Two hundred cafes opened in Harbin in 2013.

In 2013, the number of Bingcheng cafes doubled, with 289 cafes registered by the Ministry of Industry and Commerce. Of these, more than 200 opened in 2013.

The continuous impact of coffee culture in Europe, the United States, Japan and South Korea has made sensitive Ice City businessmen find new business opportunities. according to past experience, Ice City people have walked at the forefront of fashion countless times, and businessmen have recognized that running cafes is a way to make a steady profit. As a result, a number of local cafes have emerged around the major colleges and universities in our city. But this time, the businessmen are ahead of their consciousness and are defeated by their living habits, and the real coffee tasters are still in a minority in the ice city. Harbin, known as the Little Paris of the East, has long had pioneers in the coffee industry who tried to make western food and coffee, but failed to form well-known brands like Starbucks and costa, mainly due to lack of market recognition. In foreign countries, people don't go out until they drink a cup of coffee every morning. Coffee is a must in their lives, but in Ice City, people know coffee, but they don't necessarily consume coffee. Coffee is still defined as a drink, whether you drink it or not. Today, most of the American and Korean coffee sought after by young people still consume the brand and environment, not the taste of coffee.

2005 Murray 2007 novice on the road

"if you love coffee, you may not sell coffee." the first five years of losing money

College students who follow the trend are the earliest coffee consumers in Ice City, and the perimeter of colleges and universities has also become the birthplace of local cafes. In 2005, Wang Hao opened a joint venture cafe called the Ivory Tower next to Hexing Road normal University. Wang Hao said that because of his frequent business trips in the IT industry, he stayed in a cafe in Xiamen for a long time and fell in love with the taste of coffee.

It didn't go well at first. Three days after the cafe opened, only a couple sheltered from the rain. The store earned 55 yuan a week and spent 383 yuan, giving Wang Hao a slap in the head. In order to attract tourists, he began online publicity, handed out leaflets around the campus, and gradually maintained four or five tables of passenger flow every day. Then the second stroke came down, the students went home during the summer vacation, and the cafe was silent again. "at that time, including my shop, there were only five cafes in Bingcheng, two next to normal University and three next to Technology University." In order to find out how his peers survived the off-season, Wang Hao looked around. "it's not coffee that is most often ordered by guests in cafes, but poker and checkers. Many people just need a place to kill time." Subsequently, the "Ivory Tower" also began to launch these "standard" services, and the business was a little busier.

Just when Wang Hao thought he could slowly make a profit, the third stick of reality came down. The price of rent and labor rose from 20,000 yuan to 60,000 yuan a year, and the "ivory tower" still could not make ends meet. At this time, many cafe operators like Wang Hao could not stand losing money and withdrew from the circle. "for a long time, people who run cafes are basically obsessed with coffee, but they have not experienced the baptism of business, and their dreams are soon shattered by reality." Slowly, Wang Hao has become accustomed to the opening of the cafe around this year. "I didn't make any money in the first five years of operation. If I didn't have an income from IT, I might have closed the shop." Cafes need precipitation to accumulate customers, not a business that can get back to capital quickly. " Wang Hao sighed.

The ups and downs of the business world in 2007 Rue 2010

Coffee sellers also need to be able to make cakes.

In 2007, Li Zhihong, known as "Brother Li" by insiders, returned to Harbin after learning coffee brewing skills from Fujian. It caused a small sensation in the ice city coffee industry, where there were only 20 cafes at that time, and everyone wanted to hire him as a barista. Master Li finally chose the Aoguya Cafe on Tongjiang Street. In fact, Master Li, who has many years of business experience, saw the prospect of the coffee market as early as 10 years ago, when he added coffee drinks in his own Vettel bar, and later sold the bar to go south to study.

After several months of brewing coffee in Aogua, Master Li realized that the ice city coffee market was still lagging behind, and most people's knowledge was limited to drinking instant at home. The businessman's sensitivity made him realize that when "freshly ground coffee" is not a necessity of life, coffee-only cafes are not patronized, and more popular food is needed to attract customers.

