cafe Archives

Noy Kalm • October 22, 2026

30 Years in Coffee Catering – How Does Cupa Cabana Keep Staying Ahead?

Why is it that at so many events, everything is top-notch – except the coffee? For Marianne Cordillo, founder of Cupa Cabana Espresso & Coffee Catering, that question inspired a business that has been serving weddings, corporate events, and private celebrations for more than 30 years. What began with a disappointing cappuccino at a wedding

Customer Stories

Rebecca Connors • September 14, 2026

How Cafés Can Profit From the Home-Espresso Boom

More customers can now make a good espresso without leaving home. That sounds like a challenge for cafés, and for routine coffee purchases, it can be. A customer with an espresso machine, grinder, and favorite beans may no longer need to stop at a café every morning just to get a cappuccino. But home espresso

Cafes & Bakeries

Rebecca Connors • September 14, 2026

Why Many Cafés Don’t Make It Past the First Five Years & How to Avoid It

Opening a café is exciting. Keeping one open is much harder. U.S. business survival data shows that only around 59% of accommodation and food-service businesses are still operating after five years. In other words, roughly 4 in 10 close within their first five years. And the problem is not necessarily bad coffee. A café can

Rebecca Connors • September 7, 2026

How Pink Dot Turns Every Coffee Into a Little Escape

When you step into Pink Dot, one of Thessaloniki’s most recognizable cafés, you immediately feel like it belongs in a fairy tale. From floral walls and oversized pink hearts to elegant Italian teacups and personalized coffees, every detail has been carefully designed to make guests smile before they even take their first sip. For founder

Customer Stories

Rebecca Connors • August 23, 2026

How Independent Cafés Are Competing with Big Chains

According to Toast’s 2024 Restaurant Trends Report, independent cafés grew 3.2% year over year, even as major chains struggled to maintain the same momentum. At the same time, the National Coffee Association has continued to report strong coffee consumption across the United States, suggesting demand hasn’t disappeared – it’s shifted. For independent cafés, that’s encouraging

Bars & Restaurants Best Practices Cafes & Bakeries Catering & Events

Rebecca Connors • August 19, 2026

Your Regulars Don’t Need Another Discount. They Need Recognition.

Pursuing more loyal customers, café owners launch loyalty apps, print a punch card, offer another “Buy 9, Get the 10th Free” deal. There’s nothing wrong with rewards, but do these tactics create loyal customers, or simply reward people who were already coming back? According to the National Coffee Association‘s 2024 National Coffee Data Trends report,

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Rebecca Connors • July 19, 2026

The Lesson Many Food & Beverage Businesses Learn Too Late

Food and beverage businesses are usually managed through things that can be measured: costs, staffing, inventory, speed of service, menu performance, waste, reviews, and repeat visits. All of that matters. A business cannot survive without strong operations. But customers do not experience a business through its spreadsheet. They remember how the place made them feel.

Bars & Restaurants Best Practices Cafes & Bakeries Catering & Events

Rebecca Connors • July 19, 2026

How Cafés Can Attract More Tourists This Summer

Summer brings an influx of visitors looking for places to relax, recharge, and experience a destination like a local. For many tourists, a café visit becomes one of the small moments that shape how they remember an entire trip. That’s not just a marketing claim. It’s the conclusion of a peer-reviewed study out of Modul

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Rebecca Connors • June 21, 2026

Your social media isn’t helping you grow your business: now what?

According to Sprout Social, 68% of consumers say they follow brands on social media to stay informed about new products and services, but what actually drives engagement is content that feels authentic and relatable, not purely promotional. Most coffee shops don’t struggle with social media because they’re not posting enough.They struggle because they’re posting the

Best Practices Cafes & Bakeries

Rebecca Connors • June 21, 2026

One Simple Strategy to Turn Your Café Into a Local Obsession

Most cafés compete on the same things: better coffee, lower prices, faster service, nicer interiors. But customers rarely become loyal because of the product alone. They return because of how a place makes them feel. A café in Barcelona proved this in a surprisingly simple way. Instead of focusing entirely on drinks or promotions, the

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Rebecca Connors • May 26, 2026

Win Every Season: A Café Playbook for Year-Round Success

Every café owner knows the feeling: a sudden drop in foot traffic, slower mornings, empty seats during hours that used to be busy. The smarter ones plan for it. Seasonality in cafés isn’t random. It’s predictable. Weather changes behavior, routines shift, and customer needs evolve throughout the year. According to Freshcup, over 60% of coffee

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Rebecca Connors • April 30, 2026

Why Investing in Regulars Is the Smartest Move for Your Café

Cafés were never just about coffee; they’re what sociologists call “third places”: the spaces between home and work where people connect, unwind, and feel a sense of belonging.These environments don’t just serve good coffee - they build routines, relationships, and emotional attachment. And that’s what drives repeat visits and long-term profitability.According to Duke University research, 40-45% of our daily actions are driven by habit, meaning customers don’t repeatedly choose a café because it’s the best; they choose it because it’s familiar.Once that habit is formed, switching requires effort, and most people simply don’t. But habit alone isn’t what creates real loyalty - recognition does.Here is why investing in your regulars isn’t just good hospitality - it’s one of the most powerful drivers of long-term business success:

Cafes & Bakeries カフェ＆ベーカリー