"persistence is the only choice"-- the entrepreneurial story of a coffee maker in Lanzhou

"Persistence is the only option."

Li Cheng, the entrepreneurial story of a Lanzhou coffee man

Li Cheng is seriously making coffee

Light coffee fragrance, wooden tables and chairs, two cats strolling freely, walls full of barista certificates, neat bar... This is a coffee shop with typical decoration style. Li Cheng, born after 80, is its owner. As one of the early founders of boutique cafes in Lanzhou, Li Cheng holds a positive and optimistic attitude. For more than 6 years, his small cafe has gained a lot of iron powder among coffee lovers, and many tourists from other places who want to drink coffee will also find it here. For him, a person who is willing to stop and taste a cup of coffee is also a person who understands life and can live. Making friends with these people and sharing communication has become an indispensable part of daily life.

Two failures lay the foundation for success

Li Cheng, Ningxia native, born in 1988. On the afternoon of March 5, the reporter chatted with him in his cafe about the road to growth.

After graduating from college, he applied to enter the securities company, actuary, trader, financial manager, these sounds tall work, not as easy as he imagined, without a certain degree, qualifications and background, want to succeed very difficult. So he resigned decisively and started his own business.

"At that time, cafes were not popular in Lanzhou. When I described how to make a cup of coffee to my classmates, their expressions were confused!" He felt that there was a play in this industry, so he opened his first cafe on Baiyin Road. At that time, the storefront was less than 20 square meters, except for the bar, there were only four small tables. A lot of people turn around when they see it's full. With this kind of business, I can barely pay the rent. Later, he wanted to find a place with a large flow of people, so he opened the shop and reopened it in an alley near Lanzhou University. However, due to the remote location, the second store failed again. His family's questioning once made him feel hard,"Since entering this business, persistence, is the only choice." Li Cheng expressed his firm determination to his parents.

To practice technology,"drunk" coffee

After the first two failures, Li Cheng calmed down and decided to improve his professional theoretical knowledge first, and then improve his coffee making ability in combination with practical operations. When there were no guests, he practiced hard and made up for coffee knowledge. In order to obtain various professional qualifications, he couldn't remember how many cups of coffee he drank every day. Coffee drinking too much will also be drunk, a large intake of caffeine, will produce palpitations, hand shaking dizziness. In addition, caffeine can also speed up the body's metabolism, drink more, the toilet runs more, the mouth is in a dry state every day. Hard work has a harvest. When the qualification certificate is placed in the most conspicuous position of the new store, Li Cheng smiles.

Li Cheng's new shop, wooden tables and chairs, bar, introduction to coffee, two lazy cats... The decor is very comfortable.

For a year, coffee promotion is successful

At the beginning of the opening, in order to promote hand-brewed coffee, every time he would send a cup of hand-brewed coffee to regular customers to drink. "This kind of promotion is very difficult. It takes a year before the store's business improves." Li Cheng said. At present, half of the store's turnover is brought by hand-brewed coffee, which is a good start.

Li Cheng said that although business is getting better and better now, there will be less time to accompany his family when he takes care of his work. Fortunately, after getting married and having children, the whole family is still 100% supportive of his business. The so-called 30 stands, he proved it with his actions. Next, his goal was to establish roots here, expand the store, and expand the business of the cafe. In the chat, he admitted that many tourists from other places who wanted coffee would find his shop, which made him confident. Li Cheng is very satisfied to be able to communicate with more interesting customers and share learning experiences with peers.