*Update December 2017:
For the DIY crowd we are currently assembling a complete guide, tutorial and plans to build your own espresso cart. We are sharing our 20+ years manufacturing espresso and food service carts with the public. The package covers everything, from acquiring the proper materials, to assembly, cut lists, how to's along installing the hardware, to assembly of the cart in it's entirety. In addition it includes how to build the fully self contained plumbing system as well as how to assemble the electrical system. We can help supplement should you require individual components pre-fabbed in house for you and all clients that purchase this package but opt to have us assemble their cart for them will receive a credit in full from the purchase.
Our cart building guide will be available soon, please send us a note to espressooutfitters@gmail.com or 360-949-3662 to opt in upon notification when it's ready.
Are you wanting to
open an espresso cart? This information is designed for you!
Starting an espresso cart effectively
requires paying attention to the details to the actual shop it's being
placed in as well as negotiating techniques unique to the espresso cart
world. To begin with, your first priority is finding a location that
generates enough targeted foot traffic. What makes the cart unique
in this area, is the fact that you are looking for the actual placement
of the cart within the actual location of the facility. Being next
to the door to greet the visitors is always best of course, it's
best to get the floor plan, watch where people go and find the absolute
highest saturated areas possible, you may have to place the X on the map
in several different areas for presentation to the owners in case they
have other ideas as to where you should be at.
The better locations of course are
areas where the owners care more about bringing in and supporting people
with your added services, but with a decent lease negotiated, any targeted
spot will be a great place to set up shop.
Your design theme:
From there, you'll want to get your
espresso cart design and theme laid out. This means you want to compliment
the operation it's going in while maximizing the overall wow factor for
those that are frequenting it. A metal stagnate box will just not
do if the general ambiance at the establishment is conservative, old world
themed for example. Look at the decor closely, does it have an actual
theme that it's trying to maintain? Some owners will not even talk
to you if they think what you are setting up is going to clash with their
decor. Ultimately you will want to make your cart as the center piece
of their place, try to maintain that ideal not only for the immediate purposes
of securing the location, but to take what is already there design wise
to support and project your operation. On the other hand, they may
have no theme at all and it's a free for all, at that point, you'll want
something outstanding design wise to set itself apart from the rest of
what is at the location. You'll be using the Vegas factor if that's
the case, the bells and whistles will very much be necessary. Your designer
should be able to build "outside of the box" regardless. Simply picking
a cart off the shelves just is a quick way to get started unless it happens
to fit what you are doing, if you truly want something in the most tactful
manner, you'll have a design nobody has seen before, or at least not bore
them to death with a generic box type of construction. Their is something
to be said about familiarity for recognition as well, so you shouldn't
go too crazy, this field just requires more intensive tactics. Think
of it along the line of when you are driving down the street, do you notice
a generic building with flat graphics, or does your head turn noticing
a unusual design.
Products and service:
After securing your location, "hopefully
with a long lease" you'll need to focus upon quality of service and equipment.
There are several roasters, equipment suppliers and espresso cart manufacturers
that boast they are the best, but no matter who you choose, a good or bad
shot of espresso can be created using any of these for the most part.
Expect to do your homework as to what company to go through, there are
several factors involved within of course as follows:
Equipment:
Espresso Machines:
Prepare for volume of use but it's
not necessary to overbuy. A 2 group espresso machine is the
standard in the industry, there have been some rather puny designs created
in the past, thankfully if you are buying new you will not run into them.
I suggest getting a mid/higher end model to start out with. If you
are on an extreme budget, you can slide by with a one group, but expect
to have to upgrade to a 3 group with a larger boiler and heating element
eventually if you do things right. Many people get caught up into
the features their machine has and the fully automatic machine is of course
most user friendly but their is nothing like serving espresso by a fine
barista that takes it as an art, where the semi auto and manual machines
are the way to go. You'll of course find the more features, the more
costs are involved with the initial purchase of them.
Grinders:
Grinders should be something you
will never skimp upon, expect to pay between $450-$800 for a standard commercial
model, and each blend of espresso you serve should ultimately have it's
own dedicated grinder. You can get away with just one grinder, emptying
the hopper for each blend, but it's a cumbersome method.
Refrigeration:
You will need a commercial refrigerator
to accommodate frequent use, i.e.. you will be opening the doors much more
frequently then a home model, it's imperative to keep the temperature consistent.
Beverage Air, True, Silverking are a few brands to stick with, there are
of course other manufacturers, but you'll want to make sure it's going
to supply enough internal space as well as fit within the confines of the
cart itself, this is where you'll see some commonalties within the espresso
cart industry.
Espresso Cart:
Along your espresso cart, there is
a much smaller circle of manufacturers that produce them, luckily the author
of this page happens to be one of the best in the industry. You'll
find the options to be similar from the operators point of view, some options
are mandatory, others are pretty much fluff. If you refer to the
above section, you'll see the importance of having one that is flexible.
Also, some of the terminology can be rather vague unless you happen to
be in the industry. What you'll be looking for to start out with
is the actual material that is used to physically construct the cart.
