Coffee shops that open at 10am?

[LoveHearts69]

I always want to go out to a cafe somewhere that’s not a big chain but all the nice cafes or coffee shops near me and the surrounding towns open at 10am. Maybe because I’ve got young children I’ve already had 2 coffees by 8am but surely also for all those people working a standard 9-5 shift it would make much more sense for them to open at 8am to catch those customers before they start work? I’m just so confused at the reasoning. Is it just me that thinks this is strange?

I live in London. My nearest Caffe Nero is open around 6 though on Weekends it changes. I think Saturday is 7 and Sunday is 7.30.

I love going that time i the morning! So peaceful until mum and kids come much later!

The nice independent place in our local town opens at 9 and 8 on market day. I sometimes have time to go at 9 on my WFH days and usually make 8 on market day. I get coffee and takeaway lunch to eat at work, but it is quiet when I'm there. It's not particularly well-placed for commuting and the main employer in town is a factory whose workers have to be clocked in by 8 at the latest. So they wouldn't necessarily be a target market and they'd have to be open very early to catch them.

Also, it's a husband and wife running and at least one of them does school drop-offs, so I expect the running costs plus childcare just wouldn't be covered.

I can see the logic of opening at 10 am, even if it is quite annoying sometimes. Most people out and about before that time presumably just want to grab a coffee and go, not linger and have cake or breakfast, so it makes sense for cafes near stations to open for the takeaway trade. But little independents want people who can linger like retired people or parents after the school run and that is most likely going to be after 9/10 am.

I quite often meet a friend at about 7.30 for coffee/breakfast so it doesn't take a chunk out of our day but I think we're unusual. We go to the local Beefeater because of easy parking, no queueing and we can stay as long as we like without feeling that we're taking a space that could be earning the place more money because it is huge.

The other thing about capitalising on the school run / commuter traffic is that you need more than one member of staff, because coffee takes a little while to make and people are in a rush. So generally you need one taking the orders, and one or even two making the drinks in even a relatively small Nero. That’s just not viable for a small cafe, both in terms of cost, or availability of staff who want to work between 7 and 10. So the chains that have the scale and can carry that overhead cover that sector of the market,
.

I am in town 4-5pm while DC does a class and it’s only the grubby Nero and Costa open then. I’d rather go to one of the lovely independents but they close at 4

Surely the standard coffee shop opening hours, 10-4 are the hours they make the most money. Staff are probably there from 9 am or earlier setting up, prepping etc and probably finish around 5 after cleaning up. They have lives too and probably want to get home rather than staying open for the occasional person who comes in just for a coffee after work.

Local independents where I live in southwest London all open around 8.00 am and close at 4.00. It's irritating for those of us who want an afternoon cup of tea out rather than at home!

My local only started to open earlier when they realised they were missing the breakfast traffic. Now they open at 8am they've been able to open another cafe and extend their premises. I can't for the life of me think why cafe's have such short opening times- would love to know!

I think I have just thought of a new job for myself .
I will buy a snack van , I will park it near a busy school at 8am then move to a shopping centre car park at 9.30 then back to the school at 3pm .
I will sell good quality but reasonable price tea , coffee ,toasted sandwiches and cake .
It will have a decent size awning and a few tables and chairs .

🍵🫖🥪🍰
Coffee anyone ?

It isn't just the cafes that close early where i live. Shops open between 10/10:15am and close by 2pm sharp, when the residents ask why the shop owners say they don't like the rush. They also close randomly midweek, even if people have ordered things to pick up.

Agree. I go for a breakfast out once a month and end up in McDonald’s because it’s the only thing that is open

The 2 local independent cafés near me that I know both open at 06:30, in order to catch the commuter traffic I assume. One closes at 2 or 4 depending on the day, the other at 4

This is SW London, both near to tube stations

That seems a bit bizarre. I guess maybe the reduction in commuters has made opening before the traditional 9am office start less lucrative.
I'm never up that early now, but I always used to get coffee on the way to work so they all must have opened at 8am.
Thats not as bad as my favourite old school caff. They open at 6am and stop serving at 1.45pm. I'm nearly always too late! 🙁🤣

All the coffee shops around here are open before 9am, as we're in London zone 2 so lots of commuters picking it up before they go into the office. They close around 6.30pm although a few have an evening menu and stay open until 8pm.

We own and run an independent cafe/brunch place. When we open at 8am, staff are needed from at least 7.30 if not earlier and we were finding we just don’t get enough sales.
Staff and energy costs are high considering the small margins you make. We’ve been in business 7 years but barely getting through this year.

Its a shame though, I’ve wondered if we didn’t promote it enough. But I imagine only city centre or Costa type chains can afford to be open when you only serve 3 coffees an hour or so.

Thanks, it is really interesting hearing from cafe owners! There’s some really lovely cafes in the more fashionable local towns with schools close by and I feel if just one of them opened early and really marketed it then they could get a lot of business but then maybe not everyone eats breakfast as early as me 😂

I guess what someone else said about it not being as worth it for takeaway coffees as longer brunches makes a bit of sense.

Hope business picks up for you! ❤️

Yes I would imagine city centre ones are busier. The Caffe Nero I spoke of got plenty of early morning customers getting takeouts (I hate that word!).

Both our local independent places open at 8am. I once was passing by at 7.55 ( it’s opposite to my usual morning direction) and there was a customer waiting so I guess they do have clients before 9am.
However closing time for most independent places around here is 3 or 4 pm .
I guess they are probably aiming for good life- work balance rather than for highest profit so it makes sense for them .
As a lover of 4 pm cup of tea and a cake I’m stuck with chains ☹️