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Feb 16, 2008 00:33

So, I'm thinking of opening my own coffee shop. Am I insane?

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Comments 12

shaperla February 16 2008, 14:56:23 UTC
Yes, but no more so than usual.

You might want to consider finding a less saturated market for it though. Just a suggestion.

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vengeant February 16 2008, 19:25:34 UTC
In case you haven't noticed, almost every market is saturated; Thanks, Starbucks!

But here in LA, demand is high. People need their caffeine to get their day started.

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vengeant February 16 2008, 19:20:40 UTC
Well, yes, but that's where "small business loans" come in. :-)

I know that's kinda a flippant answer, but it represents the best summation of my thinking on the topic of money for it right now. First off, I'd definitely be looking for a location where the rent wasn't as sky-high as some places. Secondly, I'd definitely be looking for start-up money and for a small business loan (or two), but I'd want to incorporate first, to protect myself from carrying too much liability if my coffee shop didn't work at all and I couldn't repay those loans. But thirdly, and most importantly, I haven't really gotten to the point (yet!) in my planning where I'm hashing out concrete details of loans and financing.

But yeah, I have thought of that. I delegated it to a place farther down the checklist, below "what the fuck am I thinking?"

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theinfamousmom February 16 2008, 21:11:48 UTC
Eeek. The parental units are somewhat leery of transactions like that, precisely because perennially mooching uncle Norm has tried asking us to do it so often.

Still, I'd be the first to stand up and say that Vengeant's a far better candidate than his uncle!

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aylara February 16 2008, 18:30:42 UTC
Didn't you sign papers at Sbucks that said you'd never ever do that?

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vengeant February 16 2008, 19:08:17 UTC
No, the papers I signed at Starbucks said that I wouldn't work at another (non-Starbucks) coffee shop while I worked for them.

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queen_elvis February 16 2008, 23:32:44 UTC
Nah, but you should read everything you can get your hands on about it before you bet the farm. Restaurants often fail. Also, I'd totally drive across town to patronize it if you did (especially if you offered free wireless). And I'd try to see if I could bake for you!

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vengeant February 17 2008, 04:11:19 UTC
I would definitely have free wireless, as soon as I could! (It'd be a great selling point of choosing us over choosing Starbucks where you have to pay for the Internet. :-) And I'd likely let you bake for me, depending on how much you charged for it!

That's half the question here: should I start reading as much as I can about opening a coffee shop, or should I spend my time doing something more immediately productive, such as reading books about getting jobs?

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queen_elvis February 17 2008, 06:19:27 UTC
I guess it depends on how soon your parents are going to want you to get one.

I'd bake for free in exchange for a contract saying I'm not responsible if they suck. But probably not in the volume you'd want.

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kismetrose February 17 2008, 12:47:08 UTC
Owning your own business means not having free time for the foreseeable future. It means putting everything you have, not just monetarily, into the venture. Owning a successful business means making very wise choices, from the inception on down. Opening yet another coffee shop around here does not strike me as particularly viable. But more importantly, I'm not sure you want to give so much of your life over to a business. Get a full time job with lots of overtime for a few years, and if you like that experience, then think about starting your own.

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