My thoughts of opening a coffee shop. Help me access my situation!

[kidamnesiac76]

So I recently had a bit of a revelation that I may want to open my own coffee shop with my wife. As of now this is just an idea but I was looking for some feedback based on my background.

Here goes...I am in my mid 30s with a stable job right now. Both my wife and I have experience in a supervisor role working at another "corporate" coffee establishment, which she is still working at. We both are very familiar about the day to day operations, and know how important quality and service are to attract and retain customers. We are both very attuned to creating a comfortable atmosphere incorporating art and music as well as providing a superior product. A few of the potential resources in our family is that my mom is in the process of opening a baked goods business in some capacity. My mother in law has a side catering business and makes great soups and sandwiches. My father in law is a general contractor who built his own home and has many contacts which could be valuable. I am not underestimating all the hard work and intangibles that go into making a successful coffee shop/cafe from reading through countless threads.

As of now this is just an "idea" but I am curious to know if both my coffee background in addition to valuable resources I have on my side that may help our business succeed if we pursue it. Looking forward to hearing some feedback

 

[CoffeeJunky]

Welcome aboard...

There are huge advantage for you to open a coffee shop then about 99 percent of the people who does open each year.

Let me sum it up for you.

1. You have coffee house management experience.
2. You have help from the family
3. Your wife can help.

What you need.

1. Money
2. A lots of it.
3. Business plan
4. Location
5. 6. 7. 8.

This is my advise.
If you love coffee and want to open a coffee house, you need to do your home work.
Your business plan, and find the funding, find the location, execute your business plan, run business ....

After you have done your business plan, come back to us and ask specifics.
Yes you do have some advantage of opening coffee shop since you have some ties to other food products and build out phase but it doesn't mean you are getting them for free.
Your corporate level experience is valuable and it can incorporate to your own business but it will be much different.

Good Luck and keep dreaming..... If you don't dream, it won't be come reality...

 

[eldub]

I would caution you to think long add hard about committing both your and your wife's income generation to a new business venture. At least initially.

Good luck, no matter which route you choose to take.

 

[PinkRose]

Hello "kidamnesiac76"

Welcome to the Coffee Forums!

You mentioned yourself, your wife, your mother, your mother-in-law, and your father in-law as potential resources. Are your anticipating everyone contributing and working together to make this venture happen? Do they all seem like they'd want to be a part of your plan? Will they cooperate, or will they get in each other's way?

It's very possible that with your experience, and determination, and the resources of your family you'll be able to make it happen. But, there are a lot of factors to consider.

Rose

 

[kidamnesiac76]

Thanks for the feedback CoffeeJunky. Its nice to hear that I may have valuable resources that may help me initially and also in the long run. I also agree that like you stated, money is number 1 on the list of things I will need. Still saving up....

Welcome aboard...

There are huge advantage for you to open a coffee shop then about 99 percent of the people who does open each year.

Let me sum it up for you.

1. You have coffee house management experience.
2. You have help from the family
3. Your wife can help.

What you need.

1. Money
2. A lots of it.
3. Business plan
4. Location
5. 6. 7. 8.

This is my advise.
If you love coffee and want to open a coffee house, you need to do your home work.
Your business plan, and find the funding, find the location, execute your business plan, run business ....

After you have done your business plan, come back to us and ask specifics.
Yes you do have some advantage of opening coffee shop since you have some ties to other food products and build out phase but it doesn't mean you are getting them for free.
Your corporate level experience is valuable and it can incorporate to your own business but it will be much different.

Good Luck and keep dreaming..... If you don't dream, it won't be come reality...

 

[kidamnesiac76]

PinkRose I think that although I love all my family the thought of working with ALL of them could be a bit messy. My mom would definitely assist with her baking business, just not sure if she is going to have a separate location or incorporate it into my future location. My father in law would assist with the initial build if needed. Not sure about my mother in law but she knows her way around the kitchen which is an asset. The thought of me and my wife working together.....that only time will tell!

Hello "kidamnesiac76"

Welcome to the Coffee Forums!

You mentioned yourself, your wife, your mother, your mother-in-law, and your father in-law as potential resources. Are your anticipating everyone contributing and working together to make this venture happen? Do they all seem like they'd want to be a part of your plan? Will they cooperate, or will they get in each other's way?

It's very possible that with your experience, and determination, and the resources of your family you'll be able to make it happen. But, there are a lot of factors to consider.

Rose

 

[John P]

I think there's potential of too many Kings, not enough Pawns. It looks like you have a good network in your family for resources, but PAY them as the professionals that they are, whether it's time or etc. they are "giving". If there is any investment of money, everyone needs to be clear that it's a gift, because there's no guarantee they will see any of it back.

Your current job will give you great insight as to work flow, and a solid base of customer service, but it doesn't prepare you for opening your own place. And in some instances, it will hinder you.

I wrote this for Specialty Coffee Retailer a short while back, and it addresses my thoughts about prospective owners.

 

[PinkRose]

Hello again "kidamnesiac76"

When I read the part of your post that said, "The thought of me and my wife working together.....that only time will tell!" all sorts of red flags went up.

You need to be totally sure that you and your wife can work together, because that's probably the way it's going to be. (unless you have tons of money in the bank set aside to hire good employees).

