Simple Coffee Co. || The How — Where to Start Opening a Brick and Mortar Shop
Last year, I published a blog post about “the why” behind Simple Coffee Co. It was a strange leap, seemingly, from fashion writer and work from home mom to cafe owner (although I’m still those other things too), and I wanted to connect the dots and share my vision behind the space that we created. Although big picture, creative writing is my favorite, it’s time to share the nitty gritty behind our opening. I’ve gotten lots of questions from hopeful entrepreneurs asking for practical steps for opening their own brick and mortar shop, and this post will hopefully answer some of those questions. It’s pretty specific to opening a shop with a physical location — online-only or businesses are much different, of course. These tips aren’t only relevant to opening a coffee shop, although they’re written through that lens because it’s what I know.
With location number two open about a year and a half after the OG Simple (as of last Saturday!) and a wealth of lessons learned along the way, I hope my experience can be helpful and inspiring to any of you with your own dreams of business ownership.
Once upon a time…Simple Coffee was born:
Our “Numbers”
I’m sharing these figures first because I’m a firm believer that traditional business ideas can come to fruition in “non-traditional” ways. You don’t have to go into massive debt via business loans and start up investors to get your dream off the ground. You can do it in non-conventional ways, and be just as successful. This was our path, but your path likely won’t look the same. I do, however, think it’s insanely helpful to read stories from fellow entrepreneurs simply for the solidarity of knowing your journey isn’t entirely unique.
We, in every sense of the word, “made do”. We couldn’t afford many of the things that coffee shops I admired started out with (shiny commercial refrigerators, state of the art espresso machines, and spotless finishes). We found a 100 year old building (via a Facebook Marketplace DM) that needed tons of TLC, looked for cheap options for pieces of equipment that didn’t need to be brand new, and DIY-ed the majority of our space.
Here was our path:
For location #1, our start up costs were $25k. This is very low for a coffee shop (keep in mind, our space is about 300 square feet — we don’t have dine-in seating, so this saved us a considerable amount). When I originally ran our numbers for a space that didn’t come to fruition, it was closer to $60k. You don’t need a huge influx of cash to open a brick and mortar, you just need to be creative with how you spend your existing capital.
The majority of this went to sourcing equipment. Coffee equipment isn’t cheap (and we still were able to get around traditional commercial coffee prices…an espresso machine can run you $15k or more.)
My dad and AJ did the entire build out for FREE. This was huge for saving money. If you don’t have a contractor for a father, don’t be afraid to reach out to connections you might have and strike a deal. Anywhere you can save yourself some cash will pay off.
The rest went to inventory and licensing fees. See below for more info on both of those things.
The period from lease signing to opening was two months. We moved extremely fast because, although I had 6 months operating costs built into our startup costs (another recommended to-do item), we wanted to save as much money as we could and begin making an income ASAP.
We raised money in a variety of ways. Keep in mind, we were living in an RV at the time. I had ZERO dollars saved up to personally invest and we didn’t receive any magical donation or freebies. I approached two “personal” investors who were family friends for an equal, small loan of 5k each. We applied for a local business loan from a small lender and were approved for 11K (this was our biggest monthly expense and, honestly, I wish we didn’t need to get a traditional loan because of the negative credit score impacts, etc. But it was our only option at the time). The rest of the funds were raised through a “crowd-lending” platform called Kiva where friends, family, and lenders around the world can invest in your business idea. I highly recommend them to any mission-based, creative business venture. (An aside: if you’re a woman or a POC seeking to open a business, there are tons of resources at your disposal. Grants, loans, mentorship-programs, etc — take advantage of any local or nationwide programs you can apply for.)
Start with a traditional business plan, even if you don’t use it officially
This is usually the step that makes creative people cringe. We love dreaming big and conceptualizing and creating pretty things. Business plans are messy, full of “maybe’s”, number crunching, and are always subject to change. However, in my experience, and in conversations with other business owners further down the line than I am, forcing yourself to go through the process of writing up a business plan is incredibly helpful for your your business when it comes to fruition. You’ll have to think through every aspect of opening: where will your startup funds come from? How much will you need? What will your monthly expenses average out to? What is your starting inventory/equipment list? Menu? What kind of space will you occupy? What will your hours be? Who is your competition? All these things are overwhelming to think about but are 100% necessary when opening a business that fills a void and lasts.
