How to Start Your Own Juice Bar Business

How to Start Your Own Juice Bar Business

A juice bar business makes money by charging customers for By Tom Egelhoff modified and adjusted to
fresh, quality juice-based beverages. Pricing & Profit Cyprus Market
My Vitamin Bar Cyprus
depends on the ingredients, time, skill, and expertise it takes
to purchase and prepare these drinks.

How To Star Your Own Juice Bar Business

Cyprus is getting healthier.
Yes, really.
Diabetes and high cholesterol rates are falling every year. People are even cutting down
on cigarettes!
In 2009, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recorded 1.7 million new cases
of diabetes. By 2015, it dropped to 1.4 million, and that number is projected to drop even
more this coming year.
Unfortunately, the Diabetes Association states that diabetes directly kills more than
71,000 people a year, most of which are type-2 diabetes, which is linked to poor diet and
a lack of exercise.
So while there is a trend towards a more health-conscious Cyprus, there’s still a long way
to go.

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How To Star Your Own Juice Bar Business

And that’s where we come in.
Juice bars first started in the 1990s as people began focusing on the long term effects of
fast food on their bodies. This is one 90s craze that stuck around, as the juice bar industry
continues to grow and thrive.
This industry has grown to yearly revenues of more than €5 billion. And it’s only getting
bigger, growing at a steady rate of 4%-8% every year.

(Speakymagazine, 2018)

Starting a juice bar isn’t just a good way to make a living, it’s a good way to improve
people’s lives. It seems like everyone has more of everything today – except time.
Everyone is always on the move and in a hurry. They don’t have time to cook healthy
meals at home, and want something fast. But they still want healthy.

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How To Star Your Own Juice Bar Business

How to Start Your Own Juice Bar Business

Enter juice.
Whether you’re making smoothies, protein shakes, or breakfast juices, you have the
opportunity to provide people with an organic, healthy, fast and affordable meal option.

(Divalikes, 2016)
At this point, you’re probably thinking about how to start a juice bar.
Well, you came to the right place!
After reading this article, you’ll understand the principles involved in opening and running
a successful juice bar business, and turn your passion for healthy living into a thriving
business.

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How To Star Your Own Juice Bar Business

Step 1: Learn How a Juice Bar Works

If you’re seriously considering opening your
own juice bar, then it’s critical that you do lots
of researching into the juice bar market and
understand how the industry works.
You can do this in two ways: from the outside,
and from the inside.

(juiceworks, 2019)

From the outside, it’s important to study your competition. Look for successful juice bars
that you know of, and really study their business. Go as often as you can. Become their
best customer. Study their products. Examine their marketing techniques. Look at their
staffing plan. If you can learn the main operating points of the most successful juice bar
business in your area, then you can mimic that operation and avoid a lot of typical
beginner’s mistakes.

Some key points to look for in a juice bar business:

• What are their top selling juices or offerings?
• Who is their market? How often do they purchase and how much do they spend?
• How are they promoting the business?
• What are some of their regular specials?
• Is their process efficient?

The more you know about what drives their success, the better equipped your business
well be. Which ties into the second option for learning the industry; from the inside.
There is no better way to understand the juice bar business than to go work for a
successful juice bar. While you can get a feel for all the above points being a customer,
you can truly understand it by participating in the process.

This is especially helpful from an operations aspect. You’ll get to sit in on meetings and be
trained in the actual process of creating the juices. You won’t just know which products
sell best, but which products don’t sell at all.
You’ll learn peak times. Marketing strategies. Staffing
procedures.
The list goes on and on.
So before you do anything else in regards to starting a
juice bar business, take some time and research the
industry to help you create a plan.

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How To Star Your Own Juice Bar Business

Step 2: Create a Plan

Why do juice bar businesses fail?

Juice bars are really a numbers game. You have to
anticipate how many people will be coming into your
store, and when.

You have to figure out what they will order, and how
much of it.

The best way to do this is to create an
actual business plan. This is so
important for many reasons. First off,
any financing or investor options you
explore will require you to have a
business plan. But just as important is
that you’re creating an actual map for
your business.

By putting in the thought and making decisions now, you’ll expedite the entire process
down the road.

Put a business plan together that includes both your expected costs and your projected
income. This takes research and time. But that time saves you so much more time down
the road.

