How He Started a Coffee Business (With $1,800)

Maxwell Mooney opened his first Narrative Coffee cart in 2015 with just $1,800. Now they’ve just opened their second brick-and-mortar coffee shop, and are bringing in an average revenue of more than $80,000 a month. Wondering how he grew his coffee business? Watch this video to find out!

This video is sponsored by Fiverr, a top marketplace for business owners to find the freelance talent you need to grow your business to the next level.

Maxwell was a coffee geek well before opening a coffee shop. As a world-class barista, he’s competed and placed at a number of barista championships, so when he decided to become a business owner, a café was a logical choice. After starting with a coffee cart in 2015, they opened their first full café in Everett in 2017, expanding to a second location in Bellingham earlier this year.

In this interview, we’ll get Maxwell’s insider insight into starting a coffee shop business. We’ll find out how he made the most of his initial coffee cart investment, and how much it cost to expand that into a brick-and-mortar. That expansion also meant growing the team, and we’ll learn how he attracts and retains skilled baristas, along with his advice on the best marketing approaches to bring in new customers.

One major ingredient in Narrative Coffee’s success are their foundational systems that help them maintain quality across their coffee shop business. We’ll learn how Maxwell developed these systems, as well as the tools and software he uses to manage workflow across multiple locations. Anyone interested in the coffee industry will learn a lot from this interview! A

Resources:

Timestamps:
0:00 Intro
0:53 How Maxwell Got Into Coffee
1:38 How To Overcome Business Struggles
2:05 Systems and Processes
4:06 Key Things Maxwell Has Learned
5:06 Tips on Starting with a Coffee Cart
6:38 Tricks to Exceptional Customer Experience
7:26 How To Get More Retail Sales
8:41 How To Keep Customers Coming Back
9:41 the Benefits of Your Community
11:31 Let’s Talk Numbers
12:22 The Key To FREE Advertising
13:46 Tips for Beginners on a Budget
14:47 Reaching the Breakeven Point
16:12 The Importance of Systems
16:51 Blitz Time with Maxwell!
19:21 Choosing The Right Merchandise
20:25 How To Keep Employees Happy
21:35 How To Not Lose Efficiency
22:29 Where To Find Quality Suppliers
23:02 Maxwell’s Best Sellers
24:07 The Must-Have SOPs
25:22 Key Software and Tools
26:38 How To Deal with Inflation
27:33 The Benefits of a Tip Pool
28:41 The MUST-HAVE Equipment
29:37 Advice Maxwell Wants You To Know
30:54 What You Can Expect with Profit Margins
31:46 How To Fill The Need
32:55 The Trick to Scaling Smoothly
34:06 Business Owner Struggles
34:43 The Importance of Review
35:54 Time Management Tips
36:41 Advice to Entrepreneurs

#coffeeshop #coffeebusiness #openingacoffeeshop

[UpFlip]

Big thanks to @tailorbrands for sponsoring this video!

[chronicmango]

To clarify to everyone -

When I said I didn’t have coffee experience, I meant that when I first started researching and learning about it in a serious way, I didn’t have any coffee experience.

I taught myself how to make espresso and latte art from reading forums and watching videos, etc. I then got a coffee job as a barista, then moved into coffee education and directing coffee before I launched Narrative to the general public.

[KevinFremon]

I’m impressed with Max. The dude is super smart and running this like a high performing tech startup. Best coffee shop interview yet.

[weideng]

I am a process engineer. This dude knows everything about efficiency, layout design, and quality control. What really impressed me is that he make it as part of his business DNA!

[windhoek_stallion]

Max is a really amazing person. I come from the hospitality business and I'm amazed how open, sincere and forthright he is. That interview was a masterclass in coffee shop startup and operation and he did it for the sake of helping others. God bless this man.

[danielfchen]

Wow amazing. Maxwell just gave away the secret to running a successful business. I own and operate my own company and 95% of what he said is something you cant learn from school. Honestly well done

[zlatan_]

Maxvell is such a great person. He's very generous with his knowledge and experience, and that's sadly hard to find nowadays. He's also extremely capable business owner, with amazing systems implemented in the business.

[maverickcruise]

Felt like this was a tech startup more than a Coffee shop. This guy is so well organized and passionate about his business.

[Rufuluss]

I shared a like for the pure fact that Max was willing to share the spreadsheet with the viewers, you not only offer the content of the video, but also content from those that you are interviewing free of cost. That's awesome

[jamesmurphy]

Successful people don't become that way overnight. What most people see at a glance- wealth, a great career, purpose-is the result of hard work and hustle over time. I pray that anyone who reads this will be successful in life..

[AngelRodriguez-tyki]

Dude what an awesome and intelligent guy. Having people so willing to help/ mentor is so rare now and this helped a lot. Also great informative video, my wife and I have been motivated to start a coffee shop/ truck with our church to not only have our dreams come true but to help our community through fund raising and give aways. This helps so much. Thanks to the both of you!

[aetherfloats]

I got to watch Max start from the very bottom and work his way up. So proud of him and how far he's gotten! I know Mom was super proud too and would've loved to see the business grow and grow! Love him very much and am proud to call myself his sibling! <3

Love,

Addi

[ahmxtb]

First met Max back when he was still operating out of the coffee stall. He's a great entrepreneur and skilled coffee shop owner!

[LIL-MAN_theOG]

As a former coffee exec in the PNW..this is spot on and a excellent blueprint to others tryna come up in the business...most folks online would make you pay for this treasure trove of info. Bless up to Max...and I've been to this location during the Rona. Glad they were able to take those plastic partitions down

[kookiesfriend]

Seriously impressed by how much thought he put into the cafe & customer experience. It's truly a rarity to see it at this level.

[andreydunin]

Maxwell is an incredible guy, I love how deep he dove into understanding not just coffee but the processes and most importantly customer experience. What an inspiration!

[redwhaleage]

Wow this dude's openness and transparency about his business is amazing. Also very much appreciated!

[ZackScriven]

Just started my Mobile Detailing Business (For Tesla’s Only) here in Salt Lake City for just $1, 200! Let’s go!

[sheikhsamee]

I love this guys attention to detail. That's how you run a successful business. I hope I meet him and shake his hand one day

[jyanharris]

I like your humbleness saying communication is your weekend because this has been one of the most informative from the numbers & business side that I've seen in a while! I really like watching this and I'm not opening a coffee ☕ shop!!