The owners of Fibonacci Coffee have built the café franchise from scratch. Their focus was always to create a community and family-focused business model, and coffee houses struck them as the obvious way to go.
Why coffee?
Coffee has been with the larger world for a few hundred years, since the first beans were smuggled out of Yemen. In most countries, coffee houses are a hub for community activity, so the atmosphere and function of a café are familiar to most people. People always want to catch up with friends and colleagues for a coffee.
Fifteen years ago, founder of Fibonacci Coffee, Boaz Keeda did a three-hour barista course and was sent off to run his first coffee cart.
‘Lucky for me the market place was not yet educated enough to know the difference between a good coffee and a bad one. I had enough confidence to fake it until I figured things out.’
He’s learned a lot since then, and says now unless you know how to make the perfect coffee shot, you won’t get near a machine. Australian coffee culture has grown hugely in the last decade. People pay a lot for their coffee and expect a good product.
‘In Australia,’ says Boaz, ‘You go to the pub or you go to the coffee shop. Since I started my first coffee business the growth has been phenomenal: as well as the education of people around the different drinks, the mechanisms, the ways of drinking it. There seems to be a never-ending thirst around finding out more. It’s the new wine, it’s become such a highly skilled endeavour.’
An individual experience
Boaz thinks that there’s a sense of experiential ritual around coffee too. ‘Sometimes the whole ritual you set around the delivery of your coffee can have a massive impact on people’s expectation and the overall experience.’
With the present Australian passion for coffee, a franchise that offers good coffee married with the capacity to personalise the space to give a great experience provides excellent opportunities for success.
Boaz knows that business operators want to express their individuality, even within a franchise framework. The group buying power gives Fibonacci financial leverage when it comes to making profit, but there’s enough flexibility in store design for owners to make their mark.
Each Fibonacci store has a core product line of course, but owners can also introduce local products to meet the needs of the local demographics and their own personality.
Coffee, Customer Service and Community
Café culture is an almost universal phenomenon, even if some countries make their coffee a little differently.
Part of building a great café that attracts and keeps customers is giving excellent customer service. Boaz doesn’t think this is hard.
‘It comes down to being nice to people, noticing them and taking a genuine interest in them. You always have something to give: a compliment, knowledge, time, a shoulder, empathy, encouragement, a hand, some understanding.’
Running a café is also a natural way to become a key part of your community. It’s the place where people come to meet, and can bring their families. You can connect with people, provide employment and support community programs, all while delivering a hot, comforting drink and earning an income to provide a life for your own family.
If you are interested in owning your own coffee shop, click here to get more information about how you can own a Fibonacci Coffee shop.