Shop Design Inspiration
I am just beginning to draw a mental picture of the general look and feel of the coffee shop I'd like to create.
I was wondering what has inspired owners/baristas of existing shops when sitting down to put what they envisioned on paper and overseeing the creation of that vision? Or if you had to do it all over again, what would you change?
Do you prefer marble to wood floors? Laminates to standard table tops? A deep green to a brown color theme?
Also, what kind(s) of assistance did you hire/recruit? Did you use an architect, a consultant, general contractors?
I was wondering what has inspired owners/baristas of existing shops when sitting down to put what they envisioned on paper and overseeing the creation of that vision? Or if you had to do it all over again, what would you change?
Do you prefer marble to wood floors? Laminates to standard table tops? A deep green to a brown color theme?
Also, what kind(s) of assistance did you hire/recruit? Did you use an architect, a consultant, general contractors?
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Jay Caragay on
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Over the years, I've built several facilities (five, to be exact) and each one was different.
It may sound hokey, but I like to let the space talk to me about what it wants to be. Unless you're talking about an eggshell, cookie-cutter, suburban strip shopping center kind of place, then chances are that the space you end up with may be quite a bit different than the one you're envisioning now.
For the place we're opening next month, I also let the space talk to me. I literally would sit there for hours in the space imagining what might be possible. One feature of the building was that it had a feeling that strongly reminded me of the mom and pop shops I saw in Paris - and the idea of a Parisian-style cafe came to mind. I liked that feeling and wanted to capitalize on it while still maintaining the vision I was developing for the space.
A strong influence in the design of the new place came from The French Laundry. I wanted a space without the usual coffeehouse trappings that detract and take away from the coffee. I wanted the focus of our customers to be on the coffee. Thus, neutral colors became a major player. In order to evoke a classic feel, I specified traditional style cabinetwork on the original 1920s pine floors.
But to keep it modern, we kept with halogen lighting and simplistic display shelving in the same mahogany as the cabinets. Counters are currently specified with either uba tuba dark granite or custom stainless steel.
Again, I let the space dictate the design. Marble or wood? That depends on the effect I'm going for. Laminates or others? I've seen executions of both that were stunning (and many that were stunning for the wrong reasons).
One thing I wanted to stay away from with the new space are the coffeehouse cliches. Remnant or mismatched furniture, the bohemian flophouse look, the art space look, Starbucks colors, greens and browns were out - as were dark walnut millwork.
I also made the mistake of bringing in an interior designer in the early stages. My logic was sound: I wanted a designer to bring a fresh perspective to what I wanted. The problem was that he delivered everything we had agreed to avoid. When the first deliverable arrived with his plans for the design, I immediately recognized the colors and design features as "starbucks." In fact, I even went to my local Starbucks stores to be sure that I was right and take photos of the colors he was "suggesting."
On top of all that, this designer with restaurant experience was suggesting workstations with 18" walkways. Eighteen inches? WTF? That was one of the first details I picked up on. I was livid. Code is 30". His argument? the baristas won't have to leave their stations once they get in. I can't describe how livid I was.
But, I only knew it wouldn't work because I have experience in the field. Which is why I encourage you to gain experience in the field first. That way you won't get taken for a ride when it comes to consultants, designers, architects, contractors, etc. Actually, you'll probably still get taken for a ride, but at least you'll know what to push for, when to say No and, most importantly, when to be a complete and total bastard about something.
It's important to have that field experience because then you'll know exactly how you want your bar to be set up. You'll understand placement better, where everything needs to be and more. The weird thing though from my perspective is that most of these current-day barista cum designers don't seem to consider the details - like placement of refrigeration or dipwells or drip trays, or just about any detail that can help make the baristas' job a bit smoother.
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Permalink Reply by Mike McGinness on
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Listen to Jay's excellent advice. Experience is invaluable. Currently I'm in the finishing stages of my second location build out. Having purchased and running a previously layed out existing establishment two+ years ago help immensely. (plus previously worked at others and visited and observed many others) As much on how not to lay this space out as how to lay it out.
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Permalink Reply by Simon Ouderkirk on
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I can't support Jay strongly enough on this: having an awareness of how a barista's work is done is invaluable when designing the work area of a coffee shop. A poorly-designed bar area can spread havoc on your drink efficiency, and (I suspect) quality. Having in mind a process (get the cup, grind, groom, pull, dress the cup, foam, assembly, hand-off) will aid you in this part of the design. This is a place where people will be doing a very specific kind of work, and should be designed with that in the forefront.
While I've never been to a Parisian cafe (yet!), I have to pick on you a little, Jay. No mismatched furniture? Where will the poets sit for open-mic night?
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No poets' night, no music, no art on the walls, no remnant furniture, no flophouse "look", no "starbucks" colors. The notion is to explore what is unexpected in a coffee shop while driving us right over the edge in terms of coffees, roasters, brew methods and approach!
But do spend time working in a shop and figuring out what you like and don't like. Personally speaking, I am not a fan of the refrigerator under the espresso machine, nor am I a fan of the grinders to either side of the machine - I don't like sashaying to the right or left to grind the coffee. While learning espresso at the old Hines Public Market Coffee in Seattle, the grinders were behind you and I've come to find that the pivot (or pirouette) is much more accessible than the shashay.
I also spend quite a bit of time sitting in coffeeshops and other facilities. Actually, I spend more time observing, photographing and drawing non-coffee facilities because the other foodservice segments spend far greater time and money thinking and developing their layouts. Observe and benefit from their R&D - and yes, I am that guy with the camera taking photos of your lights and their placement, as well as your refrigerators.
