Specialty Coffee Startup Costs: $210K, $848K Cash

This specialty coffee shop startup budget covers the first operating year, with $210,000 in researched startup uses scheduled across Month 1 to Month 6 It separates $195,000 of CAPEX and setup items from $15,000 of inventory and lease deposit funding, then ties the plan to the model’s $848,000 minimum cash need in Month 2

Calculate Fuding Needs

Startup cost summary

This table breaks out the main coffee shop startup assets, pre-opening spend, and opening cash need.

Highlighted CAPEX$190,000Base planning example

Excluded cash needs$848,000Outside CAPEX total

Funding need$1,038,000CAPEX + excluded cash needs

Cost Category	Base Estimate	Main Cost Driver	CAPEX Calculator
Commercial Kitchen Equipment	$60,000	Commercial kitchen buildout and equipment spec	Yes
Delivery Vehicles	$75,000	Vehicle count, condition, and upfit	Yes
Catering Equipment	$30,000	Catering setup and service capacity	Yes
Office Furniture & IT Equipment	$15,000	Office setup and hardware spec	Yes
Website Development & Branding	$10,000	Design scope and build complexity	Yes
Operating Reserve	$848,000	Month 2 cash trough, inventory, lease deposit, and payroll runway	No

Estimate Startup Costs with Calculator

Startup CAPEX Calculator

Estimates the upfront capitalized startup assets for a specialty coffee shop, not working capital or launch spend.

What's excluded This calculator excludes opening inventory, lease deposits, payroll runway, debt service, working capital, permits, launch marketing, and other operating expenses. It also does not include the Month 2 cash need.

What should the CAPEX tab show?

Shows CAPEX/startup costs, Month 1-6 timing, $210k uses, depreciation/amortization, and funding need; review the Specialty Coffee Financial Model Template assumptions.

Key screenshot checks

$210k startup uses
$848k Month 2 cash
Month 1 break-even

Specialty Coffee Financial Model capex inputs showing capital expenditure categories and customizable asset purchase schedules, letting users define equipment, store build-outs and depreciation for scenario-ready forecasts and investor-ready projections

Compare 3 Startup Cost Scenarios

Startup cost scenarios

Lean, Base, and Full show how a coffee shop's opening cost shifts with seating, equipment, and delivery. Use 565 covers a week in Year 1 to test whether the buildout is sized right.

Lean, Base, and Full launch cost comparison
Scenario	Lean LaunchKiosk fit	Base LaunchPlan baseline	Full LaunchScaled build
Launch model	Small kiosk or espresso bar with limited seating and no delivery fleet.	Standard coffee shop build that follows the researched startup model.	Full café build with delivery vehicles, a larger food program, and more staff.
Typical setup	Use a tight equipment list and lower working capital for a small-footprint opening.	Use the modeled $210,000 startup uses and $195,000 CAPEX and setup subtotal.	Add the $75,000 delivery vehicle line, bigger equipment, and a larger operating cushion.
Cost drivers	small equipment list limited seating lower inventory no delivery vehicles	commercial kitchen lease core equipment inventory and deposits software and legal	delivery vehicles larger food program expanded equipment higher cash reserve
Planning rangeCAPEX only	Lower six figuresLow cash need	$195,000 - $210,000Modelled base	$848,000Cash heavy
Best fit	Best for founders who want a low-risk first site and can keep the menu simple.	Best for founders who want the planned setup and a clearer path to testing demand.	Best for founders who can fund a bigger launch and want the widest menu and delivery reach.

Planning note: Scenario ranges are researched planning assumptions, not exact vendor quotes.

How much money do you need to open a specialty coffee shop?

You don’t need one universal amount to open Specialty Coffee; plan in three cases: lean, base, and full. The base case uses $210,000 in startup uses with a $195,000 CAPEX/setup subtotal, while the full case points to a $848,000 minimum cash need in Month 2; see What Is The Most Important Measure Of Success For Specialty Coffee? to tie funding to the right operating metric. These are planning assumptions, not vendor quotes, and they depend on size, location, buildout, seating, delivery, and food service.

