Bonnie Brewer and Stacy Kim were college roommates. While at school, they shared dreams of opening their own business. To prepare themselves, they took business and marketing courses, along with courses in management. When they graduated, they each found jobs in Seattle, near where they’d gone to school. Several years later, after working at other companies to gain experience, the two women decided to take the plunge together and made a plan to open a small café where they and their customers could indulge their love of good coffee and fine chocolate. They looked at two locations for their café: one near Pike Place Market, which gets a lot of foot traffic from shoppers and businesspeople, and one near the university, where shops and restaurants are patronized by students, faculty, staff, and local residents. They chose the university location because they thought they knew and understood those customers well. The doors to Custom Coffee & Chocolate opened several months later, with both Brewer and Kim working hard to serve unique coffee blends and specialty chocolates, maintain the shop, and handle the finances. Custom Coffee & Chocolate’s business plan included purchasing only fair trade coffee (priced to provide living wages to coffee growers) and chocolates made by a few local suppliers. Their café was small, but it had several comfortable chairs, couches, and coffee tables to encourage customers to stay and chat or read the newspaper between classes. However, the majority of their business was takeout. At the beginning, business was slow. Brewer and Kim had struggled to find the right price points for their coffee and chocolates, and they worried they might be set too high. But everyone who came in to the café loved what they bought, and came back—and began to bring friends. Business increased over a period of about five months, when Brewer and Kim had to turn their attention toward longer-term planning. They had exhausted their savings and their initial small-business loan, and their sixmonth lease was up. They needed to decide whether they were in this for the long haul. The two women met to consider their options. Right away, they decided they wanted to extend their hours and hire two part-time employees. They would investigate a wireless connection that customers could use. Kim would take over more of the finances, while Brewer would handle marketing—which they both agreed they needed for the café to grow. They evaluated whether to expand the menu to include baked chocolate desserts, tea, and other beverages. They considered delivery service to locations on campus, such as dorms and lounges where students were studying. They discussed holding events at the café such as poetry readings or discussion groups. And they talked about establishing a Web site with a menu and phone number, updates on current coffees and chocolate flavors, and a blog written by Brewer with opportunities for customers to respond. They agreed they were not yet ready to accept online orders, but eventually they might. As Kim and Brewer finalized their planning, they agreed that managing their own business was a challenge, but one they would never regret. 

QUESTIONS

1. What do you think Custom Coffee & Chocolate’s mission is? 

2. Create a SWOT analysis for Custom Coffee & Chocolate.

3. Using the owners’ ideas for the future of their café, as well as your own ideas, outline a tactical plan for Custom Coffee & Chocolate.