The Right Way to Start Your Coffee Business in South Africa

Morning coffee is something that everyone loves and having a good relaxing place to hang around along with coffee can definitely add spark to your day. Did you see the opportunity here? Yes, guessed it right! Such an important place that the coffee occupies in everyone’s life, a coffee café shop can be a promising business. Starting a coffee shop in South Africa is not that tough as it seems. It is a profitable venture if handled perfectly. What is a coffee shop? The answer is simple; it is the third place outside the work area and a home to relax.

What does it take for a coffee selling shop to be a successful venture?

Patience to learn almost every small and basic thing before getting started is one thing. Apart from patience you need a perfect business plan; it is something that puts you apart from the competition. Drawing a perfect business plan before you get started is advisable. A business plan should be based upon what you can afford. Having a straight business plan can help you in a long run. Apart from a beguiling business plan, a good location can surely write a success story in the long run. A centrally located place where people are already gathered should be spotted. Though finding a dream location doesn’t happen overnight, but it surely repays you. Keeping in mind the current and the future plans you have for your coffee business while securing a location. Adequate seating space and area surely attract customers.

Competition and a hospitable staff

Today, every business is set up in a competitive world. Before you start a coffee business, you should figure out what your competitors got to offer. The customer is attracted because of various reasons like price, location, quality, type of services that you offer and so on. Apart from this, hiring a good staff can be a boost to your coffee business in South Africa as a few helping hands are always welcome. In a coffee business, you would need staff to maintain the register, attending the customer, making coffee and for many more such activities. But staff you hire should be done slowly. Training staff or new baristas should be started before they start working for, is recommended.

Suppliers and equipment

Having a reliable and regular supplier of coffee beans and other ingredients is recommended. Investing in proper coffee equipment can be great for your business. A good coffee from a good coffee making machine always attracts a substantial customer base.

Knowing about the equipment basics needed to run a coffee shop in South Africa!

If you are planning to open a coffee shop in South Africa, on one hand it can be an awarding venture and on the other hand it can cost you pretty bucks. The beauty of coffee is, it is simple to create and it does not take a whole lot of planning to get a coffee selling business up and running. All you need is the right coffee equipment, which should have an ability to offer the highest rate of return on your investments. Selecting a coffee pot size is important as it can help you to offer fresh and ready to go coffee. A coffee brewer can take several minutes to brew a pot of coffee. Therefore, it is advisable you should have an industrial sized regular and decaffeinated coffee pot always ready. A coffee grinder is the one that you will need if you are planning to offer fresh ground coffee. A best coffee grinder and a good quality of the ground coffee can surely attract many customers.

An espresso drink is what completes a coffee shop. Typically not all customers demand for a plain or a black coffee at a coffee shop; Lattes, espresso shots, Americano and café mochas is what your customer would demand, and to provide these, all you need is an espresso machine. Basically, there are two kinds of espresso machines namely, a super automatic and a semi-automatic. The espresso machine can be said to be the most important investment before starting a coffee selling shop. A good quality of espresso machine can surely drive your revenue.

Before buying or selecting any particular brand of coffee equipment, you should consider all the possible scenarios associated with it - the breaking down of equipment, guarantee, and services of a manufacturer. Paying for the right equipment packed with the right guarantee, warranty and coverage is sure to repay you in your business future. Rushing into buying coffee equipment is never advisable. If you are starting a coffee selling business in South Africa for the first time, you should take an ample amount of time on reading the reviews, gathering knowledge and knowing how it operates before you buy. Equipment you invested in is the source of your confidence

Buy a coffee shop franchise or start from the very scratch?

If coffee is your cup of tea, then why not earn a pretty penny out of it. Today, many consider the common option of a coffee shop franchise to start a business. There is a feeling in people that having a franchise is ‘stifling’ and ‘too controlling’ whereas on the other hand starting a coffee business from the scratch won’t have high-quality products. Buying a coffee franchise offers you to run a coffee business while being a part of an existing chain. Owning a coffee house franchise protects you from marketing and advertisements. Owning a franchise is like playing a pre-set game, everything is already stable, right from the coffee shop equipment you purchase to the uniform of your staffs.

Opening a coffee shop in the South Africa from the very scratch can be a great business plan as there is flexibility and independence when it comes to the store name, location, hours of serving and products. Though in the case of a franchise there is a higher chance of success since the business is already established. The brand name since is already established it easily attracts the customers. The franchise concept still has many disadvantages like it can be costly to implement, the profit margin is easily cut down because of the royalty charged by the franchise company. Franchise company demands consistency, hence you got to work and follow their operation manual, hence the creative concept lacks here. You do not have any freedom to do what you want to do with your coffee franchise. There are pre-set regulations that you must follow, the franchisor is nothing but a guard watching over your regular system to ensure uniformity and a great customer service throughout the franchise system.

What to choose between a coffee franchises or standalone coffee house starting from a scratch is tough to answer. It doesn’t matter if you start a coffee business from a scratch or take a franchise; all that matters is your business decision that guides you towards profit or failure.