Funding cases

Lean case: no delivery vehicles
Lean case: limited seating
Base case: $210,000 startup uses
Full case: $848,000 Month 2 cash need

Demand plan

Plan for 565 weekly covers
Use $75 midweek average order value
Use $150 weekend average order value
Model breakfast, brunch, dinner, beverages, desserts

What hidden costs of opening a coffee shop are not in CAPEX?

If you’re budgeting for Specialty Coffee, CAPEX is not the whole story: How Much Does The Owner Of The Specialty Coffee Business Make? still leaves you funding lease deposits, inventory, payroll, and the pre-opening burn. The big misses are a $7,000 lease security deposit, $8,000 of opening inventory, plus permits, insurance binders, training, menu waste, and soft-opening comps. With a $5,700 monthly fixed base and a $195,000 Year 1 salaried wage base, a CAPEX-only plan can look fine while the bank account still needs $848,000 in Month 2.

Upfront cash drains

$7,000 lease security deposit
$8,000 initial inventory purchase
Utility deposits if required
Insurance binders before opening

Pre-open cash burn

Permit timing can delay sales
Pre-opening payroll still cash
Barista training and menu testing waste
Soft-opening comps and cleaning supplies

Why are specialty coffee equipment costs and coffee shop buildout costs so high?

Specialty Coffee costs more because the shop has to work like a tight production line, not just a pretty room. The model’s startup inputs already show $60,000 in commercial kitchen equipment, $30,000 in catering equipment, and $250/month in maintenance from Month 1, because specialty quality needs more consistency, cleaner workflow, and easier service access.

Why the buildout costs jump

Espresso station layout must speed orders
Grinders and brewers need exact placement
Water filtration adds install cost
Electrical and plumbing work can’t be light

Why the equipment bill stays high

Refrigeration supports food and drink prep
Counter construction must fit customer flow
Maintenance access protects uptime from day one
A beautiful bar that slows service is expensive twice

Key Takeaways

Buildout is likely your biggest location-specific cash need.
Mission-critical coffee equipment should be separated from nice-to-haves.
Permits and insurance can delay revenue while rent continues.
Pre-opening labor, branding, and inventory consume cash before sales.

Specialty Coffee Core Five Startup Costs

Leasehold improvements and buildout Startup Expense

Buildout buckets

Count leasehold improvements as the biggest location-based CAPEX item until proven otherwise. Split it into landlord-funded work, tenant CAPEX like counters, plumbing, electrical, flooring, lighting, signage, restrooms, back bar, storage, pickup flow, and seating flow, and the $7,000 refundable lease security deposit.

Scope check

Here’s the quick math: you cannot price the buildout yet without square footage, a landlord work letter, existing plumbing, electrical panel capacity, restroom status, and whether kitchen infrastructure is already permitted. Those inputs decide what the tenant pays and what the landlord covers.

Ask for square footage first
Confirm restroom condition
Verify kitchen permits

Control the spend

The cheapest square foot is the one you do not rebuild. Reuse existing plumbing, panel capacity, and permitted kitchen work where you can, then design counter, pickup, and seating flow around the current shell so you avoid rework, delays, and duplicate trades.

Reuse what already passes code
Map pickup flow before framing
Separate deposit from true CAPEX

Landlord versus tenant

Landlord-funded work should stay out of your startup budget, tenant CAPEX should include only the improvements you control, and the $7,000 security deposit should sit in a separate refundable line so you don’t mix cash outlay with true buildout cost.

Specialty coffee equipment Startup Expense

Core Bar Gear

A serious specialty coffee setup usually starts with $60,000 in commercial kitchen equipment plus $30,000 in catering gear, before install and permits. Use $250/month for maintenance from day one, or $3,000/year. The first spend should protect the bar, not chase every brew method.

What It Covers

This line covers espresso machine, grinders, batch brewers, pour-over tools, scales, water filtration, refrigeration, ice machine, smallwares, storage, and the maintenance setup. Size it by drink menu, peak tickets per hour, food program, water quality, and backup grinder needs; more food and faster service push the budget up.

