Do you plan to open your own cafe business soon? Do you have any idea how much does it cost to open a cafe? Building any business from scratch is not easy, especially since it is hard to come up with an estimated budget since there are many factors to determine the budget you have to invest in starting your cafe.
If you really want to put up a cafe business, you should consider all the expenditures, from minor to major. You also need to be as realistic as possible when estimating the budget. In this article, you will learn how much does it cost to open a cafe and some tips on starting your own cafe business.
Factors to Consider in Opening a Cafe Business
Are you curious about how much does it cost to open a cafe? There are so many factors that you should consider in building a cafe business. It includes the interior design, kitchen, equipment, front-of-house, menu, employee payroll, cost of your inventory, kitchen supplies, and so much more.
Another thing to consider is your cafe’s location and concept, whether it is a cat cafe, co-working, or grab-and-go. Most importantly, you need to consider the initial, fixed, and variable costs when opening a cafe. These factors can help you prioritize your budget for opening a cafe.
How Much Does it Cost to Open a Cafe Business?
You may be thinking about how much does it cost to open a cafe business. The total amount you need depends on a lot of factors, especially the location.
Cafe Business: Cost Range
This is the cost range of putting up a cafe business if you start from scratch to give you an idea.
- Small cafe with less than 50 seating capacities – $50,000 to $250,000
- Large cafe with more than 50 seating capacities – $75,000 to $350,000
- Franchise cafe – $100,000 to $400,000
- Cafe and pastries/bakery – $150,000 to $350,000
- Cafe with bookshop – $80,000 to $300,000
- Cat cafe – $100,000 to $250,000
Tips on How to Open a Cafe
Building a food service business, whether it is a restaurant, buffet, catering, or cafe, is very complicated. Now that you know how much does it cost to open a cafe, these are the tips on starting a cafe business.
Find a Good Place for your Cafe
Looking for a great place to build your cafe is very important. It is better if you will build your cafe in areas near the town center, business center, malls, and tourist attractions. These areas are highly in-demand and don’t remain empty for long. Not all, but most business owners understand the significance of having an excellent place to build a cafe. So, if you want to succeed in your cafe business, find the perfect spot.
Interior Design
Once you have found the perfect location, the next thing you need to consider is the interior design of your cafe. It is also one of the important factors that you need to consider because it highly affects the feeling of the customers. You should come up with a design depending on the theme of your cafe business. You should match the interior design of your cafe with your target audience.
If your market is millennials, you should think about the latest trending and how to catch their attention. Why not put an area in your cafe where the customers can take beautiful pictures to post on their Instagram and other social media accounts. Having a beautiful interior design, you can also get a free advertisement from your customers.
Cooking and Coffee Making Equipment and Food Supplies
How could you possibly start your cafe business without the cooking and coffee-making equipment? When opening a cafe business, it is important to buy the best and quality cooking and coffee-making equipment that you will use to make the best food for your customers.
As a business owner, you have to consider a wide range selection of kitchen essentials and equipment and several vendors. These are the basic cooking and coffee-making equipment you need and their prices to start the operation of your cafe business:
- Espresso machine – $1,000 – $6,500
- Coffee maker – $500 – $2,500
- Frappe and smoothie blenders – $200 -$500
- Refrigerators or freezers – $4,000 – $6,500
- Ice machine – $1,500 – $3,000
- Foodservice equipment (microwave, toasters, and blenders) – $2,500 – $3,500
- Disposable coffee supplies (paper cups and lids, coffee sleeves, tissue, etc.) – $300 – $500
Aside from the equipment, it would help if you also considered buying high-quality coffee beans and other food supplies such as cake, muffins, sandwiches, pasta, and more, depending on your menu. Don’t have any idea which one to buy? It depends on you as well. You should just be careful with your choices because they can highly affect your business.
Hire and Train Your Employees
One of the most stressful tasks as a business owner is to look for the trusted and the best employees for your food business. Since you are in the food service business, you should hire and train your employees since they will be the front face of your business. They will face your customers, so they need to be trained and learn customer service. You should not only hire and train your employees; of course, as an owner, you should also think about their compensation and benefits. And it will be added to your budget.
Conclusion
Everyone dreams of being a cafe owner but doesn’t know how and where to start. The first question you probably want to ask when you want to build a cafe business is, “how much does it cost to open a cafe?” You can use this blog as a guide to open a cafe business.
Keep in mind that you should be organized and follow your business plan when starting up a new cafe business. After opening your cafe, you should work on building your business’ name and the best service you can offer to your loyal customers.