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A real moto cafe

fubar929 said:
Looks to me like retail space in SF is going for $30-60 sq. ft. at the moment. If you want to have a small 1000 sq. ft. coffee + retail space you're talking $30-60K month in rent alone. That means you'd need to sell 200-400 $5 cups of coffee every single day of the month to pay rent. Start adding in the cost of insurance, taxes, employees, and inventory and I wouldn't be surprised if your expenses go up 1.5-2X. Sadly, I don't think the larger motorcycling population in SF will make up for the astronomically higher rents...
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Well I can ring off a list of coffee shops that opened new retail stores in the last 5 yrs (SF):

- Ritual Roasters
- Snowbird
- Flywheel . .

These places are making it work. They have above average reviews and are operating in some of the more expensive areas of SF. Cafes have been a staple in SF for decades, they are not going anywhere either.

My thought is that it wouldn't be exclusively for motorcyclists but definitely oriented for us riders. Helmet stands, motorcycle-friendly parking, moto-ambiance, I've met several rider baristas and we instantly start chatting when I show up with my helmet in hand. If you apply this along with the general public, I'm sure there'd be some traction. It just needs to have a quality product. No business can survive if the product isn't good.

I threw the dealership/gear shop idea in as they want to promote foot traffic. I'd rather have high foot traffic, rider camaraderie, potential sale here or there versus nobody in sight during the entire week.
 
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augustiron said:
I was going to post this
SeeSee is cool, Reno spot is super cool, I go there often. FMX legend Drake McElroy was running it when it first opened but I think he has stepped back from it.
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I really wanted to like this place when it opened, but never warmed to it over four or so visits (Reno location). I guess that I was put off by what I considered to be the preponderance of hipster motorcyle branded apparel, over arguably more useful items to a motorcyclist. That, and charging three bucks for an empty mug that you can fill from a small thermal coffee dispenser.
 
Godspeed in Oakland tried and failed. Motorcyclists as a demographic are cheap. I see so many people with tape fixing boots, gloves, bikes... They aren't going to spend $5 for a cup of coffee.
 
Motorcyclists probably self identify as rugged individualists, so a commercially oriented locus, should be well thought out.
 
Jbella said:
Corbin in Hollister has a restaurant / coffee shop.
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And I've never seen more then a few people in there. I don't know how they survive. Corbin probably owns the building and doesn't need to cover rent on the cafe space.
I swung by Vicci Motorcycle Cafe in Petaluma on Friday to check it out. unfortunately, it was closed. It's kinda in a weird space packed into a light industrial building.
 
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Aware said:
Starbucks does fine.

So we need to set up a biker Starbucks. Or Pete's.
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I think an already established place, either a chain or one off with good food would work best. Also tolerant of a biker crowd, that won't chase away non-rider customers, with parking. Last year's Fuck Good Friday ride that ended at Lanesplitters in Oakland comes to mind. Just needs good baristas for java.
 
The rub i

Rub is, in large
established place, either a chain or one off with good food would work best. Also tolerant of a biker crowd, that won't chase away non-rider customers
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.. It's a different tribe not likely to mix
 
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fubar929 said:
Looks to me like retail space in SF is going for $30-60 sq. ft. at the moment. If you want to have a small 1000 sq. ft. coffee + retail space you're talking $30-60K month in rent alone. That means you'd need to sell 200-400 $5 cups of coffee every single day of the month to pay rent. Start adding in the cost of insurance, taxes, employees, and inventory and I wouldn't be surprised if your expenses go up 1.5-2X. Sadly, I don't think the larger motorcycling population in SF will make up for the astronomically higher rents...
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That range is an annualized number- divide by 12 for monthly rent, so figure $3000k-$5000k monthly (triple net I'm sure). Still a lot of coffee...

Don't forget the space will need to be built out, accessible bathrooms, equipment, furniture- figure $200psf. Want more funk/decor? Figure $300psf. Stupid to invest all that money to buy yourself a job, so Labor costs will be significant with a long day (there's a reason 'bucks is open so early and til 8pm).