Save Smart

Cut cost by buying mission-critical bar gear first and adding nice-to-have brew methods after opening. Don't skimp on filtration or a spare grinder: bad water and a single point of failure can stop service. Ask for quotes on install, service, and parts, then test the line at rush volume.

Range Split

Split the range by service model. A coffee-led bar with simple food can stay closer to the core bar package, while a full breakfast, brunch, and dinner menu needs more refrigeration, more storage, and more backup capacity. If the menu needs it, buy it; if not, delay it.

Permits, licenses, insurance, and professional setup Startup Expense

Permit stack

Registration, health permits, food handler rules, certificate of occupancy, sales tax setup, and legal review all need a city, county, and state check. Add music licensing only if you use music. This is setup, not fluff: one missing approval can delay opening while rent and payroll still run.

Year-1 fixed cost

Use the fixed costs we have: $300 per month for business insurance and $200 per month for accounting and legal fees, starting Month 1. Here’s the quick math: $500 monthly equals $6,000 in year-one overhead before filing fees. Ask for quotes, coverage months, and any local renewal dates.

Timing risk

Permit timing can push cash burn higher because the café may be ready before it can sell. Ask the local health department for its timeline, the landlord for the approval process, and whether planned food prep changes the permit class. If that class changes, costs and lead times can change too.

Control the setup

Keep the launch clean: file the entity early, get sales tax and food rules set before the first invoice, and build bookkeeping from day one so receipts and filings do not pile up. If the menu includes live or recorded music, confirm licensing early. The cheapest fix is doing it once.

Pre-opening team, training, branding, and launch readiness Startup Expense

Pre-opening costs

Treat hiring, payroll before opening, barista training, recipe testing, uniforms, photography, website work, local launch campaigns, and soft-opening waste as pre-opening expenses, not equipment CAPEX. Here’s the quick math: $10,000 for website and branding, $5,000 for software licenses, and $195,000 in Year 1 salaried team cost before sales catch up.

Budget inputs

Build this line from training weeks, paid tasting shifts, launch-event headcount, and the months of payroll needed before Month 1 revenue arrives. Ask for the number of weeks before opening, then add uniforms, photos, website work, and local marketing spend. That keeps cash needs clear and stops payroll from hiding in equipment budgets.

Weeks before first sale
Months of payroll coverage
Launch events planned

Cash control

Keep spend tight by locking training dates, reusing test recipes, and setting a hard cap on soft-opening waste. Use one photo shoot, one website build, and one local launch plan. The common mistake is paying full staff too long before traffic starts, which pushes cash out before sales can support it.

Launch timing

With $15,000 already tied to website, branding, and software, plus $195,000 of salaried labor in Year 1, the launch budget must show when each dollar leaves. Training, tasting shifts, launch events, and local marketing all hit before steady sales do, so they need cash set aside up front.

Opening inventory and operating supplies Startup Expense

What it covers

This is consumable stock, not equipment CAPEX. It covers ethically sourced coffee beans, milk, alternative milks, syrups, teas, pastries, retail coffee bags, cups, lids, napkins, cleaning supplies, labels, and first-week replenishment. Use a $8,000 initial purchase in Month 4 so opening inventory is ready before sales ramp.

How to size it

Here’s the quick math: tie ongoing buying to sales, not gut feel. For Year 1, use 10% of revenue for food ingredients and 3% for beverage supplies. With a sales mix of 25% beverages and bar, 15% breakfast brunch, 50% lunch dinner, and 10% desserts, your stock plan should track menu demand.

Waste control

Menu testing and soft opening are where waste spikes, because portions, prep, and par levels are still changing. Buy perishables in smaller drops, watch spoilage by item, and reset re-order levels after the first week. One bad forecast can eat margin fast.

Track spoilage by item
Reset pars after week one
Order perishables in small drops

Keep it separate

Do not bury inventory inside equipment spend. Treat beans, dairy, cups, and cleaning items as working capital, while ovens, brewers, and furniture stay in CAPEX. That split makes cash needs clearer, and it keeps Month 4 stocking from distorting your buildout budget.