Coffee franchise comparison: Figaro, Bo’s Coffee and Country Style.
This is an update about my post Jumping To The Coffee Industry, wherein I discussed about our interest on getting to the coffee business.
Here are some datas we gathered so far:
**I’ll sort these datas according to Square Meters (SQM)
CARTS AND KIOSKS COMPARISON: 3 to 20 SQM
**Click table to view full size.
ISLANDS AND MEDIUM SIZED SHOPS COMPARISON: 30 to 40 SQM
**Click table to view full size.
SEMI-FULL AND FULL STORES COMPARISION: 80 to 100 SQM
**Click table to view full size.
There are still some missing datas. If you guys have any experiences or inputs about these whole franchising thing, we will really appreciate it if you could share it with us.
Maybe I should also organize a poll about these three coffee companies. But for now, may I ask you guys which among these three companies you like best? Not limited to the datas above, but your experience as a consumer.
Undecided where to dine last night, me and my younger brother strolled around Banawe area. We’re looking for something different, somewhere we haven’t dined before. Then we found a small restaurant serving Japanese food. Octoboy Banawe.
The Food
I’m not sure if they’re serving octopus, because of the name Octoboy, but they have quite unique selections from their menu. No, they don’t serve sashimi or makis similar to our accustomed Japanese restaurants like Omakase, Saisaki or Terriyaki Boy. What they serve are Yakiudons, Takuyaki Balls, Japanese Pizzas and some rice toppings.
Well, me and bro is in a little tight budget so we got one order of Takuyaki Balls (6 pcs) and an eight inches Meaty Special Japanese Pizza. Originally bro likes the rice toppings, but I was quite intrigued by the Japanese Pizza so he has no choice but to comply with my choice. (LOL)
Bottomline: Food tastes good and is presented well. But as bro said, Japanese Pizza is just like Takuyaki Balls in pizza shape. Overall I enjoyed the food.
The Venue
I personally do not like the venue. The location is good, but the venue is terribly small and not a comfortable place to dine. They have a second floor, that you have to climb the narrow spiral stairs to get there. Basically it is not a recommended place for families to go to, or take someone on a date.
Octoboy's Kitchen
Price/Value For Money
For the two dishes we ordered, without drinks, we spent Php365.00. Food is nice but I think the price is a little high.
Not so long ago, we jumped into the automotive industry while maintaining our presence in the service/transport industry. Now, the year 2010, we are now venturing to another industry – The Coffee Industry.
No we are not going to start from scratch, instead we are looking for a coffee company to franchise. To why we are going to franchise or going to the coffee industry, the answer is still quite confidential. I’ll update you guys after we have already set it up.
OUR CURRENT PROSPECTS:
As of now we already contacted three coffee companies and already met some of them. Our first priority is Figaro.
FIGARO
Figaro is a local coffee company and as we see it, their image and menus are good. Plus their coffee is already well known. They also have a new management which we think that the whole company is in a state of “New Beginning.”
But we were quite disappointed to experience two re-schedules of meetings, because they simply overlooked the appointment with us. Professionalism is very important, first impression is often the deciding factor.
Another thing was the presentation they have made did not live to their brand’s image. The power point presentation was mediocre.
**We also heard that some of Figaro’s branches already closed down. We still need to verify.
Figaro’s Franchise Fee: Around Php 1M (Tomorrow I will get the franchise kit to post a more detailed version)
Next prospect is Country Style.
COUNTRY STYLE
I love Country Style’s doughnuts, but I haven’t tried their coffee yet. A number of my friends and acquainted managers recommends this coffee company. I spoke with the company this afternoon and setup another formal meeting sometime next week. I’m still studying about Country Style. I’ll give feedback on my next posts.
Franchise Fee: Around Php 400,000.00
BO’s COFFEE
Bo’s Coffee is another local company with lots of good feedbacks about their image and franchise setup, but not-so-good feedback about their coffee. Among the three companies I spoke with, I say that Bo’s is the most professional. They provide good quality materials and their setup in the Franchise Expo 2010 was really nice. Their ambience is somewhat like Starbucks.
Same as Country Style, I’m still studying about Bo’s as well. I’ll give feedback about my research.
Franchise Fee: Around Php 600,000.00 – Php 650,000.00
I also would like to look into Coffee Bean And Tea Leaf, but I’m not so sure if they are open for franchise. Well let me see..
