…tag:www.baristaexchange.com,2009-05-08:1688216:Comment:4597402009-05-08T16:25:37.604ZJay Caragayhttps://www.baristaexchange.com/profile/JayCaragay
Quite a number of shops report a slowing of business during the hot summer months. There definitely is a lull in business Jan-Feb. And if you want to take advantage of the Christmas season, then it's best to be open by Oct.<br />
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Otherwise, the "best" time to open is whenever you actually can open. But if you're doing your planning, figure out how much it will cost to operate and see if you can raise the capital to support the shop for a year or two. That will give you time to get in the groove and…
Quite a number of shops report a slowing of business during the hot summer months. There definitely is a lull in business Jan-Feb. And if you want to take advantage of the Christmas season, then it's best to be open by Oct.<br />
<br />
Otherwise, the "best" time to open is whenever you actually can open. But if you're doing your planning, figure out how much it will cost to operate and see if you can raise the capital to support the shop for a year or two. That will give you time to get in the groove and get things rolling.