How to Start a Coffee Shop with No Money or Experience

Aug. 28, 2020

The coffee shop market is huge. Many of these malls have many coffee shops, several of which are fully operational. Coffee shops not only are serving coffee nowadays. They also have their menu expanded to include pastries, cookies and even full meals. Coffee shops also added new amenities, besides expanding the menu. A decent coffee shop is now expected to offer free Wi-Fi. When laptops and mobile costs decline, both professionals and students can now take advantage of the free internet in coffee shops.

Here are some tips if you are interested in starting a coffee shop:

  • Spend Money and time in search of the best location. When you are up against a well-known coupling, if the market is sufficient to make one coffee shop profitable. On the other hand, you just need to know that customers are overflowing when the rental is provided. Malls for independent coffee shops are usually too expensive and many malls don't even consider accepting a new coffee shop for a tenant. However, a lot of options still exist. Don't depend on work; take the potential market into account instead.

  • Find the correct capacity for good equipment. Cheap equipment does not typically last as long as expensive. But with cheaper equipment that sells just 1/3 of the size, you can evaluate if the difference is worth it. You need to check to know the machine's actual output. 

  • Check the actual abilities. If you take too long to serve a client, the level of service will be significantly affected. Always take the ice crusher production into account. In high-end coffee shops you find the crushed ice is so good the after you have drunken your coffee, almost nothing remains.

  • Boots and supplies for quality coffee. You may not even be able to differentiate among instant coffee and civet coffee, but definitely, the opinion leaders do, and also what they say is the basis for you.

  • Invest your target market in the appropriate atmosphere. The difference in price for most people can be justified by the atmosphere. A location like a coffee shop cannot charge Starbucks's rates to customers.

Get a Coffee Vending Cart


You could spend in coffee carts within a few months based on the success of the first events. Coffee carts are really cheap and only a couple of thousand dollars can be purchased so you won't have to collect the money needed at this point. This bike and box push cart is an example of a low barrier to entry. This inexpensive unit helps you to invest less than $3,000 into the coffee market. There are some nice features such as a tap, which you can add for cold brew coffees and serving basic breakfast products such as muffins or donuts. In consideration of the low cost of this start-up option, this whole investment in less than 10 cases could literally be rewarded. You could pay for your full investment in only 1 to 2 events if you were able to secure a high-quality catering event at a wedding.

You can be inventive by branding such push carts to generate even more income over and above the sale of coffee and pastry. You can start replacing the sign with the name of the bride and bride if you can serve coffee and desserts at a marriage reception. This strategy can also work well at catering events for businesses. Regular signage could be substituted with the corporate logo in these scenarios.

Build a Mobile Coffee Shop Business


The businesses in mobile coffee shops can look quite different. Such a business can be just like a single transportable espresso machine and plastic storehouses full of supplies and utensils to make delicious coffees. You can then simply put the items on your car and place a desk or table on the premises with which you agreed. Mobile coffee shops working in this way also sell their services to other local companies that profit from the coffee they serve in their shops.

Are Low-Cost Coffee Shop options Profitable?


I'll respond to this statement by saying that they can be absolutely. It can appear that with a small coffee cart you could not really make much. However if you examine the situation more carefully, you can see it with this option you could make good money. Sure, with an independent coffee-shop with seat and all benefits, you would be able to supply even more menu items. But here's the point – you must make the various selections for that room, all the equipment and all the supplies. You must also charge the people who run the place daily.

There is no need for a coffee cart to operate it for more than a person or two. You won't have a large menu, and all sorts of ingredients must not be kept on hand all the time. You can actually lose much less and will make up for what you don't get in quantity with the variety. You will have no trouble making a profit if your cart is positioned in a good busy area. While we can't even help you win the jackpot or find a rich uncle to help your business grow, most of the coffee shop owners are good news right now. Many successful coffee shop owners also won't have the cash to start a business. Rather, they asked themselves whether there were some other ways to start the business although they did not currently have the money. Don't worry, if you don't have the money or experience to begin your dreams' coffee shop yet. Instead, follow this 4-step plan to become an entrepreneur who can run a profitable coffee shop.