Why Do People Keep Coming Back to Coffee Shops?

The recent economic recession led to the closure of many well-known brands and companies. But for coffee shops, though some of them had to close some of the branches and lay off a few of their employees, it looked like they were never slapped by the recession at all. People are still coming back to queue up for their favorite coffee drink, whether it's an expensive macchiato or just a simple cup of brewed coffee. Why do people keep coming back to coffee shops? The primary reason is, of course, their product. Aside from alcoholic beverages and water, coffee is one of the most popular drinks in the world. It has a rich taste and aroma that's impossible to resist. If you look at the store's menu, you will be greeted by a wide selection of coffee drinks. From the usual brewed coffee up to frothy frappes, you're sure to find a product that suits your taste buds. But aside from that, people love drinking coffee because of its health benefits. For instance, did you know that caffeine is a natural thermogenic? It has the ability to raise the body's temperature, thereby increasing a person's metabolic rate and then losing unwanted fats. Also, studies show that coffee contains antioxidants. Therefore, drinking coffee may rid your system of unwanted free radicals that cause aging and other diseases such as cancer.

Also, patrons love coming back for the sumptuous pastries, cake, and cookies that these coffee shops offer. They may sometimes come with a hefty price tag, but they taste so good you wouldn't mind the price. Plus, no other bakeshop or store offers them, so you can be sure that these food items are the best. But aside from the coffee and food items these coffee shops serve, another reason why people keep patronizing them is because of their cozy and homey ambiance. Some patrons love the fact that modern-day coffee houses provide a place where friends can hang out and catch up, and a place where a family can spend quality time. Also, for some people, coffee shops are their workplace. Some freelance writers and virtual assistants prefer to stay for hours in a coffee shop. Not only is the Internet for free, but these places can provide a quiet environment where one can type, study, or work undisturbed. If you visit famous coffee places, you'll likely to be greeted by yuppies taking their coffee break, students cramming for exams and periodic tests, and groups of friends having a great chitchat.

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The Nicest Coffee Houses in Vienna

Around the turn of the century and in the interwar period it was considered a center of intellectual life: The Viennese coffeehouse. The atmosphere cannot be compared with other European cafes. It is a place where one can study both domestic and foreign newspapers, play billiards or chess, discuss current events or simply enjoy the public bath. The feature writer Alfred Polgar was correct in stating, "People who go to the coffee house want to be a lone in the company of others."

A brief history of the coffee house in Vienna

According to legend, the Turks left behind sacks of green beans after the second siege in 1683. The people of Vienna had little idea what to do with these beans. Jerzy Franciszek Kulcycki, an officer and interpreter, knew these beans well from his travels to Turkey. He took up their cause and opened the first coffee house. In reality, the first documented coffee house was founded in 1685 by an Armenian named Johannes Diodato, who received the first coffee bar privilege. The new drink quickly gained great popularity and other coffee houses opened. In 1819 there were 150 cafes and, by the turn of the century, the number had increased to around 600. At the end of the 19th century and beginning of the 20th century, cafes were famous for their artists, writers, politicians and scientists who used them for their workplaces. It almost seems as if the lofty intellectual flights of Peter Altenberg, Arthur Schnitzler, Hugo von Hofmannsthal, Sigmund Freud and many others were served alongside a large coffee and a glass of water on a silver platter.

The Viennese coffee houses: A selection

A visit to a coffee house is a part of any trip to Vienna. To enjoy the special atmosphere, one should visit one for at least an hour. Ordering a drink gives every guest the right to stay for however long he or she likes. Below is a small sampling of the more than 500 coffee houses which have largely retained their traditional charm.

Griensteidl
This stylish cafe, with the nickname "Cafe Megalomania" is a legendary literary cafe. Among the artists who have been associated with it are Hugo von Hofmannsthal, Hermann Bahr, Peter Altenberg and Karl Kraus. It was founded by Henry Griensteidl in 1846 but was closed in 1897 because of demolition of the house. Then, in 1990, a new Griensteidl was opened. Red accented Thonet chairs made of black wood dominate the scene. There is a wide selection of dishes and international newspapers.
Michaelerplatz 2, daily from 8am-23.30pm.