A few years ago, I watched a couple follow their dreams of opening a coffee shop, and they put a lot of time, effort, and money into the venture. Within a couple of weeks after they opened, they discovered that they both needed to work a lot of hours in order to save money on employee expenses. They let a couple of the part time people go, and they both worked in the cafe. They were constantly in each other's way, and getting or each other's nerves. They were fighting over money, and the cost of operations; they were fighting over how displays should be set up; they were fighting over who was going to the bank at the end of the day; and they were fighting over household chores when they got home at the end of the day. Evenutually, they couldn't affort to pay the rent for the space they had, and they closed their doors (after less than 2 years). Then, within another a year, they split up and are now divorced.

Please give this a lot of thought and make sure all of the pieces of you plan will fit together in harmony.

Rose

 

[CoffeeJunky]

I think there's potential of too many Kings, not enough Pawns. It looks like you have a good network in your family for resources, but PAY them as the professionals that they are, whether it's time or etc. they are "giving". If there is any investment of money, everyone needs to be clear that it's a gift, because there's no guarantee they will see any of it back.

Your current job will give you great insight as to work flow, and a solid base of customer service, but it doesn't prepare you for opening your own place. And in some instances, it will hinder you.

I wrote this for Specialty Coffee Retailer a short while back, and it addresses my thoughts about prospective owners.

I wish we can put this article your wrote on some type of archive. This will answer many questions we get here and not waste more time answering same questions over and over again.....

 

[PinkRose]

Coffeejunky,

One way of sharing it with others is exactly how John did it. Insert the link into a message and direct the person to take a look.

I wish I could archive all of John's responses to this type of question, because they're always honest, informative, and a great asset to the Coffee Forum. I haven't gotten around to creating an archive yet. I still use our handy search feature - a lot!

Rose

 

[John P]

CoffeeJunky,

Thanks!

As we all know, out of the thousand questions we may get over a six month period, 950 of them will be about "starting a coffee business."


And PinkRose is right. Either you and your spouse are in 100% or don't do it. It's different than having two different careers, with a small business, because so much is on the line that cuts right into the fabric of your lives, you both have to be willing to sacrifice for the "good of the cause."

kidamnesiac76, to give you perspective:

My wife and I both quit our jobs 2 months before opening our doors and never looked back. We have worked together every day for going on nine years. She might complain from time to time, but she remains grounded and always goes above and beyond to do what needs to be done. She worked two weeks straight by herself when I had foot surgery, she bakes everything for us, she corrects my average latte art, and greets every customer with a smile. We both worked 95-100+ per week for the first 18 months, and as customer base and efficiency grew, we're down to about 45-60 hours a piece -- plus whatever work related things we may be doing on our "days off." I knew that psychologically, if you are not both fully invested, then you will give yourself an out, a reason for failure...something to be blamed later. However, if everyone is all in, then it's clear if there is failure, it's only the fault of the parties involved. We decided that failure is not an option, there are no "what if" scenarios nor was there a backup plan. If both you and your spouse look at it from this perspective and DO something about it, then you have a better than average chance. If both of you aren't 100% invested then either the business or the marriage is likely to fail. But if you are both "all in," I think it makes both business and marriage stronger.

As far as what we did..., I wouldn't change a thing

 

[kidamnesiac76]

PinkRose That scenario is scary and real and I bet that happens more often than not with couples/families that go into business. I would be curious to see some kind of statistic on that. As far as my comment, it was a bit of a joke. I have a great relationship with my wife and even when we were working together at "other corporate coffee company" we made a great team. Don't get my wrong I am not underestimating that difficulties that go along with that and its refreshing to hear both the good and the bad.

Hello again "kidamnesiac76"

When I read the part of your post that said, "The thought of me and my wife working together.....that only time will tell!" all sorts of red flags went up.

You need to be totally sure that you and your wife can work together, because that's probably the way it's going to be. (unless you have tons of money in the bank set aside to hire good employees).

A few years ago, I watched a couple follow their dreams of opening a coffee shop, and they put a lot of time, effort, and money into the venture. Within a couple of weeks after they opened, they discovered that they both needed to work a lot of hours in order to save money on employee expenses. They let a couple of the part time people go, and they both worked in the cafe. They were constantly in each other's way, and getting or each other's nerves. They were fighting over money, and the cost of operations; they were fighting over how displays should be set up; they were fighting over who was going to the bank at the end of the day; and they were fighting over household chores when they got home at the end of the day. Evenutually, they couldn't affort to pay the rent for the space they had, and they closed their doors (after less than 2 years). Then, within another a year, they split up and are now divorced.

Please give this a lot of thought and make sure all of the pieces of you plan will fit together in harmony.

Rose

 

[kidamnesiac76]

John P thanks for sharing that link to the article. Its very clear cut advise on opening a coffee shop that makes me realize how much work goes into it and that you must have every little aspect covered of opening and operating the business. Its helpful to hear that from someone that has been in the business for many years. I couldn't help but google your coffee shop and you are definitely doing it right. I'm a sucker for yelp reviews....keep up the good work!

I think there's potential of too many Kings, not enough Pawns. It looks like you have a good network in your family for resources, but PAY them as the professionals that they are, whether it's time or etc. they are "giving". If there is any investment of money, everyone needs to be clear that it's a gift, because there's no guarantee they will see any of it back.

Your current job will give you great insight as to work flow, and a solid base of customer service, but it doesn't prepare you for opening your own place. And in some instances, it will hinder you.

I wrote this for Specialty Coffee Retailer a short while back, and it addresses my thoughts about prospective owners.

 

[John P]

kidamnesiac76,

Keep asking good questions, and doing all of your homework now. It seems like you get understand about setting a solid foundation. Now it's just working smart and ignoring everyone who thinks you are nuts.

Best of luck.