How to Secure & Protect Your Coffee Shop Business

How to Secure & Protect Your Coffee Shop Business

How to Secure & Protect Your Coffee Shop Business

Open a Coffee Shop with Your Security In Mind

Starting a coffee shop is an exciting prospect. However, it takes a lot of work – investment in time, money, and plenty of emotional capital.

Additionally, the chances are that you will put a significant amount of your personal savings to cover the costs of starting a coffee shop.

In other words, your coffee shop business is your baby.

Although we don't want to think about it – it can all be dashed by thieves and vandals.

Indeed, being a victim of burglary, robbery, or vandalism is something we never want to experience. But, having your expensive equipment stolen, your inventory ripped off, or your coffee shop vandalized could set you back weeks or months. It could even shut you down permanently.

In today's post, let's discuss how to better secure and protect your coffee business.

While nothing is full-proof, it's important to take diligent steps to make yourself and your business less of a target. Preventing harm to you, your employees, and your business should be high on your priority list.

How to Better Secure Your Coffee Shop Business

If you are still in the planning phase of opening your coffee shop, consider embedding safety and security in everything you do. From the interior coffee shop design to the exterior coffee shop signs, décor, and outdoor seating, the safety of your staff and the security of your business are paramount.

Let's review some of the items to secure your coffee shop better:

1. Better Security Locks

Invest in sturdy all-weather locking mechanisms for all of your doors and windows. If feasible, add an additional deadbolt lock to doors. I recommend that you purchase better and more expensive locks that can't be picked, cracked, or jarred open with a crowbar or hammer. Most burglaries occur through doors, so invest in good locks and secure doorframes with metal plates when appropriate. Lock windows with an additional lock if possible.

2. Get Rolling Security Doors

Rolling security doors make a tremendous additional metal barrier after hours. When you close up, roll down your metal barrier and lock your coffee shop. Your roll-down security door is a further deterrent. Before you have this installed, you may want to check with your property manager.

3. Light Up Your Coffee Shop

Lighting is key to maintaining security and reducing crime. Turning off the lights might save a few dollars on your utility bill, but it will make your business an easier target for would-be thieves. Don't let that happen! Instead, install interior and exterior lights from dusk to dawn.

Motion sensor lights are also good, but lights that remain on are even better. For example, if a would-be burglar cases your coffee shop from afar, they may not be deterred by motion sensor lighting as they approach.

Depending on your coffee shop location, the use of motion sensor lighting, round-the-clock lighting, and interior lights may be simultaneous and helpful.

The lighting should include covering your front and rear parking areas where vehicles or people can hide. The more lighting you have the better.

4. Security Cameras

Security cameras placed strategically can be an excellent deterrent to would-be criminals. They can provide evidence for police and prosecutors, and they can give peace of mind if you can check on your coffee shop while you are away.

You can install cameras yourself around the perimeter of your coffee shop, or you can have a security company do it for you. You should have discreet but visible security cameras inside your coffee shop as well.

5. Get an Alarm System

Having an alarm system is essential for your coffee business. An alarm system that notifies you, a security company, and the police will help scare would-be intruders and set a response in motion.

Of course, your opening and closing baristas will need to be familiar with setting and turning off the alarm system. They will also need to be trained on resetting the alarm or notify the security company if there is a problem with the alarm.

Alarm systems are worth every penny (an expense you can likely write off come tax season).

6. Post Security Signs

Posting signs may seem straightforward, but it signals to everyone that you are taking security precautions. Simple signs can be a powerful deterrent, especially if they are backed up with actual security elements.

Signs will indicate your alarm systems as well as working cameras that are catching all activity. Signs serve as a courtesy for your customers and a warning to potential thieves.

7. Trim the Foliage

If your coffee shop exterior has shrubs, vines, or trees around it, consider keeping your foliage clean and trimmed. Bushes and trees can make excellent hiding spots and prevent cars and pedestrians from noticing any strange activity or a break-in. You might need to hire regular gardeners or maintenance crews or trim the shrubs around your coffee shop yourself.

