Juice Bar Break-Even Analysis: About $107K Monthly Revenue

Fixed costs $8.7K Monthly base

Contribution margin 82% After variable costs

Break-even revenue $10.7K Monthly target

Break-even timing Month 1 Launch month

Break-even calculator

Use this calculator to test whether monthly juice bar revenue covers direct costs and fixed overhead.

Lean Base Full

Monthly revenue Revenue sets the pool that must cover direct costs and overhead. $ Low sales High sales Variable expenses Direct costs move with sales, like ingredients, labor, and fees. $ Low costs High costs

Money available to cover fixed costs $145,716 $176,822 revenue - $31,106 variable expenses

Margin ratio

82%

Covers fixed costs

Yes

Fixed monthly costs This is the monthly cost base contribution margin has to cover. $ Lean setup Heavy overhead

Break-even chart Revenue Total costs

Which juice bar expenses stay fixed, and which ones move with sales?

Cost classification

Break-even is only useful if fixed expenses stay fixed and sales-linked expenses move with revenue. In the first year, ingredients at 9.0% and event staff at 5.0% should not be modeled like rent or owner payroll.

Expense	Cost	Break-Even Treatment	Common Mistake
Owner/Operator payroll	Fixed	Include the $80,000 annual salary as about $6,667 per month in fixed overhead.	Treating all labor as Variable and hiding the owner salary below the line.
General Liability Insurance	Fixed	Model the $250 monthly premium as fixed from Month 1 through Month 60.	Linking insurance to order volume when the model shows a flat monthly amount.
Website Hosting & Software	Fixed	Carry the $150 monthly software and hosting charge in fixed operating expenses.	Leaving small software bills out of break-even because they feel minor.
Marketing Base Retainer	Fixed	Use the $400 monthly retainer as fixed overhead before measuring contribution margin.	Modeling the retainer as a sales commission instead of a committed monthly spend.
Storage Unit Rent	Fixed	Include the $350 monthly rent as a fixed charge across the planning range.	Moving rent with sales even though the model keeps it flat each month.
Beverage Ingredients	Variable	Apply the first-year 9.0% of revenue rate as a direct sales-linked expense.	Using a flat dollar amount and missing the cash impact of higher sales volume.
Event Staff Wages & Gratuities	Variable	Model first-year event staff at 5.0% of revenue because it rises with booked sales.	Blending hourly event labor with fixed owner payroll and overstating flexibility.
Operations Manager role	Semi-fixed	Add salary in steps as staffing scales from 0.0 FTE in the first year to 0.5 FTE in the second year.	Smoothing the hire across every sale instead of adding it when capacity expands.

How do lean, base, and full juice bar setups change break-even?

Scenario table

Traffic, ticket size, labor, and fixed overhead move the line fast. The lean case just clears fixed costs, the base case still misses them, and the full case gives the widest cushion.

Planning cases only; actual results will vary with traffic, labor, and menu mix.

Scenario	Monthly Revenue	Variable Costs	Fixed Costs	CM Ratio	Operating Profit	Break-Even Signal
Lean juice bar	$118.2K	$21.9K	$87K	81.5%	$9.3K	Small cushion; a slow week can erode it fast.
Base juice bar	$237.3K	$39.4K	$241K	83.4%	-$43.1K	Still below break-even, so volume has to rise.
Full juice bar	$346.2K	$50.2K	$258K	85.5%	$38.0K	Clearer cushion, but labor must stay in line.

What breaks the break-even plan for this juice bar?

Stress test

At about $1.18M revenue versus about $107K break-even, the base plan has a wide cushion. The real risk is a mix of softer weekend traffic and higher ingredient, labor, or rent pressure.

Stress Case	Changed Assumption	Break-Even Revenue	Revenue Gap	Risk Signal
Current plan	No change.	$107K	$1.08M cushion	Base revenue is far above break-even.
Revenue shortfall	Revenue falls 20% to about $946K.	$107K	$839K cushion	Weekend traffic misses cut the cushion.
Fixed-cost increase	Fixed costs rise 25% to about $109K.	$134K	$1.05M cushion	Rent or storage creep pushes the hurdle higher.
Margin pressure	Variable expenses rise 5 points to 23.5%.	$114K	$1.07M cushion	Produce waste or overstaffed prep shifts hurt fast.
Combined pressure	Revenue falls 20%, fixed costs rise 25%, and variable expenses rise to 23.5%.	$142K	$804K cushion	The cushion shrinks fast, so traffic and cost control both matter.

Before you sign the lease, what must this juice bar prove about break-even?

Founder checklist

Model traffic against the ~$107K monthly break-even target before you sign the lease. Then check that pricing, weekly covers, and Month 2 cash can hold the launch, because Month 1 breakeven does not mean low risk.

1Lease Target~$107K/mo

Only sign the lease if the site can clear the monthly break-even target, because fixed occupancy costs lock in before sales do.

2Menu AOV$65/$90

Test whether $65 midweek AOV and $90 weekend AOV are real, because those price points drive the revenue plan.

3Weekly Covers335/week

Make sure the prep plan can serve 335 covers a week, because you cannot hit break-even if the line slows sales.

4Margin Check81.5% CM

Verify Year 1 variable costs stay near 18.5% of revenue, so each sale still leaves 81.5% to cover fixed costs.

5Hiring RampOwner first

Price the menu before hiring beyond owner/operator payroll, because extra labor adds fixed cost before demand is steady.

6Cash Buffer$864K cash

Hold the Month 2 minimum cash cushion, and do not treat Month 1 breakeven as proof the launch is safe.