A lot of people have started turning away from consumption of fizzy drinks and sodas which are presumed to be bad for health and could lead to diabetes and other health problems. More people now prefer to go for healthier alternatives like fruit and vegetable juices. Fruit juices are not only packed with fewer calories, they are also filled with vitamins which are beneficial to the body.
Where to Set Up your Juice Bar
The best place to set up your juice bar is a public place where a lot of people normally drive or walk through. A very good place is in a shopping mall or a grocery store. Other suitable places for setting up your juice bar include airports, train stations, fitness centers, school cafeterias and office complexes.
Types of Juice Bars
- Mobile Juice Bar-: Mobile juice bars are getting more popular these days. They cater to busy people by making juices available to them no matter where they may be. Mobile juice bars make use of trucks or juice carts to sell their products. With your juice truck, you could easily drive around neighborhoods to make sales or set up a sales booth at public events like sports, exhibitions and festivals.
- Juice and Smoothie Bar-: Unlike the mobile juice bar, this kind of juice bar is stationed in one place (Restaurant style) where people can easily walk in and order whatever they want.
Starting a Juice Bar – Sample Business Plan Template
Factors to Succeed in a Juice bar Business
To achieve success in your juice bar business, there are some very important factors to be put into consideration, some of which include;
1. Location-: Where you choose to set up your bar is highly critical to the success of your business. For you to be able to attract customers (and not just customers, remember that your target would be health-conscious customers who understand why fresh juice is a better option), you would need to set up your juice bar in a place where you can attract such customers.
The first best place you should consider is in a fitness center. You should also think about setting up in a place where there is usually a lot of traffic. That way, you will be able to cater to thirsty customers who find themselves held up in traffic. You can also consider locations like airports and shopping malls and even schools.
2. Seasonal Changes-: You must understand that changes in seasons would affect your revenue and you should always be adequately prepared for the off-peak periods. A juice bar business is likely to make fewer sales during winter and other cold seasons compared to summer. Summer period is a peak period for your juice business because people consume drinks more at this time due to the hot weather. During summer, you can think about setting up a make-shift juice bar at a beach or a children’s park to make more sales.
3. Marketing-: You must also understand the process of marketing your business to succeed. This is where the need for a juice bar marketing plan comes into play. You must know how to attract customers.
The first thing to do is to give your juice bar an attractive name that would appeal to your customers’ health-conscious mind. You should also think about adding healthy snacks to your menu; this would not only increase revenue, it would also help your customers to choose all round healthy meals. Here is a sample juice bar business plan template to help you get started.
4. Competition-: A juice bar is very easy to set up, and requires relatively smaller capital; so you should expect a lot of competition. Nevertheless, you can beat your competitors by being smarter. Study your major competitors and look at what they are offering and what makes them successful, then come out with something even better. A good way to beat your competitors is to make your products cheaper and offer them a lot of freebies. Trust me, customers love freebies.
5. Franchise-: You should also think about leveraging on other people’s success and efforts by buying a juice bar franchise. Look for a very popular, successful juice bar and start another branch of that bar in your area. This would give you access to ready-made customers and also make it easier for you to start your business since most of the strategizing and advertising has already been figured out.
6. Menu-: This is one of the most important factors to help you succeed. You must make sure your juice menu is excellent and packed with a lot of tasty and healthy ingredients. Try experimenting with different fruit combinations and flavors to come up with something no one else is offering. You should also try to find out the type of juices that people demand more and ensure that it is included in your menu.
Equipment Needed to Start your Juice Bar
To start your juice bar, you will need to purchase some equipment. You can purchase fairly used equipment if you feel that buying new equipment would be too costly for you. Some of the equipment that you will need includes-:
- Blender
- Ice Machine
- Juice Press
- Straws
- Cups
- Napkins
- Mesh Strainers
- Long spoons
- Cup Lids
These are the basic tools you need to set up your juice bar but as time goes on and you start to make more sales and profit, you may find out that you need other equipment. If you are setting up a mobile juice bar, don’t forget that you will need a truck for this and if you are opting for a restaurant-style juice bar instead, you should remember to include cost of renting a restaurant space as well as cost of furnishing it in your business plan. You should also ensure that you obtain necessary licenses and permits to avoid harassment from law enforcement agents.
Types of Juices to sell
When you want to create your menu, you should create three categories of juice to sell; fruit juice, vegetable juice and smoothies. The most popular fruit juices are Apple, Orange, Pineapple and Mango. These juices are referred to as base juices because they can be mixed with other types of juice.
Suitable vegetable juices include spinach, celery, beets, wheat grass and carrots. You should also consider adding spices like ginger, garlic, nutmeg or cinnamon to your vegetable juice while in the smoothie’s category you can include dairy products like yogurts, soya milks or rice milks.
If you are looking for some combinations to try, peach and pineapple, blackberry and banana or red grapes and cranberry are very good combinations to try.
This article should not be taken as a substitute for getting adequate training for your juice bar business. It is advisable that you get some basic training to help you learn the tips and tricks to succeed in the business and also prepare you for any challenges you may encounter during the course of running your juice bar business.
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