As a result, Master Li, the master of coffee, tried to make cake again. "bitter coffee with sweet cake, just compromise the taste, such a match also doubles the consumption of each order, why not." Master Li said with a smile. Sure enough, this move makes Aogua stand out in nearby cafes, with an average passenger flow of more than 10 tables. From 2009 to 2010, with the popularity of South Korean TV dramas and American TV dramas, more coffee fans began to operate, and there were four or five more cafes around Aoguya. Because they did not know how to do business, the owners of the surrounding cafes came to learn from Master Li.

"the scarcity of coffee talent is also one of the reasons restricting the development of Bingcheng Cafe. Coffee machines that buy tens of thousands of yuan cannot be used, and things made are not good to taste, and it is difficult to cultivate a fixed source of customers." As a result, Master Li became a teacher again and was often invited to teach coffee and cake. "now there are more than 50 students in training, and they all want to open cafes in the future. under the condition of a shortage of customers, the increasing number of cafes has gradually highlighted the competition in the industry."

2011 Mutual 2013 is in full bloom.

International brands have settled in one after another.

During the visit, we cannot deny that local cafes are facing a shortage of tourists. Is there too few coffee consumers in Ice City? Of course not!

The queuing scene after the opening of English coffee costa and American coffee Starbucks at the end of 2011 is a testament to the coffee purchasing power of ice city people. At present, Starbucks and costa have opened 10 stores in the urban area. Li Chao, manager of costa Harbin District, told reporters that although coffee consumption in Harbin started relatively late, the potential market that can be explored is still very large. As the first world-famous coffee chain to enter the ice city, costa has taken a fancy to this point. Selling coffee can not only lead customers to the store, but also sell coffee beans to customers' homes. Li Chao revealed that costa will open new stores next year.

The massive influx of famous brands from Europe and the United States is a shot in the arm for the local market, and it is also the direct reason for the doubling of the number of local cafes in the past two years. Wang Hao said that in 2010, there were only 12 small cafes near the University of Technology, while in 2013 there were 80, and in some places there were three side by side 10 meters apart. In addition, the number around Black University and normal University has also grown from less than 10 to 40 and more than 20 today. Around the three major universities alone, there are 140, accounting for half of the total. "it's too crowded, and those with low passenger flow will be eliminated soon, but the coffee shop will take the place of it. It's just changed its name." Wang Hao said helplessly.

Why do local coffee merchants like to go to the campus business district? Wang Hao explained that the high passenger flow in the business district is the first choice for cafes, but the high rent makes local enterprises have no financial resources to gain a foothold here, so they can only settle for second best. The survey shows that the consumers of Bingcheng coffee are mainly young people between the ages of 18 and 35, so the college business district is undoubtedly a good choice. However, in the past two years, the cafes in the university circle are too saturated, and the elimination rate is also increasing year by year.

2014-the future is uncertain

It is popular to play with personality; it is too early for "rookies" to enter the venue to make money.

In today's coffee market, the crowded business circle has been monopolized by famous brands in Europe and the United States, and the surrounding areas of colleges and universities are suffocated, and some people begin to find another way.

Just before the Spring Festival, when some cafes under the age of one were worried about whether to close down, zoo Coffee on the streets of Shanghai opened another branch. He Jiuchuan, the owner of the post-80s cafe, is confident: "far away from universities and business centers, the daily passenger flow can reach 200, which shows that my brand has been recognized by the market."

In Xiaohe's eyes, the reason why the local cafes in Bingcheng have died one after another is that they have no characteristics! So he partnered with South Korean coffee zoo early last year to open an animal-themed cafe in Bingcheng, surrounded by giant animal dolls such as zebras and giraffes. In the first week of business, the little girl who came to take pictures with the animals packed the shop. Gradually, Korean coffee such as Man Coffee and Xiu Coffee entered the ice city, and attracted a lot of tourists because of its unique decoration style and high-end environment. Soon, this Japanese and Korean casual simple meal coffee has formed another faction in the ice city coffee circle, with a certain number of fans.

"joining is indeed an innovation of local businesses, getting rid of the homogenization of local cafes, and the spacious environment also allows consumers to get rid of the person-to-person situation of European and American cafes." Wang Hao said, however, to open such a store basically need a 300m2 environment and be located in a first-class street, the cost may exceed 2 million, and it is difficult to balance profits and costs. In 2014, carving time and other well-known domestic coffee chains will also be stationed in Ice City, the so-called "theme" has also become popular, and it is still unknown how long the selling environment can be popular.