What is the Café Studios?

The massive growth of coffee shops in the city of General Santos continues, but how are we able to distinguish each one of them?

Coffee shops are the place where people meet to exchange ideas, hang out, have romantic dates, or just simply spend time alone. One of the essential reasons why coffee shops have ended up so prevalent over the longest time is because of the loose and

unobstructed feeling they bring. Just around the corner of Sampaguita Street stand a cozy haven named Café Studios. This coffee shop was recently established last September this year and you wouldn’t believe how an ordinary place was turned into something so welcoming. When you set foot, the ambiance will give you the notion of warmth. Imagine having an awful day, then you suddenly had the urge to visit their coffee shop – you would feel at ease.

You should not miss their Iced Coffee, Ades, Hot Beverages, Iced Non-Coffee, Panini Sandwich, and Pasta. A sip of their best seller Iced Caramel Macchiato and a slice of Burnt Basque Cheesecake would boost your mood and you have to watch out, they are also in the process of expanding their menu!

Aside from the mouthwatering foods that they offer, no doubt that the place itself is IG-worthy. Every corner is worthy of any pose – this is something that most people are looking for in today’s time. As we can all observe, people tend to flex their daily activities through social media. What makes Café Studios unique among others is the combination of adequate food and gratifying mood they put forward.

If you are looking for a place to alleviate your life, Café Studios got you!

“I would like to advise aspiring business owners to do their research especially in this time of pandemic because of the restrictions. Also, it would be great to build a good network even before starting your business.”

The team got the privilege to interview the owners of the Café Studios. Read on as the owners of Café Studios reveal what was their initial plans, struggles, and how they are overcoming those.

How did you come up with the concept and name of your business?

The idea of the name of the coffee shop originally came from me (one of the owners of the Café Studios). We wanted to combine the concept of a café and a photo studio but due to time and money constraints, we didn’t pull it off. However, visually we’re satisfied and we think that we still managed to apply the concept that we wanted.

What is the type of your business?

Our business type is a corporation which is composed of 6 members. The management of the business is rotational, dividing two groups. Some days two or three people are operating the store and at a maximum of three people. We are long-time high school friends and are all girls.

How much is your estimated investment?

It’s around 100,000. We are currently renting the space and we paid for the renovations.

Who is your target market?

Our target market is young professionals.

What are the challenges in starting a business?

It’s very challenging already given that we started our business during the pandemic. During renovation there were workers got positive, so we had to put it at a halt, at first, we couldn’t meet our deadlines. The challenges are mostly due to the pandemic.

What challenges did your business face during the breakout of the pandemic?

Since we started during this pandemic, we expected that we can only cater to a certain number of customers, besides there are (health) protocols we need to follow. We are pleased because we did not yet record a zero visit in our shop.

How did you sustain your business despite all the restrictions given throughout this pandemic?

We sustain the business, first, by prioritizing the health and security of our employees not just our customers because it is hard to operate the business when we lack a workforce. Next is managing our cash flow. We record our inflow and outflow every day and these enable us to produce weekly reports. It helps us to forecast our business flow for the coming weeks and months. We have also another option that helped us sustain the business through delivery and pick-up with Maxim, and next month we might be available at foodpanda too.

Given that you have aesthetically pleasing photographs on your social media such as Facebook, how thus social media affect your marketing?

Almost 80% of our customers have known us through social media specifically Facebook. With the help of social media, managing and marketing are much more effective.

When we ask them ‘Ma’am how did you get to know about us?’ most of the answers were ‘Facebook’ or ‘Instagram.’

In 5 years where do you vision your business?

We look forward to expanding our business. Specifically, we’d like to have a branch in Davao City.

What is your message to those who want to establish a business?

It’s all about the passion and dream that driven us to establish this café. I would like to advise aspiring business owners to do their research especially in this time of pandemic because of the restrictions. Also, it would be great to build a good network even before starting your business. We have realized this for we lack a strong network.

Café Studios has already been receiving attention and great feedback from its customers even it is still a month old. Serving quality coffees, and snacks with amicable service would lead a business to be successful. Café Studios shows a great sign of growing even it is new in the game. What are you waiting for? Visit this shop that encapsulates warmth. They operate from Mondays to Saturdays, 9:00 AM to 8:00 PM.