Other elements to add into your business plan include:

• Operating costs, including rent and supplies. Will you buy? Rent? Lease?
• Location. Where will your store open?
• Target market: Who is your customer? Where does s/he live and hang out?
• Legal requirements: What licenses and permits do you need? How much do they

cost?
• Insurance needs and requirements
• Staffing plan: how many employees do you need and what will you pay them?
• Marketing plan (and budget), what’s the best way to reach your audience?

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Step 3: Discover Earning Potential

The biggest question people wanting to enter the business
ask is how much money do juice bars make?

That number varies based on location, prices, profit margins,
and operating expenses. But the average revenue of a juice
bar ranges from €20,000 to €300,000 a year. Keep in mind,
that’s average revenue. If you’re in a thriving, growing, healthy city then you can easily
eclipse that mark. But on the other side of the coin, if you don’t treat your business as a
business, you can fail to meet that minimum revenue.

As the juice bar industry continues to grow at a steady 4%-8% every year, its €5 billion in
revenue in 2014 is projected to rise past €8 billion a year in the next 4 years.
With the industry thriving and the country becoming more health-oriented, now is a
perfect time to open a juice bar.
The earnings potential is there, it’s just up to you to determine how to maximize it.

Step 4: Set a Budget

If you’re wondering how much does it cost to open
a juice bar, well that answer varies too.
A juice bar can cost anywhere from €5,000 to
€395,000 depending on franchise costs — if any,
construction costs, equipment and ingredient
choices, business and health licensing.
Buying into a franchise has its benefits, such as
marketing help, systems, and processes already in
place, making building and operating your store significantly easier. Plus, having instant
brand recognition attracts lots of customers and gives your business automatic credibility.
However, your initial costs will be significantly higher due to franchise fees.

Is the added cost worth it? That’s a decision you have to make for yourself, and a budget
can help.

Your budget is the biggest part of your
business plan and should be used as a factor
in making all financial decisions.
List all operating costs, no matter how small,
whether they’re recurring or fixed, in your
budget. Subtract those costs from your total
available money, and what’s left is how much
you have for marketing, reinvesting back into
the business, and profit.

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How To Star Your Own Juice Bar Business

When you overspend on one category, you then need to take money out of another
category. That’s why your budget is important, it keeps you on track.
Some costs to consider:

• Rent / mortgage / caravan / trolley
• Labor costs
• Equipment
• Supplies
• Ingredients
• Marketing
• Maintenance
• Utilities
• Permits
• Insurance
• Website hosting, design, maintenance

You may come across more costs, such as renovations and construction, when you open
a juice bar. Starting a juice bar business can be expensive. That’s why it’s important to
keep costs down.
Some tips to keep costs down include:

• Staff appropriately (labor is your highest cost)
• Don’t over order. This may take a little time, but you’ll figure out your average sales

for certain products and their ingredients. Having to throw away excess ingredients
is extremely wasteful and harmful to your business
• Use washable rags instead of paper towels for cleanup
• Be aware of inefficiencies – lay out your kitchen with a plan, get the product out as
quickly and efficiently as possible to maximize profits
Use your budget to help guide your decisions, your business will thank you for it!

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Step 5: Decide Which Products or Services to Offer

Deciding what products to offer can be a little intimidating and feel
overwhelming. But it’s critical to your business’s success. This is where
you decide why someone should buy from you instead of your
competition.
What is your unique selling point?
What can you offer that nobody else can? Maybe it’s you, maybe it’s
your service, maybe it’s your experience. But figure it out, write it
down, and make it your store’s centerpiece, literally and figuratively.
Are you going to serve just one type of drink?
Maybe you envision being a juice cleanse type of bar?
Will you have healthy snack options?
Or a healthy kitchen?
A healthy menu can offer your business a lot more opportunity to upsell and produce
more profit.

Get creative!

Don’t be afraid to experiment
with different fruit and veggie
combinations to come up with
something that no one else has. If
you can come up with your own
healthy, tasty recipes for both
juice and food, your business can
find itself squeezing the
competition. Keep an eye on the
competition to see what their
menu looks like. If certain juices
are popular, you want to have an alternative to that option so you don’t lose customers.