MDF, Melamine, are basically particle board, it's substanially heavy weight and lack of integrity
is far inferior compared to MDO, partical board is just a soup of sawdust held together with glue, Mdo is layers of fir saturated with a water resistant compound, bound together in layers to provide structural integrity, it's also what is used for making road
signs. Your cart will be cleaned and re-cleaned constantly, you cannot
afford to have cleaning solutions and water break down the core building
materials of your cart. Along the long term as well, you'll want
to have aluminum and stainless steel with the hardware for any exposed
areas to be prominent. The sneeze guard is another matter that is
often overlooked as well. Glass looks nice, but is easily broken,
Plexiglas on the other hand is not only lighter, but any scratches can
easily be buffed out. The castors "wheels" should be rated to withstand
extreme weights, so far, I haven't seen any espresso carts that have skimped
in this area, so it's not as much of an issue these days compared to a
few years ago. The overall surfacing for any exposed areas should
be fully laminated with a commercial laminate, many people misconstrued
the name brand Formica as being a type of surfacing, Formica is just a
name brand for a laminate, the other major players in the industry is Wilsonart
and Pionite. The selection from these 3 give you hundreds of different
colors, patterns and textures. As a rule, the more elaborate the
pattern and texture, the higher the costs will be. Keep this also
in mind, we are talking raw square footage on the cart inside and out.
Over all construction: The hardware
and design techniques and procedures should not be skimped upon, an espresso
cart is going to be moved, abused, and used to a level most commercial
cabinetry never has to go through. If the builder doesn't keep this in
mind through every element of construction, you'll soon find your "mobile
cafe" crumbling to the ground. Even the amount of torque applied
to how the screws are in place is critical. If you decide to build
your own, you should take it into consideration, do NOT rely upon any framework
system to make up for bad construction. If you are purchasing from
a large company and the moral from the assembly line is low, chances are
high that you'll find problems arising months to years down the road.
Buying Used Over New:
Just like buying a used car over
a new one, the same analogy goes with the espresso world, "buyer beware".
You can get some great deals going the used route, but only if you know
what you are buying and can fully rebuild a lemon. Unlike cars, where
you can just drag it down to the local mechanic, there is little you can
do to assess the actual problems, or potential problems of these without
taking them apart. Having the seller supply you with the full maintenance
and repair history of what you are purchasing is a must, if they can't
supply that, chances are it was never maintained properly so a complete
overhaul should be part of the overall investment. This of course
excludes pre inspected/overhauled systems from one of the experts in the
field, so, for example, when you buy used from E-bay, be fully prepared
to break it down to it's bare minimum and replace 100% of the gaskets and
any defective/potentially defective components. If you do decide
to go this route, it's best to have an expert to consult before putting
down the cash, it will save you alot more money in the long run.
In the past, I've had clients ask me to refurbish their espresso carts,
only to have to explain to them that it would take more time and money
to do that then build a new one from scratch, Espresso Outfitters carts
are the "ONLY" exception, I haven't had any requests for a rebuild of my
own carts and it's been 11 years since the first one rolled out of the
shop, so shows they are being built right.
The product itself:
No matter how well set you are with
everything, your roaster is going to make or break your operation even
if you do everything right. You cannot flavor, milk down, or re-process
your base product "espresso" to cover up skimping upon who you buy your
beans from. You'll want to get the best of both worlds, 1. Find a
bean that is uniform when you break it in two, consistent and prompt when
you order it regularly and above all, tastes good. 2. Find a roaster
that is willing to train your staff as well as help with the business end.
You may have to compromise on option number 2 since the smaller roasters
cannot be everywhere at once and the smaller roasters in this field as
of April 2004 produce the absolute best in the industry, luckily we have
web based applications as well as the phone to help supplement it, also
if you are hard core about it, taking a flight out to the roaster is a
must do, there is nothing like seeing it being processed and being trained
at the plant to give you a more hands on approach.
Your employees:
If you aren't running your espresso
cart, then your employees are acting on behalf of yourself, treat them
well and pay them well. Take extra time and consideration into who
you hire to represent you. I'd opt for a personality with a bit of
flavor and bubbly temperament over an expert froth maker. Read the
above paragraph about training in case you are worried about going this
route. The one thing that is lacking in business these days is service,
I deal strictly with business owners and their trusted representative,
but am equally interested and accustomed in talking to the person on the
production line just to make sure they are happy which reflects upon the
final product. I've seen too many companies that care more about
their shareholders opinions then actual managment/staff relationships.
If the stockholders had a clue, they'd but out and allow the company to
manage their employees, instilling confidence, a long term reward for sticking
with the company as well as general high moral for their staff, not forced,
but through "legit" means. I'll set up an example:
In seattle, one of the first espresso
carts that were established, the owner gave the employees a total of 10%
ownership of the company. This in turn turned a fledging operation
from barely making a living to over 2.5 mil a year in gross sales within
a year, this pretty much is the catalyst for the mentality you have to
adopt if you hire employees. Give them incentive for sticking with
the company treat them right and give them a vision to look forward to
when things pan out as planned. Reinvest back into the company to
make it both easier on the employees as well as expanding the operation
and you'll be unstoppable.
In conclusion:
Your espresso cart is it's own self
contained cafe, it has enough potential to place you in a 6-7 digit income
bracket set up correctly at the proper location to a level no other business
with a comparable initial expenditure can match. Carts are also a
great way to test the waters in any given area as well as can be expanded
upon easily. There are many very high end, costly, cafe's drive throughs
and mobile units that started with a cart, the profits from the cart funded
them and allowed them the confidence to move forward in a big way. All
business is a gamble, and if you ever wondered about what it takes to get
into the espresso business and don't have alot of money to get started,
an espresso cart is a way to do it within human terms without having to
risk your entire life savings or going in debt. The average costs
involved are comparable to buying a new economy car, the difference is,
your economy car loses it's value the instant it is off of the lot, it's
not the same in this field and in fact, it's not unheard of for it to pay
for itself within the first 6 months.
- Espresso 
