Coffee Shop

3 Coffee Shop Success Stories [2024]

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Updated: July 23rd, 2024

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.

In this list, you'll find real-world coffee shop success stories and very profitable examples of starting a coffee shop that makes money.

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 money it makes: $180K/year
How much did it cost to start: $5K
How many people on the team: 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.

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2. Momentum Coffee and Coworking ($156K/year)

Tracy G. Powell and Nikki Bravo founded Momentum Coffee and Coworking in May 2020 with the goal of creating an affordable co-working space for underrepresented entrepreneurs in Chicago. Despite facing challenges during the pandemic, their strong relationships with customers, intentional partnerships, and active social media presence have helped them attract and retain customers, with their revenue reaching $17-20k per month.

How much money it makes: $156K/year
How much did it cost to start: $200K
How many people on the team: 4

How We Started A $13K/Month Coffee Shop And Coworking Space

Chicago based Ignite Technology and Innovation-owned Momentum Coffee & Coworking, which focuses on coffee, coworking, community, and event space, rakes in about $17-20k a month in revenue, mostly from online and offline advertising, and just celebrated their first anniversary, with plans to open 2 more locations in Chicago in under-resourced communities.

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3. Fernweh ($36K/year)

Courtney, the founder of Fernweh, came up with the idea for her coffee subscription service after recognizing a gap in the market for featuring multiple coffee roasters in New Zealand. She saw an opportunity to offer customers a unique experience by showcasing different roasters each month and providing background stories. Despite facing challenges in the beginning, Courtney's business has grown steadily and now runs smoothly, attracting customers through the uniqueness of the subscriptions and support from marketing efforts such as Google ads, SEO, and collaborations with magazines.

How much money it makes: $36K/year
How much did it cost to start: $550
How many people on the team: 0

On Starting A Coffee Subscription Service As A Side Hustle

New Zealand-based Fernweh is a subscription service that offers subscribers a new coffee roaster featured in the country each month, delivering coffee, tasting notes, and a story about the producer in a unique package for around $40 a month.

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