Cafe Braunerhof
The Braunerhof is one of the most classic coffee houses in Vienna. The style and atmosphere of the cafe culture have survived there, as well as the traditional unfriendliness of the waiters. There are excellent pastries, a wide selection of newspapers and, on the weekend, live music.
Stallburggasse 2, Monday to Friday, 8am-21pm, Saturday 8am-19pm, Sunday 10am-19pm.


Landtmann
Franz Landtmann opened in 1873, "the most elegant coffee spot of Vienna" and founded along with it a coffee house institution. Sigmund Freud, Marlene Dietrich, Romy Schneider, Paul McCartney and Hillary Clinton have all been guests. The excellent dishes and the excellent cakes can be enjoyed either on the terrace or in the conservatory.
Dr.-Karl-Lueger-Ring 4, daily 8am-24pm.


Cafe Central
The Central was once a favorite haunt of writers and intellectuals. Leon Trotsky, Hugo von Hofmannsthal and Arthur Schnitzler made the cafe a legend. The life-size figure of the author Peter Altenberg which sits at a marble table at the entrance reminds one of the time of the coffee house literaries. The atmosphere is comfortable and the Viennese cuisine comes highly recommended.
Herrengasse 14, Monday to Saturday 7.30am-22pm, 10am-22pm on Sunday.


Cafe Sperl
The Sperl, apart from a restoration in 1983, has remained unchanged since its opening in 1880. It is the most romantic of the Viennese coffee houses and has preserved its fine old character and its unique cafe atmosphere. Even today, it is still a popular meeting place for artists and intellectuals.
Gumpendorfer Str 11, Monday to Saturday 7am-23pm, Sunday, 11am-20pm (in July and August closed on Sundays).


Hawelka
The Hawelka is something of a legend. From its opening in 1939, Mr. Leopold Hawelka welcomed the guests personally and directed them to the 26 marble tables. Artists used to sit on the padded benches until late night. Meanwhile, three generations of Hawelkas have worked in the cafe. The atmosphere and the original Art Nouveau furnishings are largely intact and there are still fresh dumplings at 22 pm. In the past these were baked every night by Josefine Hawelka, but now her son, Genter Hawelka, prepares them from the original recipe.
Dorotheergasse 6, Monday, Wednesday through Saturday from 8am-2am, Sunday from 16pm-2am.

Drinks in the cafe

Simply ordering a "coffee" is a faux pas in Viennese coffee houses. Here is a brief overview of the most popular coffee flavors:

* Large or small brown: large or small cup of coffee with a splash of milk

* Large or small black: coffee without milk

* Coffee wrong: more milk than coffee

* One-horse carriage: mocha served in a glass with whipped cream

* Blend: Coffee with lots of milk, with whipped cream

* Imperial blend: coffee and alcohol mixed with egg yolk

For each coffee, the mandatory glass of tap water will be served.

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The Trendy New Coffee Bars are Standing Room Only

Many of the chain coffee shops have become free office space for laptop loungers. Understanding the cost of space, many coffee shop entrepreneurs have realized that coffee bars are the way to go. It cost less to open a coffee bar with less space requirements than a full blown coffee shop or cafe. Chest high counters offer the perfect amount of space to drink a cappuccino while conversing with other patrons. After all, the coffee bar is for drinking your favorite specialty coffee while having a chat not for having your nose stuck to a laptop for hours while sunk into a comfy chair. In a coffee bar the focus is back on the specialty coffee and the barista. People are there for the coffee and not for a place to simply lounge for half the day connected to Wi Fi. Standing at the counter, interesting conversation flows and camaraderie develops. This leads to a devoted customer base. Customers that buy coffee, drink it, leave and then come back the next day are exactly what the barista and coffee shop owner want and need.

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Coffee Shop Equipment - What Do I Need?

Solid, reliable, coffee shop equipment is one of the key parts of the business if you plan to get into owning and running your own establishment.

The most key part of your coffee shop equipment is of course, your espresso machine. The biggest decision you might have is to whether to employ mainly manual, or automated machines. This may depend on the skills of your baristas and the quality of the coffee. Generally, its thought the manual machines will offer the very best quality with that individual touch making all the difference. So manual will provide entertainment for customers and probably better coffee, but automatic will be useful if you are planning to open a coffee shop when quick turnarounds of customers are needed, say outside a rail station. Hybrid machines, that offer a variety of options are also coming on to the market.

