How to Start a Drive-Thru Coffee Stand in California
How to Start a Drive-Thru Coffee Stand in California
Successfully Set Up and Open a Drive-Thru Coffee Stand in California
Opening a drive-thru coffee stand business has plenty of professional and personal benefits. With a lower cost barrier, opportunity for healthy profits, and flexible location opportunities (your drive-thru coffee stand can move wherever you move), opening a drive-thru coffee stand is potentially one of the best low-cost options to open a coffee business in the United States.
With so many Americans on the move, the chances are that you’re going to find an opportunity to open up a profitable coffee drive-thru coffee stand business in California.
After all, there’s a lot of open roads in the state of California. And with those open roads comes the opportunity to serve great-tasting coffee for Californians on the go.
Opening Your Drive-Thru Coffee Stand:
Helping You Get Started
At Coffee Shop Startups, we offer various resources to help start your drive-thru coffee stand business planning. From how much coffee shop owners make to how to create a coffee shop budget, it's all here. Additionally, our coffee business blog is packed with articles that can help you plan your drive-thru coffee stand:
Featured Coffee Shop Business Resource Articles:
Opening a Drive-Thru Coffee Stand in California
Whether you live in San Diego, Riverside, Los Angeles, San Luis Obispo, Fresno, Sacramento, Riverside, or San Jose, there are plenty of opportunities to open a drive-thru coffee stand in California.
You may have already considered opening a coffee shop business and determined that the costs are too high or the time frame is too long.
This is where opening a drive-thru coffee shop comes in!
A drive-thru coffee stand can be almost anywhere there are people and cars. And if the location isn't as good as you thought, you can always move it. With brick-and-mortar location prices going through the roof in most of California, the ability to enter into the retail coffee industry with a drive-thru coffee shop has never been more affordable and easier in California.
When starting a drive-thru coffee shop, think local. Where would you like to set up your coffee business? Which commuters are currently being underserved? What will you offer that your competitors don’t have?
While there are plenty of opportunities to set up a roadside drive-thru coffee stand on an open highway, there are also plenty of opportunities to set yourself up in a very urban setting as well. So, don’t limit yourself.
We think that there are certainly opportunities to grow in the areas around Fresno, Sacramento, Bakersfield – the Inland Empire, High Desert, Orange County, Santa Barbara County, as well as Santa Rosa, Santa Cruz, and Chico.
Drive-thru coffee stands come in all shapes, sizes, and concepts. We want to encourage you to think out of the box and develop a winning coffee shop concept that works for you and your community.
The Steps to Open Your Drive-Thru Coffee Stand
We’ve detailed the simple steps to open your drive-thru coffee stand and/or how to purchase your drive-thru coffee stand in previous articles. They are worth the read.
When we are talking about opening up a drive-thru coffee stand in California, however, we want you to take a step back and look at the opportunities around you. When it comes to choosing the right location to setup a drive-thru coffee stand in California – you will need to consider:
- Competition from other coffee shops and drive-thru stands.
- Accessibility for cars and pedestrians
- Zoning Issues (other regulatory issues)
- Real-Estate Costs
- Health regulations
- Building up to code
Depending on what city or county you’re in, first, ask the following questions:
- What area is being underserved?
- What are existing competitors in this specific area?
- Are their other drive-thru coffee stands doing business in your town?
If you think you have a pretty feeling about starting your drive-thru coffee business, then you might want to move on to the next level of planning. We want to encourage you to invest in our Complete Coffee Shop Startup Kit. It’s packed with a lot of information that will expand your knowledge base around signing your property lease, working with the health department, and choosing the right equipment.
Quick Steps in Starting a Drive-thru Coffee Stand in California
- Research your specific area
- Develop your concept and branding
- Determine what you are going to serve on your coffee menu board
- Form your company or business structure (i.e., LLC)
- Determine the requirements in your county
- Write your coffee shop business plan
- Develop your budget
- Seek and obtain the right capital funding
- Buy or build your coffee stand structure
- Get your coffee shop website and logo
- Talk to coffee roasters and vendors
- Apply for your business license
- Apply for your permits
- Hire and train your employees
- Market and promote your new business
Drive-Thru Coffee Stand Business Links for California
- Register your drive-thru stand business in California
- Setup Your Website for Your Business
- Get Your Logo With 99Designs or UpWork
Drive-Thru Coffee Stand Article Resources:
Starting a Drive-Thru Coffee Shop in California
Buying a New Drive-Thru Stand Structure or an Existing Stand?
At times, getting your drive-thru coffee stand structure can be challenging. Sometimes, it’s easier to construct your own drive-thru coffee stand. Consider that this requires space, tools, materials, expertise, and knowledge – and of course, money!
However, the costs of constructing your own drive-thru coffee stand could be used to purchase a used one. Either way, you’ll have to be prepared in transporting it and making the necessary expenditures to get it “up and running.”
There may be options for you to purchase a used drive-thru ‘stand in California. But you will have to continually keep checking various websites like Craigslist. If you’re interested, we have previously written an article on how to buy a drive-thru coffee stand, which is worth a read.
Setting Up Your Drive-Thru Coffee Stand Business
Your Success is Our Success
We’ve created one of the best online resources to start a coffee business. The Complete Coffee Shop Startup Kit has everything you’ll need to set up and launch your coffee business.
- 15 Hours of Audio Interviews (You don’t want to miss!)
- A Business Plan Guide and Editable Template
- How To Open a Coffee Shop Guide
- ‘Coffee Shop Pricing For Profits' Guide
You may also like to learn how to start a coffee shop in California.
