Espresso Coffee Carts & Kiosks

This excellent resource can help you understand the distinction. In Carts and Kiosk Profitability, the author explains it well with the following:

“There is a lot more space to sell many additional items in a kiosk. For example, the owner has the space to expand into selling items like Italian style sandwiches which require a panini grill. If the menu is extended, it is necessary to have an adequate refrigerator case. Often, they are split in half to accommodate dry goods like cookies, muffins, and brownies; and a refrigerated side for bottled water, juices and sandwiches.”

Also: A kiosk can be designed to extend the beverage options beyond brewed coffee. An ice machine would be needed for smoothies and ice beverages. Burgess pointed out that a kiosk can even be designed with enough space to handle the storage and equipment necessary to accommodate a full service operation. They can even include fold out counter wings for additional work space - or for customers to use.

A cart, on the other hand, is more mobile. It is set on wheels and designed to be transported through doorways, buildings and elevators. It can be used during the week in an office building complex, and weekends at the local sports arena. Flexibility is key with carts.

Keep this in mind as you decide which type of service mechanism you place to work out of. You can configure either one through the “builder” tool we provide. It takes just 10 minutes. Give it a try!

The dream of many of our mobile coffee cart customers is to use our cart to help them start a new life. That’s basically what Terry Rusinow, 58, did when she sold her home and craft gallery in California and began a new life in Portland, OR. Because her route is between a park’s duck pond and off-leash dog area, she named her venture Duck, Duck Brew.

According the the story that originally ran on National Public Radio, “For the last 11 years, Rusinow was the proprietor of a gallery in Healdsburg, Calif., called Options. Now she runs her own coffee stand in Portland.”

The story begins with her facing several challenges. What has happened to her since? If you know, please drop us a line!

By ensuring that consumers can smell your brewing coffee, you are keying into their reptilian brain, explains market researcher Clotaire Rapaille. In a fascinating interview, Rapille explains how to break the primal “code” in order to persuade your consumers to spend:

… Aroma is number one. Why? Because we imprint the aroma first, not the taste. Aroma is imprinted at a very early age, when you are around 2. Ah, and it means home, mother, feeding you, love and so on. A large majority, 90-something percent of Americans, love the aroma of coffee. Only 47 percent like the taste.

In this lengthy article he talks about his company’s process for understanding why a consumer would spend $2 on a cup of coffee that costs you pennies. Violate his observations at your peril!

If you are considering locating your coffee / espresso kiosk in a shopping mall, be sure to factor into your plan that size that you are alotted and the level of security you can count on. Here’s why.

Shopping centers can be extremely exacting about how much space you are allowed. Do you have an allotment that you cannot exceed? For a mall kiosk, it will most often be a 20 feet by 10 feet space, or a 10 by 10. With our Cart Customizer, you can build your cart within those bounds. The same goes for our new Kiosk Customizer.

Another question to ask yourself with a mall site is if it is a secured site. If not, you have to make sure that you have a way to secure the site with panels and locks. This isn’t something you want to realize after you have your cart or kiosk built. It could be far more costly to retrofit your solution than to design it right into it from the start!

Here’s a chance for you to show off your skills as a Barista. This competition is held in Kansas City, MO, and is open to those in North and South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Minnesota, Iowa, and of course, Missouri.

The competition runs January 18 through 20, 2007. The first day is the Midwest Regional Barista Competition (MWRBC) Judges Certification Workshop. The next two days are the actual competition. It promises to be a great time. The hosts are The Roasterie, Inc. The competition will be held at The Boulevard Brewing Co. in Kansas City.

Here is some more information.

According to a National Coffee Association (NCA) report in 2000, nearly 54% American adults drink coffee daily. In addition, another 25% of Americans drink coffee occasionally. These are important statistics to keep in mind as you plan your business. Three out of every four adults, on average, who walk past your location will be in the market for your beverages. And many of those are looking for espresso.

The NCA reported that 18% of the coffee drinkers in the United States drink gourmet coffee beverages daily — that’s a lot of espresso drinks.

A typical coffee drinker averages 3.1 cups of coffee per day, with men drinking slightly more than women.

Many malls invite merchants to lease cart, kiosk, or mall space to someone who wants to set up a kiosk in their mall. Depending where in the mall you’re discussing, the rental costs varies. In addition to rent, some malls might ask for share of your earnings.

As with every other type of retail business, location is everything. Be sure to do a thorough review of traffic before you sign a lease, to make sure this is a business venture that will pay back significant profits on your investment and expenses.