Internet cafe

[redrob]

I am looking on opening an Internet Cafe in Blackburn or Darwen do you think this would be good do you think it would get used I would like your thoughts on this.

[ethical PR]

Hello

I think it all depends on what sort of research you have done to identify whether there is a market place for your business.

How many competitors are there in your area

What sort of customers do you hope to attract

What sort of premises are available and where

What sort of costs are involved and what sort of profit expectations do you have

Do you have enough funding to set up and run your business for six months - to a year before becoming profitable

[Beachcomber]

I honestly thought the concept of Internet cafe's had passed now that many people can go online via their phone / blackberry. I guess there could be a demand of your service is price competitive with mobile surfing rates like these.

Personally I'd free up the space the PC's take up and get a few more tables in while concentrating on a really good quality cafe.

[Astaroth]

Why Blackburn or Darwen ? What is it about these areas that makes you think that people need an internet cafe?

Why are people going to use an internet cafe at all in these areas and secondly, if they need one, why use yours?

Have to agree that on the whole I think the life of internet cafe's have more or less gone in the UK but there may be some unexploited USPs that could still work. I remember reading of one that was marketed as a "husband/ boyfriend retreat" in a major shopping area.... woman goes shopping and bloke goes to place that has internet, games consoles etc. Seemed an OK idea but no idea on its success

[Beachcomber]

I remember reading of one that was marketed as a "husband/ boyfriend retreat" in a major shopping area....

Husband creche!
Excellent idea!!!

I can see it now - wide screen TV, games consoles, PC's, big sofas, fully licenced bar.....................I suppose dancing girls would be a step too far? ;)

[redrob]

That may not be a bad idea.

These are the ideas I have got

An Internet cafe/College you can have a cake and a cup of tea chat and play games with people online do your college work and take IT lessons so I will as well be offering IT lessons.

or do (Astaroth) idea or if I can get a big enough building do them both.

[Alison Jones]

I am the Managing Director of an internet/gaming cafe.

We mainly opened it for gamers but crazily most of the users want the internet. Majority of our customers have been made redundant and so are job hunting maybe they never bothered having a home computer because they used to be allowed to use the computers at their old job in lunch times and after working hours or have cancelled their home internet connection. Also finding getting people in their lunch hours where they have told me that their companies don't allow internet access for personal use in lunch hours and we are in a fairly small town so not much for someone to do in their lunch time if they don't like shopping (town only has few gift shops, 4 charity shops, and a market a few days a week, newsagents, small supermarket so not a great lot of shops either).

We have other businesses operating from internet/gaming cafe and would say that if you just operate an internet cafe that would be very tough in this currect economic climate. If you have other business ideas that could work from same premises at same time as running internet cafe then that would work.

Alison

[Alison Jones]

quote "and take IT lessons so I will as well be offering IT lessons."

That would work ok for you as long as there is no council funded computer courses in your town where people get these courses at a very subsidized rate - would say any company in competition with this type of course if competing on price would hardly make any profit.

Alison

[redrob]

The only place that offers IT lessons is Blackburn and that is 5 miles away from Darwen.

Another idea I came up wave is when you go shopping we will look after your kids.

[Alison Jones]

Another idea I came up wave is when you go shopping we will look after your kids.[/quote]

Have you looked into all the red tape that goes into looking after children (think there is quite a lot of red tape) and possibly costs involved with this.

Good luck

Alison

[Burden]

There is a big gaming centre that moved from a £15,000 pa unit in Glasgow city not onto Renfield Street area at Central Station at well over £80,000 and is going strong.

Depends your target, costs and planning! like everything.

[Alison Jones]

There is a big gaming centre that moved from a £15,000 pa unit in Glasgow city not onto Renfield Street area at Central Station at well over £80,000 and is going strong.

Depends your target, costs and planning! like everything.

Wow, they must be doing really well.

We are very lucky, we got a fairly big unit at a train station but luckily we don't pay £80,000.

We only be running less than 6 months and we got our unit at a time when the council had finally got around to knocking down a run down shopping arcade and they are in the process of building a new one and advertising for tenants to fill the shops, they are talks that it would be July or September when this completed so will bring back more people to the town (they knocked down a fairly big supermarket in the process and opened with a supermarket about the size of a corner shop so not attracting the same levels of people to the town) so hoping the builders carry on to the right time scales as it will make the town better and attract more shoppers).

Alison

[fisicx]

So you are going to employ someone to run the front desk you are going to teach IT and someone else is going to run a creche.