One thing you need to consider when it comes to your machine is what kind of customer support and training you will get from the vendor to operate it. This is a key part of your coffee shop equipment and it is well worth negotiating whatever extras you can get.

Other coffee shop equipment you will need to consider are mundane, yet a big part of the whole experience - the cups and saucers. The expert opinion is that this is one area that you should not be desperate to cut corners on. Sturdy cups will have both the benefit of being re-usable time after time and have a pleasing feel for the customer that they just don't get at home - one of the reasons why they head to a coffee house in the first place. In the long run, they will pay for themselves.

Commercial dishwashers will be another aspect of your coffee shop equipment. These will again be important - customers love cleanliness. Always ask for a demonstration.

Equipping your shop is important but one big thing will make it shine whatever you use - good customer service. Never neglect that!

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Effective Marketing Ideas For Your Coffee Shop

Most of what I am going to talk about in this article is geared towards the new coffee shop. However, it can be utilized and directed towards an established shop.

Outside of your regulars, coffee is an impulse buy because the customer saw your sign. Aside from your regulars, most folks do not set out to 'go to the coffee shop' like they would to a restaurant (unless you ask them to so more on this later). You need a steady stream of customers outside of your normal morning commute business.

The morning commuters are your bread and butter, the rest helps fill in the revenue holes. These are your impulse buyers. They are going to come to you mainly via your sign outside, so instead of sending out 10,000 post cards to your neighborhood residents, spend that money on a premium location, visible sign and branding your image. You'll be glad you did:

As far as your signage, get one that is AS BIG AS POSSIBLE. That is, as allowable by your city ordinance and landlord, without being tacky! The bigger the sign is, the more visible it is.

By branding your image, you are identifying your existence within your community. Be sure you have a unique logo. If you cannot design it, get one custom made by a professional! I have seen a lot of cheap looking logos that do not help the image.


Another step in branding your image is to secure your shop's name on the world wide web by registering the domain name. Try to get all the domain tags: .com, .net, .org, etc. This is for email, and your website. You will be glad you did because it gives you a more professional image. Remember, the more common your business name is, the more difficult getting it registered online is going to be because the name may be taken.

As for your website, get one! If you can do this on your own, more power to you here too. I know just enough to be dangerous but you can get a nice website, even with online sales capabilities done economically. Check around locally, I bet there are a few web gurus in your area.

Here is where you have the chance to have every customer take your name with them when they leave allowing others to see it. Whether you have sleeves custom printed or you use stickers and put one on each cup or protective sleeve, they are all part of your branding. Be sure the design is clear and defines your shop well.

The same goes for stamps. You can have a rubber stamp made to stamp your whole bean coffee bags with. Note that the brown Kraft paper bags are what you'd need for this. If you use the foil bags, your stickers will work well for this too.

Press releases are an inexpensive way to tell the world what you are doing. A carefully crafted press release sent to the right person at the right news outlet can be the best form of advertising for you. Just be sure that whomever is on the press release as the contact person is actually available to be contacted.

Another great form of marketing is your use of tee shirts, caps and other wearable's. These are walking billboards for you courtesy of the folks that buy them. You can give them away if you want, it's all good advertising. Yes, they are expensive but I consider this great advertising and an expense under that category. Better, yes if you can make up the cost on them. But put this cost into your advertising budget. See if you can get them locally, if not there are several reputable companies on the internet. You will pay about $15.00 each in the end, but again the investment is very well worth it.

Where would we be without business cards? Think about it: how many people have you run into that do not have a business card for whatever it is they do for a living? Not many that I can remember. This is your time to tell everyone you meet that you are in the coffee business. Everyone you meet should get one of these and a few to spare. Do not be shy about handing them out!

Menus are a great example of simple marketing. These are the take out type so try to keep it simple. Under four pages, printed on an 8.5"x11" sheet of BRIGHT colored paper and folded in half is best. You can leave them at area businesses if they allow it. You can also put them on your counter by the checkout and anywhere else your customers will see and take them. You can have them copied at any copy place, or see if you can have a local copy shop do them. They should cost about .10-.15 cents each. All you need is a place to make them on a copy machine. Menus printed on a printing press will be more expensive in most cases.

