8 Coffee Shop Success Stories [2024]

Pat Walls

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Updated: November 19th, 2023

Start A Coffee Shop

Starting a coffee shop is an exciting and rewarding venture. It's a business that can be started with relatively little capital, and there are many ways to make it profitable. Coffee shops feature a low-cost stock but are profitable businesses.

If you plan to open a coffee shop, you may purchase a franchise, buy an existing business, or start from scratch. Whichever the decision, ensure a strategic location and renovate the space to create an inviting atmosphere. Develop a fantastic offering and begin marketing the business even before you open.

Here are some real life success stories of starting a coffee shop:

1. Camper Cafe ($180K/year)

Beth Baxter co-founded Camper Cafe, a mobile coffee van business, when her partner decided to convert his vintage VW campervan into a trailer for his motorcycles. Baxter suggested putting a coffee machine in the trailer instead, and the idea took off. Now, 11 years later, Camper Cafe is on its sixth mobile coffee unit and supplies major sporting events and works with international brands, generating around £150k in revenue from only 70 days of work per year.

How much they make: $180K/year
How much did it cost to start: $5K
Current team size: 2

We Built A Coffee Shop In A Van That Makes $180K/Year

This case study follows the co-founder of Camper Cafe, a mobile coffee van business which started as a hobby and now has 6 units that supply the UK's biggest sporting events, commercial and film shoots, generating around £150k from working only 70 days of the year.

About

Beth started Camper Cafe almost 13 years ago

Revenue

Beth grew the business to $15K/month

Costs

It cost Beth $5000 to start the business

Read this case study

Read by 5,821 founders

2. Onit Coffee ($630K/year)

How much they make: $630K/year
How much did it cost to start: $120K
Current team size:

From $50 to $1,750 a Day with a Food Truck Business

Onit Coffee is a Sacramento-based coffee food truck that offers vegan and planet-based drinks while donating a portion of their profits to neighborhood organizations.

About

They started Onit Coffee over 4 years ago

Revenue

They grew the business to $52.5K/month

Costs

It cost $120000 to start the business

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Read by 901 founders

So... can you actually make money with a coffee shop?

Of course. There are millions to be made in this industry.

But how?

Research real, profitable businesses and see exactly how much money they make.
Study exactly what works, and what doesn’t.
Take action, because now you have the roadmap.

Join Starter Story and build your next big thing:

Start Now

Part of

Starting A Coffee Shop: Everything You Need To Know

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5. Keurig

Website traffic: 1.96M/month

So... can you actually make money with a coffee shop?

Of course. There are millions to be made in this industry.

But how?

Research real, profitable businesses and see exactly how much money they make.
Study exactly what works, and what doesn’t.
Take action, because now you have the roadmap.

Join Starter Story and build your next big thing:

Start Now

7. Coffee Roaster

We're a specialty coffee roaster with cafes in LA, SF, NYC, and Japan. Come browse our coffee, brewers, accessories, brew guides, and more.

Where they're located: Oakland, California, USA
Website traffic: 360K/month

8. Dutch Bros

Dutch Bros Coffee is a privately held drive-through coffee chain headquartered in Grants Pass, Oregon, United States, with company-owned and franchise locations throughout the western United States.

Where they're located: Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
Website traffic: 1.37M/month