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Permalink Reply by Benza Lance on April 30, 2009 at 11:06am

Sean
Alot of when the slow/busy times are depends on the temperature outside... not a big surprise there. Unless its deathly cold/windy as hell/undriveable, when its on the chilly side, thats where I see the most business. Its coffee weather, man! Since you're in the Chicago area, if you opened right at the start of the fall, it would most likely slowly ramp up to the busy season, which is cold weather and, coincidently, hella people shopping for the holidays.
Summers, atleast in my area (northern california valley), is sort of dismal, but then again, it shoots up to 110, dry as sin in the july/august time.
So yeah.

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Permalink Reply by Bryan Wray on April 30, 2009 at 12:48pm

Summer is generally the "slow time" for the coffee biz. That's very general though.

Other slow times are January when everyone is on their resolutions. I work at a shop surrounded by universities so spring breaks, winter breaks and summer are slow times for us, where mid-terms and finals are the packed out times.

-bry

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Permalink Reply by Denise Smith on May 17, 2009 at 9:23pm

I'm in Tullahoma TN the weather is about to change, or just did, or will in the the next few hours... nothing around here is based on the weather (except mowing the grass) or we'd never get anything done.

Seriously the economy or the perceived economy is more of an effect as is the activities of the coffee house goers. This is the end of the school year, the local collage is already out and business folks are focused on gas prices and spring fever. We got a few days of sunshine after months of rain.
Most are focused on the innumerable events and activities this time of year and the gas prices.
If gas prices go up too high they limit their driving and only a stop on their way somewhere. Sometimes though we are the entertainment or the special treat... the destination.

We have a sweet father who lets his kids save up their coins and they ask him to come to our place at the end of the week. It's usually very late and last time it was actually a half hour after we had closed but someone had not locked the door yet because the tables and chairs on the deck had not been brought in. We hadn't counted out the cash drawer so we went back in and pulled it back out, served them all their gelato orders and sent the remainder of the airpot of Velvet Hammer upstairs with the Dad to the game room. About half an hour later they all came back down laughing and smiling and talking about the chess game.
It was a wonderful ending to the lowest sales week to date!
Community, that is why we are here! (sorry I got off topic)

Know why your opening (money, fun , community), know your target market (who will buy your coffee), do a business plan (do not skip this step even though it will be the biggest pain in the backside and take forever), check the traffic patterns (who drives by the location, what sort of folks? the type that can't even afford to fix their mufflers or the sort who can afford coffee... how many how often? what times of day?). Are there marketing events or venues that will help you launch your opening like handing out free coffee or hot cocoa coupons at the Christmas parade or gift cards for Project Graduation. How will you get the word out (do not think it will just happen on it's own!) Budget for marketing, budget for landscaping, budget for a slush fund for all the things you will forget even though you did a business plan... whatever you plan for... double and triple it, both time and money.
Life will not live by your business plan like a script and there are no stunt doubles.

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