Coffee experts teach you to realize your dream of opening a coffee shop, you can't help but understand the law of "June 31" fund allocation.

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Sam, founder of S.H. Coffee Lab and coffee roaster, started from coffee shop staff to become shop owner, shop opening consultant, and experienced the ups and downs of his career. While talking freely about the joys and sorrows of opening a shop, he also encourages those who are interested in starting a business. Apart from having a strategy and calculation, the most important thing is to work hard and be willing to persevere, so that they will have a chance to get ahead.

Speaking of the founding of S.H. Coffee Lab, Xu Shaowei said that everything starts with enthusiasm. When he was young, he was favored by coffee shop owners for his love of espresso (espresso), starting from low to being promoted to a senior barista. Later, another boss invited him to work as a coffee shop consultant and took a big step forward in his career.

Xu Shaowei (Sam), founder of S.H. Coffee Lab, said that there are actually many kinds of coffee shops, so they are also knowledgeable in licence applications. They have to apply for suitable restaurant licences according to the type of coffee shops. (Cr. Sorbis / Shutterstock.com)

Customize the plan to analyze the market and finance

He started his business at the age of seventeen and opened an upstairs coffee shop in the tenement building. He tasted his first success and had to close down because the landlord had to raise the rent. "although there are only 18 seats in the store, I have made money in the first month after opening. My secret is to only make reservations. I will also personally go to the market to look for fresh ingredients to ensure the quality of the food and to ensure that customers are surprised every time. I also run coffee courses four times a week, which can bring a stable source of income. "

Xu Shaowei later tried in many ways. He ran a coffee roasting company but was acquired half a year later, and then opened the current S.H. Coffee Lab Coffee Shop. At present, he also provides consultancy services to farmers in coffee farms. As long as we take everything seriously and stick to it, customers will feel that sincerity, he said.

After starting a business for many times, he realized how to run a business. "first of all, it is necessary to establish the business model and positioning of coffee shops," he said. Coffee shop provides takeout, light food or catering, is a completely different business model, which model is the most appropriate, mainly depends on the location of the shop. " He points out that if you open a shop in commercial, residential, factory and shopping malls, you will face different customer groups, and the spending power of these customers determines the positioning of coffee shops. If you open a shop in a shopping mall, you should pay more attention to the constraints of business hours.

Xu Shaowei pointed out that sincerity and persistence are always the way to win by opening a shop.

Understand the law of "June 31" fund allocation

Xu Shaowei believes that every would-be shopkeeper needs to customize a store plan, which should include an analysis of the financial budget, market, customer spending power and preferences, as well as the number of competitors in the same area.

How much money does it take to set up a coffee shop? Xu Shaowei pointed out that he had tried to run a take-out coffee shop for cash-strapped students, and only spent 150000 yuan to help him realize his dream. However, more capital is needed to open a coffee restaurant. "A coffee shop covers an area of 400 to 500sq ft and can accommodate about 20 seats. with licence fees and half a year's working capital, at least $1.2 million has to be invested."

The "six-three-one" ratio is the golden rule of opening a shop. Xu Shaowei said, "the cost of opening a store generally accounts for 60% of the total investment, including the previous period of deposit, license fee and decoration fee." The other 30% is mainly invested in operating expenses such as monthly rent, food materials, staff salaries, and so on. The remaining 10% will be set aside for emergency working capital, which can also be used in the event of new opportunities or markets. "

To qualify as a coffee maker, consider attending courses offered by the European Fine Coffee Association (SCAE), the American Fine Coffee Association (SCAA) and the Urban Institute of London (City & Guilds), all of which are accredited.

There are many kinds of coffee shops and applications for licences are very different.

Mr Hui pointed out that shops were also knowledgeable in applying for licences, and they had to apply for suitable restaurant licences according to the type of coffee shop. For example, a restaurant without open fire can apply for a licence for a light refreshment restaurant, a licence for a factory canteen to open a shop in a factory building, a licence for a general restaurant, a food factory, and so on. In addition, shop owners should remember that four major government departments have submitted applications for relevant licences to the buildings Department, the Fire Services Department, the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department and the Environmental Protection Department. "it usually takes three to six months to apply for a licence. While waiting for a licence to be issued, shop owners can apply for a temporary licence to operate and strive to start business during the rent-free period to offset the cost."

He also suggested that shop owners could consider employing consultants to apply for licences on their behalf, so as to save time and cost. "the chances of successful applications will be greatly increased if they are asked to design plans that comply with the fire safety regulations."

With the opening of business at last, we have to manage it attentively. Xu Shaowei said that as long as there is a reputation, even if the store is located in a non-busy area, there will be customers coming from afar. In addition, as a boss, it is more important to pay attention to increasing revenue and reducing expenditure. He pointed out that the cost of kitchen ingredients and water bar drinks had better be less than 25% and 20% of the overall operating expenditure respectively. If operating a set meal, the cost should only account for about 30% of the operating expenditure; and the highest operating skill is "low cost, high quality".

Finally, he mentioned that the decoration style helps to create the characteristics of a coffee shop. "since two or three years ago, the Australian red brick style that has sprung up in the market is the same. in fact, it takes effort to decorate and surprise customers in order to touch their inspiration." Xu Shaowei's tips on decoration design are experienced masters who use more referrals from friends and rich experience in coffee shop decoration, because this can reduce the problem of "leakage" and speed up the process of opening a shop.

Xu Shaowei said that the "June 31" ratio is the golden law of opening a shop. Generally speaking, the cost of opening a store will account for 60% of the total investment, including various expenses such as deposit, license fee and decoration fee.