So that's 3 lots of wages already, CRB checks for everyone, a licence to run a creche, seat licenses for all the OS and other software and of course your rent ans service costs.

[redrob]

These are just ideas to get my head going I am thinking of setting up an arcade room instead of a internet cafe.

[Alison Jones]

These are just ideas to get my head going I am thinking of setting up an arcade room instead of a internet cafe.

Do you mean an arcade room like the ones you get by seaside towns - with the 2p coin drop machines and others aimed at any age or do you mean the type which are for over 18's with just fruit machines.

Have you done any research on this. I know in some towns since the smoking ban and the start of the credit crunch a lot of these fruit machine arcade places have been closing down. One town near me closed and a take away place went in it's place, in another town it has been up for let since the arcade shut down. Another one near me introduced a tanning service into it to stay afloat because the fruit machines were not making enough.

Alison

[StephenW]

You can do this on a shoe string budget using Linux if you want to avoid the OS Licence costs. You will get a certain amount of complaints (a few percent) but if you balence that against the security benifits, cost of dealing with malware etc. it is tempting. I did this for someone in London a few months back.

[jane p]

This was mentioned on the one show tonight.

[Esk247]

crikey..we had an internet cafe with cake munching facilities and wide screen tvs about 5 or 6 years ago when i first started out in the world of internet advertising and such...they lasted a year then disappeared..not sure what the place is doing now but as far as i know we don't have any internet cafe's left in whitby, they were never very successful but then again..seaside town etc people tend to go to the beach rather than stay in.

it needs some serious research.

[redrob]

I have decided not to open an internet cafe but to open an arcade and there is no entertainment in Darwen so I am hoping that the council will allow it

[chrisinit]

I wouldn't of thought Darwen would of been busy enough, i would say Blackburn would be a better bet.

Just my thoughts on the local area.

[redrob]

Yes I now that Darwen is smile but Blackburn has already got two arcades and Darwen has no entertainment so I am hoping this will be a bonus.

[chrisinit]

Yeah, i guess, plus there is a large amount of pubs and clubs.

[ginantonic]

I agree, internet cafes (in most areas) have had their day. As for the IT lessons, you can get them free (government funded) all over the place, so I can't see anyone paying for them. If you're unemployed you qualify for free tuition; if you can afford it, would you seriously go to an internet cafe? Most businesses can also access govt funding to train their staff, so that's another obstacle.
Arcade games? One that has been in our town for years has recently closed down, seems that the credit crunch has even affected inveterate gamblers, too. Then you have the hassle of applying for gaming licences etc. and, I believe you have to have planning permission too, or at least some sort of regulations apply.
The standard cafe is also struggling - I know of several that have closed in the last 3 months; you only have to look on Dalton's or in the local paper to find quite a few for sale.
I wish you good luck in whatever you decide to do, but, please, do your market research thoroughly, or there'll be tears before bedtime...

[redrob]

The credit crunch is affecting everyone but if you build a business in the credit crunch and be successful in it then you have a very strong business if a business close down it doesn't mean that yours will.

[chrisinit]

In these times, in my opinion i would get away from the "Just another business idea" think of something obscure and different, then your onto a winner. Its hard i know!

I offer this advice, however i haven't had any great brainwaves, so take it with a pinch of salt.

[Esk247]

sometimes it doesnt need a new idea..what about an idea thats already out there but needs improving?

[benjamin_c]

with iphones/blackberrys and those usb 3G dongles that give fast internet to any laptop the demand for internet cafe's are declining,
i'd expect a small coffee shop with a relaxed atmospher (sofa's ect) and a simple food menu with sandwiches/salads ect and then have a couple of computers around a table at the back or something and offer free wifi i imagine that would make more cash than a standard internet cafe. i'd say do lots and lots or market research to see how feasable your idea is.

Good luck :)

[redrob]

sometimes it doesnt need a new idea..what about an idea thats already out there but needs improving?



That is quite right that is why I set up an auction website electronicenterprise.co.uk giving you better customer service something that eBay can't give.

[sumodaz]

Following the closure of my internet/gaming cafe, http://www.thegamesfactory.co.uk/photos.html i have desks, computers, smartlaunch licenses, decor for sale. Let me know if your interested, my email address is darren@sumomonkey.com feel free to contact me if you need any advice too.

Darren

[sumodaz]

I always liked the idea of using touch screen technology in cafe tables to place your drink/food order. Who could resist ordering more drinks/food when its just a touch of a button away. Also would get you publicity in local papers.