Cute little cafe syndrome
Everyone wants to own a cafe, but only few want to run it
Cafe
Everyone wants to own a cafe, but only few want to run it
I have always wanted to open a cafe. Amy Hoy calls it cute little cafe syndrome. She suggests that people should not follow their passion. 8 out of 10 cafes fail within the first two years.
Amy wrote how Michael Idov opened a cafe and shut it down within six months. He cited lack of margins on food, long working hours, high rent, and absence of high footfalls. He had to downgrade the food, use staler coffee and increase the markup. Still, it did not work out.
He wrote in Slate, “The small cafe connects to the fantasy of throwing a perpetual dinner party, and it cuts deeper — all the way to Barbie tea sets — than any other capitalist urge. To a couple in the throes of the cafe dream, money is almost an afterthought. Which is good, because they’re going to lose a lot of it.”
On the contrary a successful cafe owner Stefan shared how to avoid cafes to fail. One, lower your expectations. It’s not romantic to be on the feet for 12 hours a day and not make money for more than a year. Two, location is important. If there are many cafes already, come up with a unique selling point. Three, having enough money for setting up, running a cafe for a loss and for the daily survival. It’s alright to take the loan.