Having a well-maintained area contributes to the upkeep and general positive feeling about your coffee shop and helps reduce dark corners and places for people to hide.

8. Hire a Security Service

You may need to hire a security service that checks on your coffee shop after hours. Having regular security checks by security guards may serve as a significant deterrent for would-be criminals looking to break into your coffee shop business at night.

If people know that a security guard is nearby, this can prevent a robbery or vandalism, as well as any crime happening near your property (in your parking lot, for example).

If your coffee shop is within a particular business district, you may be able to share the service with other neighboring businesses at a reduced cost.

9. Secure Exterior Cafe Furniture

If you have outdoor seating and tables, it's best to secure them before closing. A common technique is to stack up chairs and lock them to each other. In addition, you may consider bolting down tables or umbrellas. Some coffee shops and restaurants also bring in their chairs before closing shop too.

10. Get Insurance

While you can take steps to mitigate crime, there's no way to entirely prevent someone from breaking into your coffee shop if that is their intention.

As you can imagine, it's so important to have comprehensive insurance coverage. Having reputable insurance to cover incidents of loss or damage will be the final and probably most important layer of safety for you and your coffee business. For more information, please read, What Every Coffee Shop Should Needs: Insurance.

Protect Your Coffee Shop Business

Securing a Mobile Coffee Business

While many of the recommendations we mentioned are standard for coffee shops and other retail stores, some of you may be starting a mobile coffee business.

Much of the same recommendations above can apply to your coffee truck or coffee trailer. However, you may also have a few different security needs as well.

1. Secure Parking

Most burglary or property crimes with food trucks and coffee trucks occur after hours when the coffee business is closed and parked away for the night. Therefore, you want to find a secure place to park your business every night. Preferably you want a lot that is fenced off is well-lit and has security cameras. You might have to rent this space, but it's well worth it. Some commissaries provide additional space for parking your coffee truck, so inquire if you can do so.

2. Get a Hitch lock

For those who have a coffee trailer, it's highly recommended that you get a hitch lock. A hitch lock has a ball hitch that snaps in and locks and prevents another hitch from being able to pull your coffee trailer away.

Some are easier than others to break, so invest in a good one. Even a modestly priced hitch lock and prevent would-be thieves from stealing your coffee trailer.

3. Tire lock

In addition to your hitch lock, I strongly recommend buying a tire lock. A tire lock prevents your trailer from being driven off because it prevents the complete revolution of the tire.

Further Reading: How to Start a Coffee Shop Successfully

4. Security Cameras

Wireless cameras with a 4G or cellular plan can help prevent crime and allow you to check on your coffee trailer or coffee truck when you are away. The chances are that your mobile coffee vehicle cannot hook up to the regular internet with a modem and router, so a wireless 4G type of camera feed would be most appropriate.

5. Sturdy locks

Depending on your vehicle, you will want to add extra locks, padlocks, or steering wheel locks. When it comes to deterring criminals, you want to make it as difficult as possible for anyone to come in and jack your mobile coffee vehicle. Even the visibility of these items – a steering wheel lock, for example – can make a potential criminal think twice and move on.

6. GPS tracking device

A GPS tracking device would be an intelligent decision. It would help you quickly recover your mobile coffee vehicle before it can be chopped, sold, or vandalized.

Protect Your Coffee Shop Business

Secure Your Drive-Thru Coffee Stand

Coffee shops and mobile coffee business have their unique security elements that need to be addressed. But what about those drive-thru coffee shops?

Most drive-thru coffee shops consist of small buildings. Because of this, you may want to follow most of the tips outlined for the already discussed brick-and-mortar coffee shops.

However, I want to add a couple more tips for drive-thru coffee stands in particular. 

So, let's talk about drive-thru coffee shop security next:

1. Exterior lighting

Exterior lighting will be essential to your drive-thru coffee stand's safety. Add permanent lighting on all four sides – or at least the sides that face your door and windows. If you are in a parking lot, consider talking to the property owner to keep some of the lights on around your drive-thru stand.

