Shoot me down....

[ChrisManc]

Hi Folks,

Newly registered as I've had a little startup idea I can't get out of my head and this seems like a decent forum for obtaining advice/feedback etc.

Was thinking about setting up a mobile Coffee stop nearby my local commuter raiilway station. It's at a T junction and only one of the roads has a coffee shop on it, being a good 5 minute walk away in a relatively affluent part of town.

I'd looked at converting a smart car (myself) to run from the boot but thought there is probably simpler and cheaper ways of testing the water, hand carts, pop up stand etc and wondered if anyone had any advice before I set any wheels in motion or had done this type of thing before? (I've done a bit of research into what's needed to setup in terms of licensing but haven't found anything too offputting as yet!)

I'm not expecting mega bucks, just want to get something up and running with the potential to expand (across other stations, private events etc) if we desired. I'm aiming to do all the work initially alongside my day job, primarily picking up the morning commuters and if successful handing across to my wife to manage.

Thoughts appreciated!

 

[FirstClassVirtualOffice]

I would advise you check with the Council to see what locations you can operate from. Some towns and cities have restrictions for where you can park up and sell. If the location isn't right then it won't make the money you need.

 

[PipeTen-Carl]

Other than the well made point about council limitations and street vendor licensing costs... Can you run a high pressure coffee machine, fridges, warm water hand-washing facilities and such from a smart cars 12V without a noisy and costly to run engine/generator? (Not saying you can't, I just don't know).

 

[ChrisManc]

I've queried with the council on my desired patch so will hopefully hear back one way or the other in the next week....it all hinges on their response!
On the Smart Car front, that would be further down the line, initially I'm thinking just a little mobile stand/cart with enough room for the machine to pilot the idea and see how viable it is.
I've seen conversions for the boot which sounds like they run from gas, but have been looking at the possibility of borrowing/hiring a quiet (silent if they exist) generator for the purpose of the pilot.
I hadn't considered the prospect of the hand washing and refrigeration facilities at all, that may be a spanner in the works.

 

[PipeTen-Carl]

Thinking more, maybe these things can run off gas? Not sure how burger vans do it, though they tend to have trailer size to be more accommodating.

 

[Chris Ashdown]

I'm sure you could pick up a second hand small trailer and make it work if allowed to park and the parking charges were not to big, don't forget the council will want a fee for sighting on any of their land or road and the station would require the same for its land

You could talk to the station manager who might have some idea's or knowledge of what you could do on their property or even somewhere you could store your equipment when not operating

 

[bowcot84]

Have you thought about a tuk-tuk? There's a guy runs a coffee tuk-tuk on the beach near us; word on the street is that he makes a killing! Whoever converted that must have thought about hygiene facilities etc.

And think you're on a hiding to nothing trying to put it on railway property. I used to work for a train company and the contracts around refreshment provision were pretty sewn up. The tenants would get very uppity about competitors on their turf. So on streets nearby would be a better bet.