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Permalink Reply by Mike M on
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Wow. Great responses!
Jay, I don't think it sounds hokey at all. It absolutely makes sense that whatever theme or color scheme or any other design someone may envision may or may not work for different locations given the layout, amount of natural light, etc.
I really like the idea of drawing inspiration from coffee shops that you've not only seen but experienced. My wife and I are going to be planning a trip to Italy sometime this coming Fall and I'll be taking a lot of notes and pictures!
Excellent point about having experienced baristas weigh in on the design itself! There's a great deal to be said about the ergonomics of a workspace from what I've seen thus far in a different industry. I also read a great passage in the Bean Business Basics book from Bellissimo on this subject not long ago.
At what point do you all recommend bringing in a coffee business consultant (if at all)? if for no other reason than peace of mind, I would like to have my business plan reviewed by an industry pro once it's in it's final stages before going to the bank or a private group of investors. I have a couple of advisors lines up who can speak to some of the finer points of such plans, but I would still like an industry pro to scrub it a bit.
Thank you all again for the great input!
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Permalink Reply by Brady on
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Jay Caragay said:Simon-
...and yes, I am that guy with the camera taking photos of your lights and their placement, as well as your refrigerators.
This is a great suggestion, and with the ability to unobtrusively take pics with your phone, there's really no reason not to do this. Every time you go into a space (all kinds of spaces) try to notice things that you like, things that you don't like, things that you notice, things that you don't notice. Like Jay said, find influences in other spaces and bring them into your shop. Figure out what feels you want (probably a couple, in different zones of your space) and try to distill the design elements contribute to this feel.
Also, do remember that this is your space... so do take inspiration from your favorite spaces. Try to figure out what you love about them and then reinterpret them in your own concept. You will be spending a large chunk of your time there, so best make it comfortable for you to be in.
I'll second Jay's suggestion to let the space speak to you. Does it have unique character that lends itself to a certain style? What does it remind you of? What are the positive elements that you want to highlight? What are the negatives you want to de-emphasize? Your finished space should be your vision of what the space can be - so equal parts you and the space.
We did all of the design and layout, and have been happy with the result. No professionals.
Good luck.
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Oh, a tip for laying out your bar. Get a couple of huge sheets of paper and a pack of those pre-perforated business card sheets. You can use each business card to represent a block of space on top of the bar. Use one for your espresso machine, one for airpots (if you use them), one for the register, one for the prep area, etc. Then you can try out different layouts, different bar shapes, etc quickly. Once you get close, tape down the cards and hang it on your wall so you can glance at it and think through different challenges. Make a list of the most common tasks and run through the complete process of performing each one to help visualize traffic behind the bar.
This helped us immensely as we were doing our layout. We've been really happy with it too.
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Great idea! I do this a lot in my current job, "gaming" the scenarios with the different courses of action, but hadn't thought about it's application when designing the shop!
Brady said:Oh, a tip for laying out your bar. Get a couple of huge sheets of paper and a pack of those pre-perforated business card sheets. You can use each business card to represent a block of space on top of the bar. Use one for your espresso machine, one for airpots (if you use them), one for the register, one for the prep area, etc. Then you can try out different layouts, different bar shapes, etc quickly. Once you get close, tape down the cards and hang it on your wall so you can glance at it and think through different challenges. Make a list of the most common tasks and run through the complete process of performing each one to help visualize traffic behind the bar.
This helped us immensely as we were doing our layout. We've been really happy with it too.
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Permalink Reply by Jason Shipley on
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I just discovered Google Sketchup 7 Link to download really neat program. The PDF I uploaded is the begginings of a 3d bar layout. Cool tool for design and pretty easy to use.
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front bar layout.pdf, 60 KB
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The program looks amazing! Thank you for sharing Jason!
Jason Shipley said:I just discovered Google Sketchup 7 Link to download really neat program. The PDF I uploaded is the begginings of a 3d bar layout. Cool tool for design and pretty easy to use.
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Coffee business consultant? Hmmmm...
Like I might have said in a previous discussion, I think it's best for you to find the kind of place you want to learn from and learn through experience. Find yourself a mentor who will teach you, guide you and help you grow. Find people who know their stuff about the business of coffee and connect/mentor with them.
Over the long term, these are the people with whom you can network and ask for advice - like reviewing your business plan. Also, there are groups like the Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE) that can help you with business plans and the like.
To be honest, I'm a bit skeptical about a "coffee business consultant" and I don't think you'll really need one if you take your time over the next couple of years to learn the business.
And really, if you're trying to "wow" your investors or bankers on the plan, a consultant could be a waste of money -because your banker and your potential investors will let you know if the business plan is solid enough. They either will give you the money if they believe, or they won't.
Plus remember, many of the "industry pros" in this business either don't know what they're doing really, or are flying by the seat of their pants.
Mike Morand said:Wow. Great responses!
At what point do you all recommend bringing in a coffee business consultant (if at all)? if for no other reason than peace of mind, I would like to have my business plan reviewed by an industry pro once it's in it's final stages before going to the bank or a private group of investors. I have a couple of advisors lines up who can speak to some of the finer points of such plans, but I would still like an industry pro to scrub it a bit.
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Jay Caragay said:Simon-
I also spend quite a bit of time sitting in coffeeshops and other facilities. Actually, I spend more time observing, photographing and drawing non-coffee facilities because the other foodservice segments spend far greater time and money thinking and developing their layouts. Observe and benefit from their R&D - and yes, I am that guy with the camera taking photos of your lights and their placement, as well as your refrigerators.
Haha I thought I was that guy.
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