Support materials are also a good way to advertise your products. You can usually get POS materials FREE from any supplier you are using. This goes for tent cards to put on your counter to full color posters to hang in your windows. Check with your distributor. If they do not keep these kinds of materials on hand, a call to the manufacturer can usually get them in your hands relatively quickly.

Vinyl lettering on your vehicle is another form of advertising, and another type of moving billboard. There are several places online that will allow you to use a particular vehicle template to design your lettering. Again, check around locally for better service and pricing. I had vehicle lettering made for my SUV: rear window and both rear side windows or under $100.00. Your vehicle will essentially become a moving billboard.

Vinyl lettering can be gotten for your store windows too, which will be similar to your vehicle lettering. Check with the same source.

Word of mouth is an excellent source of marketing. Customers can be your biggest and best marketing source for you. It can also backfire on you if you tick someone off or if a customer ends up having a bad experience at your shop, for whatever reason.

Make every effort that all customers are satisfied before they walk out of your door. You may never have the chance to do it again and everyone that that dissatisfied customer meets may be told of the unfortunate incident at your store. They may not come to your store if there was ever that chance they would.

Talk to the world online via your blog. This has got to be the best invention since a website and the internet itself started. Where else can you talk about nearly anything and let the world read it? You may just develop a following not only locally, but around the world.


Have event nights. This is great for weekends and 'dead' times. Earlier, I spoke about customers coming to your shop if you asked them to. This is where you have that chance. Events that will bring in business are almost plentiful. A few examples are trivia night, open mikes, singer-songwriter and other music performances, book signings and poetry. It can also be just about anything else you can think of that is of interest to others.

A word of caution about playing DVD's and TV/cable shows: Most of these are copyright protected and although you may not think you are breaking any laws, it can be construed as such. It's a royalty issue because you are making money on your beverages, in your establishment showing a DVD bought for 'personal' use. Just be careful here.

It's been my experience that this coupon mailers are usually a waste of money in the specialty coffee industry. There are way too many coupons in most of these mailers and most recipients throw them out. I know I do.

Internet advertising is good if you can limit to advertising locally using your zip code. You can reach a captive audience on the internet. It's relatively inexpensive because you choose what to spend on each ad and only pay per click. This is also good if you choose to sell whole beans online, however if you do not roast in-house this may be cost and inventory prohibitive.

Be careful when using coupons in any form. Coupons tend to cheapen the specialty coffee industry so I do not recommend using them. Bogo's (buy one get one) are ok for some advertising, like opening a new coffee shop but, you will get your bargain seekers that wait for those coupons in order to patronize you. You could create more monsters!

You will also, occasionally get regulars that bring in the coupons. Even though they are as deserving of the coupon as anyone else is, your aim is to get NEW customers so the 'coupon' doesn't always work. The only way I recommend a coupon is for a first time customer. You can usually get mailing addresses of new residents from your chamber of commerce and do a select, targeted mailing to the new residents only. So there are some easy, mostly economic ways to effectively advertise and market your coffee shop.

Remember, your customer service and quality will always have to be top notch but you can skimp on some advertising dollars by being crafty and conservative.

Tony DiCorpo is a coffee shop owner, operator, barista and entrepreneur. He is also a coffee shop business consultant. He has authored many articles on the specialty coffee business and a business plan package that can be found at [http://www.tonys-coffee-shop-business-plan.com]tonys-coffee-shop-business-plan.com

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Starting A Coffee Shop

Coffee is one of the fastest growing industries, and high class coffee shops are proof. Who would have thought that millions of people would go out of their way to spend $5 on one cup of coffee each? But they do, and they do it every day! Clearly, starting up your own coffee shop could be just the money maker you’ve been dreaming of!

Reasons to Start a Coffee Shop

The first thing you want to do is make sure that starting a coffee shop is a venture you are not only willing to follow through on setting up, but also one that will bring you happiness for years to come. If you’ve dreamed of owning your own business, sit down and brainstorm about the many types of businesses you could open. Let the final decision be driven by your passions in life as well as your belief that you can succeed with your chosen niche.

