When Mi Cai heard that CC had once come to this city and offered guidance to that coffee shop, she was also surprised, but more nostalgic. Speaking of CC, she was the only woman who could be regarded as a close friend by both Mi Cai and me. Much of the bond between Mi Cai and me was maintained by CC, yet when we finally started living together, she left… In the night, we felt somewhat melancholy, falling into silence.
Finally, I said to Mi Cai, “I want to take over that coffee shop, but I’m not sure if it can generate profit. Do you have any good suggestions?”
After thinking for a moment, Mi Cai replied, “If you’re really interested in that coffee shop, I think you should broaden your perspective. Because many so-called unique coffee shops emerging nowadays are only superficially unique. The owners often neglect the functional aspects that such coffee shops should exhibit. Transforming functionality into uniqueness is the true uniqueness for a coffee shop.”
I nodded while resting my chin on my hand, “That makes sense… Most unique coffee shops today only pursue visual distinctiveness, neglecting the development of functionality, which results in a thin profit model. This is the main reason why coffee shops struggle to make profits.”
“Mm… Then based on this, do you have any ideas yet?”
My thoughts were gradually inspired. I recalled the creative color coordination of that coffee shop and the wonderful feeling when looking into the distance from within it…
My gaze fell again on Mi Cai’s DSLR camera, and an idea began to form… Excitedly, I said to Mi Cai, “I want to create a coffee shop themed around photography!”
“Tell me your detailed idea.”
I nodded and said, “Besides selling coffee and other beverages, a unique coffee shop itself should also serve as a prop. Many artistic and middle-class consumers desire to realize their own value here. Additionally, because unique coffee shops are uniquely decorated, they are in themselves pieces of art. However, nowadays, many photo studios often struggle with finding good locations for photographing clients, and such a coffee shop would be the perfect backdrop… Based on this idea, I plan to realize the profitability of this coffee shop in three steps!”
“What three steps?”
“First, I plan to contact all the photo studios in the city. The coffee shop I create can be used as a backdrop for free. Of course, to avoid affecting the normal operation of the coffee shop, the time for photography will be scheduled in the morning when there are almost no customers. Second, when some of these photo studios bring their clients to us continuously, our popularity will gradually rise. Then we can leverage this opportunity to convert popularity into customer traffic, ensuring the daily operation of the shop. Third, as this business theme gradually matures, our coffee shop will start to break away from those photo studios and provide professional personal portrait photography services. Currently, a set of personal portraits on the market generally costs several hundred to over a thousand yuan. This will definitely become a strong profit point. The cost for us will just be a part-time professional photographer. As a platform, we can arrange shoots for customers with him and give him a corresponding commission. Essentially, there is no real cost! Of course, even after these steps, those photo studios can still come to the shop for free to take pictures. We won’t do anything like burning the bridge after crossing the river…”
After some contemplation, Mi Cai replied, “I recognize this idea. Initially leveraging the customer resources of these photo studios to build our popularity might be more effective than general advertising. It also overcomes the hard problem of a remote location, truly utilizing the coffee shop’s resources and fully exploring its functionality… However, the only flaw is that it is easily imitated by other unique coffee shops.”
I nodded and replied, “Imitation is inevitable, but we are the first to develop this kind of service as a theme, which has already given consumers a preconceived perception. Moreover, there are only about ten unique coffee shops in Xuzhou, and none of them can match the color coordination and atmosphere creation of ‘Black as White.’ Additionally, the external view of this coffee shop is something other cafes completely lack. Tomorrow, you can come with me to have a look. Whether inside or outside the cafe, it’s easy to capture artistic photos, which definitely appeals to consumers with artistic sentiments!”
“Then I’m looking forward to it… If you can realize your vision for this project, then I will be your admirer…”
“You’re teasing me. What’s there to admire about such a small business!”
“Watching you grow step by step with your own vision and talent is itself a very admirable thing!”
Although I remained humble, I was filled with motivation to strive because of Mi Cai’s words, wishing I could immediately start creating this photography-themed coffee shop according to my ideas.
…
It was late at night. Listening to Mi Cai’s steady breathing, I still immersed my thoughts in my idea, continuously refining the parts that might have issues. In fact, since founding Luck, I hadn’t felt such excitement from my own creativity for a long time! At this moment, I was like a wild horse that had broken free, standing at a new starting point, galloping towards the horizon…
Of course, I was also very clear that although I was galloping forward, this starting point was much lower compared to my previous venture, Luck. This was also the main reason why my father opposed my opening a coffee shop. In fact, I understood that he was worried that if Mi Cai, who had once stood so high, saw me fall again, it would cause her psychological imbalance… I couldn’t absolutely say whether his concern was right or wrong, but it indeed brought me a lot of pressure. Feeling this pressure, I was no longer as purely content as when I first returned, merely wanting to live a simple, ordinary life. It felt as if I was struggling to climb towards a new height.
It’s really hard for a person to live freely; the environment around us always imposes various constraints, and there is no such thing as absolute freedom in this world. Escaping or changing doesn’t equate to freedom, but this realization made me feel as if I were shackled. I wanted to break free, yet I deeply understood that I couldn’t!
The night grew darker. My phone vibrated slightly near my ear, stopping after just a few seconds. Therefore, what I received was a text message. I picked it up and looked. It was from Jian Wei. She wrote, “Zhaoyang, how are you back in Xuzhou?… I know you might not need this, but I still want to transfer several of Luck’s stores in Xuzhou to you. You left with nothing, and I always feel a bit uneasy about it.”
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