2. Bolting Your Drive-Thru Stand

Many drive-thru coffee shop structures are moved with forklifts. While improbable, thieves can take the whole structure – along with your equipment – with a forklift as well. Therefore, you might want to bolt down your drive-thru coffee stand structure.

3. Locking up Exterior Equipment

It is common for ice-makers and other essential pieces of equipment to be placed outside the drive-thru coffee stand building. Consider securing these pieces of coffee equipment and other items with chains and locks. Ice-makes should be padlocked and covered.

Protect Your Coffee Shop Business

Other Sensible Security Measures:

1. Get a Safe

While many people shop using their credit cards, coffee shops often have a lot of cash. Therefore, having a security safe that can hold your cash, checks, and other important documents will be critical throughout the day. Your safe should be bolted down onto the flooring or walls to help keep it secure. In addition, it should have a drop slot for employees to drop money without the ability to open the door.

2. Your Cash and Personal Valuables

Never keep cash or personal valuables lying around. You might consider having lockers for your employees that allow them to use their locks. Never get in the habit of leaving cash, computers, tablets, or other valuables after closing.

When you make deposits, consider changing your routine as much as possible. As you leave with your day's deposits, double-check no strangers are hanging around your coffee shop.

3. Communicate with Your Property Manager

Building good communication between you and your property manager will be necessary. They also want to reduce or eliminate potential criminal acts occurring on their property.

If you have any concerns, you should bring them up with the property manager. Having good communication and cooperation between you and the other businesses will be critical too. If you are in a business strip mall or district, it's better if everyone is looking out for each other. Consider sharing a list of contact numbers with those of you located in the same business district.

4. Be Aware of Community Issues

Be aware of local news. Read the local neighborhood blogs, newspaper articles online, local television news, or attend local community meetings. You can stay up-to-date on all the local issues from the chamber of commerce to local police-community meetings. Additionally, as you get to know your community and neighbors, you will hear about different issues related to crime.

5. Emergency Numbers & Procedures

You and your staff need to have a list of emergency numbers – posted at work and on every staff member's cell phone.

This way, any staff member can call you (the owner), a manager, and other people who need to know about the emergency.

In case of an emergency, it is good to have a direct chain of command. Each employee should have a good idea of the steps to take if there is an emergency.

Of course, not every emergency can be planned for, but every employee should know who to contact first.

Conclusion:

You can imagine the thrill when you first open your doors and host your coffee shop grand opening.

Your neighbors, friends, and regular customers will ensure your coffee shop's success. After all, a lot is riding on the line. Along with your investments, you have monthly operational costs, as well as several employees to look out for.

Whether you operate a coffee shop, run a drive-thru coffee stand, or drive a mobile coffee truck, we hope you never fall victim to any crime. Instead, we hope that our tips can get you thinking about embedding safety in your design and coffee shop planning.

Protect Your Coffee Shop Business

Additional Questions:

What kind of business insurance do I need for my mobile coffee vehicle?

It's a good idea to research your coffee business insurance coverage for your specific business and location. For example, if you operate a mobile coffee vehicle, you will need general liability and commercial auto insurance. As a business, you may also need workers' comp insurance as well.

How much does a coffee shop make?

Coffee shops make money – but how much money? Your coffee shop revenue depends on a few essential variables. The first is how many transactions you do every day – or every month. The next variable is the average cost of each ticket. For example, if you make an average of 3,000 transactions per month and your average ticket price is $5.00, you will bring in $15,000 in revenue. However, some costs need to be covered. Your revenue minus your expenses will give you an idea of your profit margin.

For more information on how much money a coffee shop makes, please read, How Much Money Does a Coffee Shop Owner Make?

How can I make my coffee shop business more eco-friendly?

Operating a more eco-friendly coffee shop is crucial for the environment and your community and helps your bottom line.

In other words, being eco-friendly can be business-friendly too. For example, a coffee shop that reduces waste can save money. There is a range of easy, low-cost actions that you can take to reduce your carbon footprint, reduce excess water consumption, and landfill waste. For more information, read How to Make Your Coffee Shop More Eco-Friendly.

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