For me, I developed our business plan years before we ever opened. And of course, it changed over time, but forcing myself to sit down (I used a template I found online - you don’t have to start from scratch) and work numbers, build out a space in my mind, and picture what Simple Coffee Co. could look like was critical to being able to push start on the idea later on. It also is hugely helpful for presenting to investors/lenders if you’re going to need any kind of start up capital that isn’t self-funded.
3. Research permits for your state/county/town ahead of time
Regardless of the style of business you’re running, if you’re doing it out of any sort of physical location, you’ll need state-sanctioned permits/licenses before you open. If you’re prepared for these things ahead of time, you’ll be much less stressed when it comes time to purchase said licenses. In Simple’s instance, we have a Limited Restaurant License that we renew yearly through the Health Department, in addition to our “C-Corp” status, and other business permits.
4. Chat with an accountant
I met with an accountant prior to opening to get advice on what kind of business we should register as (LLC, Corporation, Sole Proprietorship, etc…) and without that insight, I wouldn’t have known where to begin. They’ll be able to help you determine how often you’ll need to file taxes, other budgeting questions, and more. (Full disclosure, I haven’t met with an accountant since, and I sorely regret it).
5. Write down your end goal and work backwards in small steps
Having your end goal in mind with every decision you make will help you stay focused and not get lost in the myriad of choices you’ll have to make. For me, simplicity ruled over all. Our goal in everything is to pare it down to the essentials, without sacrificing quality, aesthetics, sustainability, or approachability. These core “values” make us who we are and, when filtered through that lens, make everyday decisions much easier to make.
6. Look at what other successful shops in your niche are doing and don’t be scared to reach out
Let me be very clear here: you’re only copying when you don’t infuse your own vision into what you’re doing. If you’re blatantly using someone else’s idea without making it your own, that’s a problem. Conversely, there’s nothing wrong with building on the wisdom/experience of those you admire who have gone before you. I reached out to every coffee shop I could find who used jars instead of paper/plastic before deciding to commit to the idea. Some were unresponsive and unhelpful, but the vast majority were enthusiastic that their message was spreading and that they were making a difference. Since then, I’ve had more entrepreneurs than I can count reach out to us asking how to make a low-waste cafe a reality…this is how movements begin.
7. Create a visual mood board
Aesthetically, you might know exactly what you want, or you might be starting from scratch. Really, it won’t matter until you have your location secured. From there, you can determine your bar flow, layout, decor, seating, etc. Now that we’ve opened two spaces, I can speak to the vastly different experience of opening a space from “scratch” (ie. a blank slate with nothing finished where I had complete creative control) and rebranding an already built out space (ie. using what is already existing in a space and making it your own).
Utilize visual inspiration from places like Pinterest and Instagram and don’t be afraid to make a space your own. We got extremely creative with materials for both spaces, using mostly found, gifted, and repurposed materials to build out the space. My dad is a contractor and my husband works in construction, so we were well equipped to build the space ourselves. If you have to hire help, don’t be afraid to be “pushy” about making the space your own. You’ll thank yourself later on.
8. Adapt as you go
Nearly every role in life requires flexibility, but none more than in opening your own business (maybe other than marriage…). Make a list of your “non-negotiable’s” and then prepare to be flexible with the rest. Rarely does anything go exactly according to plan, but it doesn’t mean that you can’t have your dream business with a few adaptations along the way.
For example, when we signed the lease at our first location, it was for a drive-thru/walk-up space. I was planning to have at least one child with me at all times (Aria was 4 months old when we signed the lease), and wanted to be able to utilize our small space efficiently without making my kids resent being there, and that meant not allowing walk-in customers. However, the day after we signed the lease, we were made aware that the person who owned a few feet of the driveway we’d be using (not our landlord) was uncomfortable with us using that space for customer vehicles. There was no other drive-thru potential, and so we were forced to redo our entire floor plan and vision for the space in a matter of days. We built a bar allowing a few barstools and extra space in back for my kids. It wasn’t the open concept drive-thru shop I’d envisioned for the space, but it turned out to be even better letting people come in and experiencing Simple Coffee from the inside. Your flexibility (while holding true to your values) might be your biggest strength as a business owner.
There you have it! My sage advice after a year and a half of business ownership ;) Don’t take my word for any of it though — the more you research, the more questions you ask, and the more people you ask to help you along the way, the better your plan will be and the greater your chances of success.
Do you have dreams of opening your own shop? Tell me about it below! And if I missed any questions, feel free to add them below and I’ll update my post.
Keep up to date with our shenanigans at the coffee shop via our Instagram here. All images, except the jar, were from the beautifully talented Hayley Gaertner. Check her out here!
