# I'd love some advice



## lookseehear (Jul 16, 2010)

Hi all, I'd love some advice if anyone has five minutes.

In the village where my parents live in Wiltshire the church has bought an old solicitors office near the marketplace. The plan is to turn it into a cafe as a place where the locals can go to meet and create a social hub in the village.

My dad mentioned to the chap who is looking after the project that I'm a bit of a coffee nut and that I could offer some advice.

So far I've given him a bit of a lowdown on differences between super auto and semi auto plus grinder (which he's keen on). I explained that the choice of beans/roaster is an important one and that training/cleaning/maintenance are not to be underestimated.

This isn't like a typical venture for the following reasons:

- Profit is not (as far as i know) a key objective

- Cost control probably is however, I don't think that money will be poured in if it isn't covering the costs

- Accessibility and affordability are, in my opinion, the most important things

For these reasons I'm finding it difficult to recommend coffee, machines, equipment etc. It isn't my risk to take to offer lighter roasted coffee that (without proper training) might not be the preference of the locals. Most may be wanting something like they would expect from a chain etc.

Also, they seem quite keen on machine hire rather than purchase - does anyone have any experience with the merits or disadvantages of this route?

If anyone has any advice to add that would be very much appreciated, I'm sure the hive-mind can come with some recommendations!


----------



## MikeHag (Mar 13, 2011)

I've written and deleted a reply twice now! Will come back to this tomorrow as I'm frazzled and making bad calls today!


----------



## JohnnieWalker (Aug 24, 2011)

Hi LSH,

If any POS and/inventory control would be needed then I'm offering a fantastic package on my website that incluses a free ipad and 1 month POS trial here:

http://thecoffeeshop.co/product/visacrem-ottima-coffee-machine

I also have an offer of the same coffee machine but with a free grinder!

http://thecoffeeshop.co/product/visacrem-ottima-coffee-machine-free-macap-grinder

If you went for the free iPad option and decided not to use Vend you could maybe use the iPad as a competition or raffle prize!

Coffee & Accessories available at http://TheCoffeeShop.Co


----------



## MikeHag (Mar 13, 2011)

Ok so I'm still thinking what I thought yesterday, which is that the product needs to be understood by customers. Speciality coffee isn't understood without a lot of work on training and comms, which isnt going to happen in this scenario so dont go down that route. Pick a good blend and make decent milk drinks and americanos. Customers will get that. Make life easy for everyone... staff and customers. Will it be less good than it could be? Yes. Will it be less popular? No. Will it be bad? No. The small things will raise it above the average chain. A good, fresh coffee, ground on demand. Clean equipment. Good milk management. Correct coffee to milk ratios. There are plenty of used commercial machines for around the £1000-1500 mark that will do a fantastic job at meeting the venture's aims.

Training... Staff turnover will be high, with new people coming in all the time and pressing the buttons. This is the biggest potential weakness in the plan. You cant train everyone so there needs to be an easy way to keep training standards high. Videos perhaps. Metropolis Coffee have great online videos (google) so I would make watching them part of the induction training for anyone new. Once a month do a quality check to ensure things havent become dire, otherwise customers will start to drop off.

Will there be a manager? If so, point them to The Coffee Boys books.

Just my 2p. Hope it helps.


----------



## lookseehear (Jul 16, 2010)

That's more or less exactly what I was thinking Mike. I really appreciate you taking the time to think and write about this.

I was thinking about recommending hands-on lusty/north coast or Extract original as a bean. Both roasted in the south west and seem to be similarly priced to Lavazza or other big brands (although bulk discounts probably won't be as big).

Bearing in mind that used commercial machines can be in great condition or about to die, is there a reliable way of knowing you aren't buying a lemon?


----------



## lookseehear (Jul 16, 2010)

Oh and great shout with the Metropolis videos, I'd forgotten about those and they're a really great resource for people new to coffee.


----------



## radish (Nov 20, 2011)

Have they considered just offering brewed coffee - maybe a french press? And remember water filtration as well.


----------



## lookseehear (Jul 16, 2010)

I think they're pretty keen to be able to offer capp's/latte so an espresso machine is a must unfortunately!


----------