Some of the advantages of starting a coffee shop include:

* A warm, friendly environment
* Meeting interesting people, a culture cross-section
* Coffee shops are increasingly popular
* “Free” coffee any time you want it!
* A relaxed atmosphere with customers usually in good spirits

Planning and Preparation

Now that you’ve concluded that a coffee shop is the type of business you’d like to start up, you’ll need to keep in mind that (just as is true with any business) a lot of planning and preparation must be done before your grand opening!

You must:

* Make sure you are financially ready
* Apply for a business license
* Apply for a small business loan
* Register your business name with the trademark office
* Hire a staff for building and designing the shop
* Hire a staff for running the shop
* Project how much you expect to make

Calculate what you’ll need:

* Daily supplies
* Equipment
* Building and furnishings
* Advertising and marketing
* Staffing

You Should Build Your Shop:

* In a high income district/area for better profits
* In an area where competition is scarce
* In a location that is easy to find (in a busy area, like a
plaza, mall, mini-mall or main business strip)
NOTE: Do your research before you choose where to build!

Budgeting

Just because you might not have a lot of money to invest, does not mean you cannot get started. Just keep in mind that follow-through and caution are very important. You must sit down and be realistic about how much everything is going to cost you, and be sure that you get a loan that will cover you enough to get your shop off the ground.

Once you’ve calculated this, bear in mind that you’ll need to pay off the loan (assuming you didn’t already have the money in the bank to get started). Being realistic is worth stressing again!

Some things you can do to save money include:

* Choosing a small shop to start with, and relocate once you
grow
* Getting a great deal on the lease
* Getting an inexpensive, low interest rate mortgage on a small
property instead of a lease
* Buying an existing shop with equipment pre-included
* Buying supplies in bulk
* Have one or more business partners and investors
* Look into government grants, tax breaks and so on, for small
business start-ups
* Instead of hiring an advertising agency, consider having a
business partner manage your marketing
* Have business sign & wall artwork designed by art students at
a local college or university

Be Ready for a Slow Start

It’s important to remember that when you begin, profits may be dismal. It will be a struggle until the branding resulting from your proper marketing strategies begins to kick into full force. With that in mind, start with a smaller staff, fewer supplies—and fewer bells and whistles. Once things pick up, you will see an excellent return on your investment if you planned properly.




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10 Unusual Uses for Coffee

Coffee is very useful for a whole host of different things that you just would not think about. From using as an ant killer to making compost, cleaning drains to cleaning greasy ashtrays, you will be amazed just what ordinary coffee that you have at home can be used for. Here is my top 10 favourites.

1. To get rid of ants put used coffee grounds onto the ant hills, this will have to be done for each hill as the pesky things will move to another home.

2. Kitchen drains tend to get smelly, simply get a cup of coffee grounds and tip down the plughole making sure you tip a kettle of boiling water down slowly & leave to work on the odours

3. For a quick fix on fabrics soak garment in strong black unsugared coffee, this is an inexpensive way to dye clothes brown in an emergency but remember it will not be colour fast.

4. Coffee grounds can be used to clean any stain resistant surface, it has a mild & gentle abrasive element & smells fresh too, particularly good for smelly ashtrays and greasy surfaces.

5. To help plants to flourish add coffee to your soil, this is best done in small amounts of soil so you can add 1 cup of lime to balance acidity if need be, another way is to empty it straight onto your compost pile with other kitchen waste.

6. Fishermen, when transporting maggots & worms put them in a container with moist coffee grounds & they will be easier to pick up when you need them & they also like coffee as much as we do so it will make them live longer too.

7. Coffee can be used as an odour neutraliser if there is a powercut & the food in the freezer defrosts & goes off, simply fill a bowl or two with new or used coffee & leave in the freezer over night.

8. When it comes to cleaning/sweeping out open fires sprinkle some used coffee grounds over the hearth or wherever you have to clean & it will sweep up easier & stop the coal dust from rising up in your room so better for environment.

9. Gardeners if you grow carrots add some coffee to your seeds before sowing, not only does this make the seeds easier to sow, the smell also repels root maggots & other pests allowing for thicker juicy carrots.

10. Many people take exception to neighbours cats using their garden as a toilet, a mixture of used coffee grounds and & orange peel put round plants and in beds you want left alone will provide a pungent smell that cats do not like and so will find someone else's garden to use.

All of the above tips are great ways to use up all the used coffee grounds that would otherwise just be put down the drain or in the bin, why not put it to good use.

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