Location demographics
Hi all! I am a hopeful shop owner and I'd like to get some opinions regarding location. One location I'm considering is in a VERY wealthy community, with a 4 or 5 square block downtown shopping area. Lots of car and foot traffic and lots of full service restaurants. The town is encouraging businesses to stay open later and create a more established night life for the area. The other location is in a wealthy (not AS wealthy as the first location) college town. The town is much bigger and more urban, although it already has a few run-of-the-mill coffee shops.
The question I have is what experiences people have had opening a shop in a smaller, wealthy area as opposed to a younger, larger more urban area. Is the sheer volume of people in the more urban area going to outweigh the money and potential to garner a regular following in the more suburban area? Thoughts?
The question I have is what experiences people have had opening a shop in a smaller, wealthy area as opposed to a younger, larger more urban area. Is the sheer volume of people in the more urban area going to outweigh the money and potential to garner a regular following in the more suburban area? Thoughts?
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Tom C on
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Sean,
In part, it depends on your menu. The more affluent neighborhood is going to work better if your menu makes them BEG to leave the $$ in your store. You're going for higher-tickets, not more tickets, and in my experience, that's not a "just-coffee" menu. When I did a store like this, it had a baked goods/full lunch/fancy dessert menu. Target was $20 per cover. It was an art gallery, so even the walls were points of sale. I did stores at a naval base, baseball stadium and a university, and those were all built around foot traffic, a $4-5 per-cover target, and emphasis on up-selling the coffee. Good luck! -
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Permalink Reply by Walt Geminn on
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Based on my experience, I'd have to say the later is your best bet. A rich person isn't going to by more latte's than a college kid. But you WILL need volume to stay alive - trust me.
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Permalink Reply by Christina Martin on
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Sean,
If your still considering locations I may have a location that would interest you. It's beautiful Sedona, AZ. A tourist town in the beautiful red rock country of Northern AZ not more than a 45 minute drive from Flagstaff.
I'm looking to do a coffee/gift shop in a great location that I know will be a huge success. I'm looking for a partner. If this is something of interest to you please don't hesitate to contact me. If not best of luck to you!
Christina Martin -
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