Garage coffee: it doesn't just sell coffee.

Bill Gates, the father of Microsoft, completed the development of the window interface in the garage; Steve Jobs, the father of Apple, also completed the early start-up of the Apple empire in the garage. As many IT giants originate from the entrepreneurial miracle of the garage, the plain name has a magical color. Today, garage coffee, which originated from the entrepreneurial model of Silicon Valley in the United States, has become synonymous with entrepreneurial cafes in China. In 2011, the first domestic garage coffee was born in Beijing; in June 2012, Nanjing also had local garage coffee, which has grown to more than 10, such as fulcrum Coffee, Black Coffee Entrepreneurship Management Salon, Nanjing IT Cafe, East China Venture Market, Nanjing 321 Cafe and so on.

If you order a cup of 18 yuan coffee, you can sit on a broad, fluffy sofa and work for a day, and you can also enjoy free wireless Internet, free fax machine, free projector and other services. More importantly, the people who drink coffee with you here may be headhunters and angel investors, and the opportunity is often just around the corner. This kind of garage coffee is a "paradise" for grassroots entrepreneurs. However, the operation of such a cafe, which provides both coffee refreshments and networking funds, is not as hot as expected. The survey shows that the existing more than 40 garage coffee in the country is basically in a state of loss, and its survival is greatly questioned. Fulcrum Coffee: creating "Circle Culture"

Nanjing Gupinggang, Gulou Zijin Technology Entrepreneurship Special Community (Zijin Zhimeng Garden), fulcrum coffee is on the first floor of an office building. With large sofas, upholstered chairs, freshly ground coffee, light music and warm yellow lights, this entrepreneurial cafe looks no different from an ordinary cafe.

As the first garage coffee in Nanjing, fulcrum Coffee opened in Zijin Zhi Mengyuan in June last year. Du Yao, the beautiful general manager after "85", is already the second owner of this store. "she has taken over since December last year and is still losing money after the Spring Festival off-season." Du Yao told reporters that although the park has given a certain rent discount, a venue of about 200 square meters still needs a rent of 100000 yuan a year, which cannot be earned by selling coffee.

In fact, at present, most garage coffee is semi-commonweal in nature. on the one hand, it provides low-cost office space for people in the early stages of starting a business, and more importantly, it creates a service platform to exchange experiences and help with financing. its manifestation is to hold business salons and lectures from time to time, bringing together entrepreneurs, investors, third-party consultants and successful entrepreneurs to communicate face-to-face. Early-stage entrepreneurs can gain entrepreneurial experience and negotiate venture capital here, while investors can find high-quality projects. The coffee and light meals consumed by it are the source of income for garage coffee.

During du Yao's operation, fulcrum Coffee held an average of five events a month, except for sporadic individual customers, with a monthly turnover of about NT $10,000. "deducting the cost is not enough to pay the store rent." However, at the moment du Yao took over, she had already figured out the future development of fulcrum coffee. "the cut of starting a business is too small. I want to be a comprehensive interpersonal network platform, where all kinds of industries can communicate, interact and share." Du Yao said that the entrepreneurial theme of fulcrum Coffee will not change, but she is more inclined to organize seminars, salons, reporting events and corporate customer exchanges. "what I want to do is to create a circle culture."

321 Creative Coffee: wait patiently for "Spring"

Unlike fulcrum Coffee, 321 Creative Cafe is set up entirely by the government and is an incubator cafe that is not for profit. As a result, it seems to be more tolerant of loneliness.

The cafe, founded at the end of October last year, is located on the first floor of Shengtai Square, Jiangning District, Nanjing. It is the only garage coffee in Nanjing that really runs in a garage. It covers an area of 900 square meters and can hold 130 people at the same time.

Relatively speaking, the service model of 321 Creative Coffee is more perfect and richer. "our help to entrepreneurs is step-by-step. In the conception stage, we can use all kinds of office equipment such as closed-circuit television, projector and fax machine for free. When we register to start a business, we can register in the coffee shop and rent fixed tables and chairs at a discount." Manager Zhou Liwen said that 321 Creative Coffee has opened up 205 "entrepreneurial spaces" in the Talent Building in Jiangning District for qualified start-up enterprises to work on a designated basis, free of charge for a year. In addition, 321 Creative Coffee also hired 321 talents as entrepreneurial counselors to help entrepreneurs avoid detours; set up venture capital funds to invest in well-done projects to speed up entrepreneurship; and arranged for investors, lawyers, and talents in development zones to take shifts to provide a series of supporting services such as entrepreneurial registration.

However, such a perfect garage coffee is inevitably left out in the cold. There are only a few people in the huge coffee shop, holding laptops, ordering a cup of coffee that can be refilled for free at 18 yuan, and sitting all afternoon. "We also have two or three thematic activities every month, and sometimes some colleges and universities come to hold symposiums, but they still can't make ends meet." Zhou Liwen said that at present, the monthly operating cost is about 50,000 yuan, with a loss of nearly 20,000 yuan.

Zhou Liwen believes that although there are many people starting businesses in Nanjing, the concept of garage coffee is little known, and this atmosphere of interaction and communication between entrepreneurs has not yet been formed. But over time, garage coffee, tailor-made for entrepreneurs, is bound to usher in its spring. Nanjing Garage Coffee: create your own trend

"there is a coffee shop on the first floor and several separate office spaces on the second floor, which are rented cheaply to entrepreneurs who have just started and do not have the capital to rent offices, and the open space outside can be used as a place for outdoor activities." In an office building in Nanjing Zidong International Creative Park, Zhen Wenbo, general manager of Nanjing garage coffee, pointed to the unformed Nanjing garage coffee "real body" and told reporters that Nanjing garage coffee has a total investment of 1.5 million yuan, covering an area of 1200 square meters. it is currently the largest garage coffee in the country, and it is expected to be completed in April this year.

Zhen Wenbo is the first person to bring the concept of garage coffee to Nanjing, but his own physical store has been slow to start, and he has been engaged in "guerrilla warfare". "after the germination in 2011 and the gestation in 2012, Nanjing Garage Coffee was born this year." Zhen Wenbo said with a smile that last year, garage coffee in Nanjing sprang up like bamboo shoots after a spring rain, but he was in no hurry, because starting a business is a long-distance run, not following the trend, and he wants to create his own trend.

Before becoming an entity, Zhen Wenbo has done more than 40 activities and accumulated a lot of experience and resources. in his view, cafes are not the most important. "any cafe can do this. The point is not to sell coffee, but whether your stuff is needed by the group you serve. The team is the core selling point." Zhen Wenbo revealed that while Nanjing Garage Coffee sells coffee, it will also launch entrepreneurial consulting services in financing, finance, law, and personnel, with sales expected to exceed 500000 yuan in the first year. How to make a profit from garage coffee? Zhen Wenbo did not disclose many details. His self-confidence comes from his own grassroots entrepreneurship. He knows more about what grassroots entrepreneurs need, such as being approachable, practicing internal skills, and striving for development. This is his "nine-character formula" for pursuing success.

(responsible Editor: Leo)