Open a Coffee Shop: Complete Guide, Process, and Costs

The consumption of coffee is in fact a consolidated habit, as is the frequentation of the places dedicated to it, from simple bars to the most modern American-style cafes. To date, for lovers of the restaurant and coffee sector, opening a coffee shop could be an interesting solution to set up on your own. The activity in fact adapts easily to personal tastes and aspirations and is easily customizable and changeable over time, following the latest market trends and constantly renewing its proposal.

In this complete guide, we will see how to open a coffee shop, what are the most successful formats in today's market, what it takes to open a successful coffee shop starting from scratch, how much it costs, the bureaucratic process, and the overall necessary requirements to open a coffee shop. In addition, we also list some of the reasons why opening a café in franchising is a choice to be evaluated.

The sector and the trendy coffee shop formats

If consuming coffee outside the home is a habit unchanged by consumers, the ways of consumption, lifestyles, as well as tastes and trends, have revolutionized places dedicated to coffee in recent years.

To date, among the most successful coffee shop formats, there are modern and trendy coffee shops, or American-style cafes (with infinite varieties of preparation and coffee blends, particular aromas, cold coffees, frappuccinos, flavored teas, bubble tea, .. ), coffee shops with catering open all day, accompanied by pastry/bakery/ice cream/yogurt, as well as all coffee shops that focus on specific products such as BIO, vegan, celiac, cannabis or matcha tea, or even on trendy products like bubble drinks.

To open a successful coffee shop it will be necessary to offer customers variety, quality, dynamism in the opening hours and in the menu proposal, as well as a good dose of originality, periodically updated according to the latest trends in the sector.

The process of opening a coffee shop

To open a successful coffee shop, personal skills are first of all necessary both at the entrepreneurial level and in the catering sector such as financial acumen, organization, and management skills, promotion and analysis skills, assessment and choice of personnel, communication skills, and skills sales, friendliness and predisposition to contact with customers, as well as professionalism, competence, and knowledge of the sector.

On a more strictly practical level, however, to open a coffee shop it will first be necessary to draw up a business plan, analyze costs and revenue potential, analyze the market and the sector, identify and analyze competition, local catchment area, reference target, requests needs and consumption habits of the latter.

On this basis, you will then need to locate, select and place a strategic location, develop an original format, catchy and trendy, choose the menu, the local theme, design spaces. Thus, to develop targeted promotion and communication strategies and competitive and profitable pricing strategies.

Particular attention will be paid to the design of the spaces, the layout as well as the furnishings of the premises of the environment of the coffee shop. If it will be welcoming and pleasant, it will definitely be able to attract a greater number of customers and retain them over time.

Obviously, together with a well-kept environment, a professional and cordial service, attention to the customer and his needs, as well as a selection of top quality products at competitive prices will also play a fundamental role.

For the set-up you can opt for a turnkey solution, often offered by manufacturers of equipment, machinery, and bar furniture, or for a customized solution, which will allow you to give a unique touch to the café, making it more original, as well as reduce costs (if you turn to the second-hand market, or to leasing solutions), but considerably increase the times of realization and opening.

After the opening, but even before, it will be essential to take care of the promotion and communication process, on all online social networks. You should be creating your own captivating website, increase your reference base thanks to the review sites and the food and drink delivery activities, as well as periodically organizing events, theme nights, promotions, etc.

How much does it cost and the investment to open a café

Whatever type of cafeteria you want to open, the costs related to the start-up and management of it are not the lowest. It is possible to reduce the initial investment by opening a small cafeteria/bar, specializing in a specific product (consequently reducing waste, supply costs, and storage spaces), reducing staff and opening hours, by choosing itinerant or street formats, obtaining supplies from the second-hand market or using leasing for equipment. Even so, the costs related to the supply of equipment and machinery, the preparation and compliance of the premises, as well as management costs such as rent/utilities remain quite high.

To open a small cafeteria, a starting budget of around 50,000 euros may be sufficient. To open a larger cafeteria, on the other hand, also offering additional catering/ice cream/pastry services with artisanal production on-site, an initial investment of up to about 100,000 euros may be required.

Bureaucratic process and requirements for opening a cafeteria

Opening a coffee shop requires fulfilments that are very similar to any other restaurant activity. Therefore, the bureaucratic process to follow is not the simplest. To open a coffee shop it will be necessary to complete the following bureaucratic procedure :

• opening of a VAT number
• registration in the commercial register
• communication of the commencement of activities to the municipality
• opening of INPS and INAIL positions
• single communication to the chamber of commerce in electronic form 
• permit for outdoor sign display
• payment of SIAE rights for the diffusion of music in the venue
• request for a permit for the sale and supply of alcohol, if necessary
• certificate SAT
• HACCP certificate (for all staff)
• bringing the room/kitchen/facilities up to standard in terms of destination, usability, town planning, safety, and hygiene
• ASL health clearance
• evaluation of the acoustic impact in case it is planned to organize events/parties/evenings with music
• firefighting assessment by the fire brigade if the size of the room is large (over 150/200 square meters depending on the characteristics/catchment area/location)

Franchised coffee shop

In fact, the franchised coffee shop sector is highly varied and presents different investment opportunities for aspiring entrepreneurs wishing to enter the sector. One of the main advantages of opening a franchise café is certainly the reduction of business risk, combined with the reduction/containment of start-up and management costs as well as the possibility of starting the business even without particular skills or previous experience in the sector.

Opening a café in franchising guarantees a turnkey format including the following main services and advantages:

• proven and trendy format
• support for evaluation and choice of premises
• design and preparation of the coffee shop
• complete supply of furniture, equipment, machinery, signs, checkout systems, software and hardware, uniforms, packaging and promotional material, branded material, raw and consumable materials,...
• access to advantageous and facilitated supply conditions with centralized supplies or at affiliated suppliers
• the exploitation of visibility, brand, and image, as well as national promotion campaigns
• training and know-how transfer
• 360 ° assistance, advice, coaching
• different affiliate solutions/formats to meet the affiliate's budget needs/capabilities
• support, with the preparation of ad hoc business plans, for the eventual search for financing or facilitation
• feasibility studies, cost, and potential revenue analysis, business plan, etc., in the preliminary phase
• support for the compliance of the premises and for all bureaucratic formalities

Whether you want to open an organic café, a café for families with a play area, an American café, or a café with a bakery and pastry, there is already a franchise proposal that allows you to do so with the support of a solid and experienced company. Opening a café in franchising is possible, depending on the format, the reputation of the brand, the size of the business, and the services/products included in the format, with a minimum investment ranging from 10,000 to 50,000 euros.