Back of a napkin; inventory, operating cash, prepaid expenses, training, permits, insurance, etc. quickly gets you to $250-300k or so roughly the same time you open for business. Maybe I'm off 10 or 20%, do the math...
 
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cfives said:
I really wanted to like this place when it opened, but never warmed to it over four or so visits (Reno location). I guess that I was put off by what I considered to be the preponderance of hipster motorcyle branded apparel, over arguably more useful items to a motorcyclist. That, and charging three bucks for an empty mug that you can fill from a small thermal coffee dispenser.
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Oh yeah, hipster as hell and SeeSee is a "lifestyle" brand. That aside, they do cool stuff. The one show, dirtquake, flat track racing, etc. More than just a label.
Reno seems to have a burgeoning hipster scene that hopefully they can grow with. I really don't understand why they opened their second location there instead of the bay area, except for Drake's presence there, which is now a non factor.
 
In Cape Town, it was hard to find a boutique coffee shop that wasn't moto related
 
dravnx said:
I swung by Vicci Motorcycle Cafe in Petaluma on Friday to check it out.
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That's an odd deal over there. I haven't quite figured them out.
I used to work across the street at Honda....other than us, I never saw anyone in there. Not sure how the doors stay open.
 
I know Gary B (who wrote for Cycle World - https://www.cycleworld.com/authors/gaz-boulanger) was pushing Red Rock Coffee in Mountain View this way a little. He was hosting get togethers and a weekly ride starting there. Not exactly what you all are talking about - but it's a start.
 
This has been an idea of mine for years now, but i have a few ideas on location, style, parking etc to make it actually succesful.

Location being #1
 
I have been thinking about your idea since the thread started, all my thoughts so far and questions I would be asking myself.

If it was me I would start by going to 4 corners with your product coffee, treats, food, and see what the reaction is so you can improve it before opening.

Second thing is could you partner with Philz or another premium coffee company and have the location near Alices, maybe toward the Woodside. You already have a place where motorcycles gather every weekend, have I have studied what has allowed those place to survive for so long. The biggest attraction is the roads (for me) and people the rest can all be found but not located in the area where it is needed. Could I get a location near the ocean away from Alices for a great destination that is short and would draw people to my location.

The only place I know of that has enough motorcycle traffic is Alices and 4 Corners, you are competing with them and they have stood the test of time.

Have I or (you) ever run a non motorcycle cafe and had success? Decrease the odds of failure start out with try to run a cafe, survive against the insane amount of competition for X amount of years.

Then open a motorcycle themed cafe.

Ideas that would make it a motorcycle cafe to me.
  • A shop where you could get repairs done.
  • Parts and other bits.
  • Motorcycle themed sports viewing of all kinds all MotoGP, MotoAmerica, and all the other races on a endless loop including the historical races.
  • Motorcycle Towing services.
  • Network Connection free basic WIFI for all (slow rate)? Boosted WIFI speeds for anyone spending X amount of money at Y rate, both?
  • Motorcycle rider and safety training, people that can teach you to ride safe, so Doc Wong get a few people like that can fill the schedule every weekend to keep people coming and have the beginning of each class be a riders meeting where people will buy coffee and treats or get breakfast or lunch before launching. Maybe have 3 per day on the weekend during the season, early morning, lunch and late lunch so you can manage the flow of people you need to serve during the day.
  • Offer basic Motorcycle mechanic training, basics on fixing your bike, maybe this could even be in the evening all year round so you can have an evening crowd to keep the flow of customers all the way to the end til closing time.

I will keep thinking about it, let me know if this helps.

I forgot to mention I try to apply this method to any plan I make regarding work or projects. I am not doing a professional level of thinking about your "question" I am thinking about it as a dreamer. If it was my money at stake I would do all plans in stages as each stage met with a measure of success, I would expand it until I hit the full target.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PDCA
 
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I think a solid beginning or end of the ride but still populated spot would be best. Bottom of 9 in Saratoga as an example.
 
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