Location ideas for new coffee shop site - Your thoughts

[cortadoman]

Good morning all..

We are investigating the idea of a new coffee venture in London. The idea is simple: quality espresso drinks matched with simple tasty food in a smart yet unpretentious environment. Easier said than done.. haha

Anyway, we all know that many areas about London are crying out for decent coffee and there are geographic areas of potential all across this fair city.

We thought, given the expertise and local knowledge of TMC users, that we'd pop the quetion on here to gather some of your highly regarded comments.

So the main question is:
What areas of London are screaming out for a decent coffee shop? and in your opinion, Do these areas offer a good diverse market of quality coffee drinkers?

It would be great to hear your thoughts...

Cheers
J

[smoocher]

where are you looking to open, clapham?

[kingseven]

For me South, South West and West London don't have a lot in the way of great coffee places though obviously could comfortable sustain one. Whether people set aside enough into their budget to build up their business during the first months, without giving in to the pressure of compromise of offer and quality is a whole other thing. With higher rents places like West London obviously apply that pressure much harder, which is one of the reasons that I think the East has a relatively higher number of high quality, interesting cafes. But I could be wrong.

[cortadoman]

Thanks for your feedback guys...

There certainly seems to be little offered in the West, and South West areas.

I am wondering if this is due to factors unknown to those who have not tried themselves?

I wonder why is there such a concentration in the East? Is it the low rents alone or is the palate of Eastern based dwellers typically more given to quality espresso?

Agreed that there is much more to the formula other than good espresso. Managing finances in the early stages being paramount.

Great stuff guys. All your comments are appreciated.

J

[GMRK]

Southfields or Wimbledon?

Both have a large Kiwi/Aussie/South African population which might provide some sort of ready made market for a 'proper' coffee outlet.

Both are fairly well-heeled areas, Southfields has a sort-of villagey feel to it, Wimbledon has a large no. of commuters passing through every day.

[Gouezeri]

Definitely South & SW in my experience. Places like Clapham have plenty of good small restaurants, but no decent independent coffee bars. A good number of local Antip residents is also to be recommended as they tend to have a good idea of what coffee should taste like, and seem less drawn towards the chains.

[Bombcup]

I think if you build it they will come. There are a few excellent coffee bars in the most unlikely places. People love the idea of 'their' coffee shop that you have to seek out but rewards the effort with top quality product. I would thoroughly recommend you go and visit Franco Manca's Pizzeria in Brixton indoor market as an example.

[smoocher]

seriously though don't fucking pander to antipodean taste though. we're in england.

[Jasonscheltus]

seriously though don't fucking pander to antipodean taste though. we're in england.

i actually agree with you

australian's make a whole lot of noise about how awesome they are at espresso, but the truth is that there really isn't that much good espresso down under. Very soon London will have more good coffee than Melbourne or Sydney, it's probably time to embrace that a little.

[EspressoSquirrel]

well you can't say all Australians have the same taste in coffee, good or bad. But I wouldn't build a business on that anyway.

i used to live in southfields, nice area, (very antipodean) the high street is tiny, and if i remember correctly about 3 places to buy coffee from, including 1 starbucks, and a very nice deli, that did a relatively decent coffee, nothing special. What i am saying is although it would be a nice place to set up, and you would get a boost each year with the massive Wimbledon tennis traffic (its closer to the tennis club than Wimbledon!) I think it would be quite difficult to get a lot of traffic through there in the day, its quite residential.

Wimbledon itself is a bit like any town centre, full of chains, although the village is very nice, lots of nice restaurants and bars. But sometimes in someways i suppose its better to be around places that are already successful, no point in opening in an area that obviously has no customers.

v

[smoocher]

reviewing my last post, it read a little angsty. i don't dislike antipodeans. and i even know some that i could even possibly consider friends if i was feeling like it.
Dose, TOBL, flatwhite etc etc etc are all amamamamamamamazing and if it wasn't for them the london coffee scene wouldn't be at the standard it is now.
HOWEVER, i don't understand why people feel they all have to be offering flat whites, and bircher museli and fucking vegemite when they're a) not antipodean b) acting as if we're in australia c) we have bovril. if something's superior like the flatwhite and you feel you can pull it off then by all means go for it but i don't like people doing things for the sake of it. and likewise i don't like the idea of opening in places because they have a large antipodean population as if they're a higher consumer that we must somehow cater to or impress.
i think this mostly all stems from spending too much time in milkbar and having to listen to some of their forthright customers. to re-iterate. definitely no beef with antipodeans, just their vegemite.

[kingseven]

I'd agree that it is hard to deny the positive impact of the antipodean on London's coffee, though it has been interesting to talk to them after they've spent a while here and then go back to reassess the coffee in Australia/NZ. Most are a little disappointed, reality not quite living up to memory. I really want to visit Melbourne, Perth, Sydney and NZ to taste and see for myself exactly what the coffee culture is like. I do now have preconceptions, but I'd feel a bit weird sharing them on here.

[Gouezeri]

I couldn't agree more about London being able to shout about all the great places that it now has, and the culture that is starting to develop. I think it is still very much in its infancy though. Do we really have our own identity, our own style yet? Which is not to say we should copy! I'm just curious.


I don't think that there should be any pandering for the antips at all, nor should we be looking to recreate a Melbourn style environment. I'm not a fan of either the hype nor the drink when it comes to flat whites.

However, in my experience, they do seem to have a better understanding of what makes a decent coffee and there is a definite sense of community. I've no idea how typical this is, it's purely based on all the antips I hang out with in the SW area (and there's plenty of em!). Maybe I just hang out with a weird crowd They definitely have a better idea of what coffee should taste like, rather than the absolutely f'in awful stuff I've been drinking all week in France.

Surely when starting a new business it helps if there is already a keen customer base present that may appreciate what you are trying to do? I don't think this means you have to pander to them, as long as your product speaks for itself! People are increasingly willing to go the distance to get a decent coffee, but building up this reputation takes time and an already present core local market is bound to help in those early months.

[Bombcup]

I reckon you could close your eyes, stick a pin in a map of London and find yourself slap-bang in the middle of a whole bunch of discerning customers. It doesn't seem to matter whether you're in Kensington or Kennington, there will be people who will appreciate a well run high quality coffee shop and use it in preference to a chain store.

I have spent more hours than is probably healthy daydreaming about this and my current unqualified brain seepage is that I would prioritise footfall followed by the value of the rent with regard to quality of retail space. Specifically though, location-wise; avoid south london, it's a shit-hole.

[GMRK]

Specifically though, location-wise; avoid south london, it's a shit-hole.

Oh come on that's such a generalisation.