Also, be prepared for seasonal changes, which could negatively impact your business.
Winter can usually take a toll on juice bars, but if you can come up with a hot option, such
as a specialty coffee for energy, then you’ve got an opportunity to offset those down
times. On the other hand, after the holiday season, people start focusing on their health
again, and juice bars become a popular search.

Just remember that you want to focus on providing a diverse, broad menu without
sacrificing efficiency or quality.
You can expect to charge €2-€6 for a drink, depending on drink size and ingredients
involved.

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Step 6: Decide on a Location
In the juice bar business, location is vital to your business’s success.
Choose a location based on your target market; health conscientious
consumers who either don’t have time to make a meal, or simply prefer the
health benefits of a juice. Ideally, you’ll want to set your juice bar near a gym, yoga studio,
or some other fitness club. Shopping malls, schools, parks, and plazas are high traffic
locations which can attract lots of passersby.
Try and avoid opening your juice bar near an already existing, successful juice bar. That
puts you in a poor competitive position right away. Urban areas produce the most
revenue for juice bars. Semi-urban areas are also good, as are suburbs. Try and avoid rural
areas.

Some factors to consider when choosing a location:
• Budget
• Parking
• Visibility from the street
• Ease of access
• Lighting

If you’re not sure about what locations may be best, check with a commercial realtor.
S/he may have some great suggestions for you within your budget.

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How To Star Your Own Juice Bar Business

Step 7: Find Suppliers

What equipment do you need to open a juice bar?
Again, that answer depends on your business model. But some basics include:

• Juicers – you may want different types for each offering, such as

• Desktop Juicers
• Portable Juicers
• Bench Juicers
• Refrigerator Bar Juicers

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7oJg3WFo_6g

• Refrigerator / Icebox
• Sinks
• Cutting boards
• Knives
• Measuring cups
• Scales
• Point of Sale (POS) system
• Tables and chairs for customers (optional, but improves sales and retention)
• Napkins, cups, cutlery, plates, etc.
• Decoration / Art / Entertainment
You’ll also need regular fresh supplies and ingredients. Do your best to source fresh,
organic ingredients from local vendors and farmers. This gets you the freshest ingredients
in the fastest time, making sure that you don’t have to order quite so much with each
order. Check out the local farmers market, growers association, and orchards in your area.
This gives you options to figure out what the most affordable and efficient vendor option
looks like.
Or look for wholesale stores for your vegetables, fruit, and ice. While this may not be
quite as efficient due to having to go pick up the ingredients, it can be extremely cost
effective.

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How To Star Your Own Juice Bar Business

Step 8: Promote Your Juice Bar
Remember, a juice bar is a volume game. And to keep that
volume high, you have to have a plan in place to bring in
customers.
First, figure out who your customer is and where s/he hangs
out. Then figure out how to get them to come in.
Some great promotion and marketing options include:

• Hand out coupons and flyers
• Participate at local gyms or fitness events with free samples
• Large, clear signs to attract cars and foot traffic
• Hang flyers on bulletin boards around town and in coffee shops

Then focus on digital marketing. This is efficient
and affordable, and speaks directly to your
audience, as juice bars tend to attract a young,
tech-savvy crowd. Take advantage of Google
Adwords and Facebook’s Local Awareness ads
feature to target consumers within a certain
distance of your business.
Pay attention to your website and social media properties like Twitter, and your Facebook
fan page.
Consider a loyalty rewards or referral program to bring in new customers and keep your
current customers coming back.
Remember, it doesn’t matter how great your product is if you don’t have anyone to serve
it to. So make sure you’re putting a lot of thought into your marketing and promotions
plan.

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How To Star Your Own Juice Bar Business

Step 9: Create a Staffing Plan

You can not do everything in a juice business on your own.
You need employees. (except if you open in specific busy hours)

It’s up to you to figure out how many employees
you need and where to find them. Be sure to hire
people who are both friendly and upbeat, as well
as efficient and responsible. Friends and family
are a great place to start. Other options include
coffee shop bulletin boards and Craigslist.
Once you know what traits you’re looking for and
how many employees you want to hire, make sure
you have an interview process in mind and a plan
for the hiring process.
Then comes scheduling.
Remember, labor will always be your highest recurring cost, so it’s important for you as a
business owner to keep labor as low as you can without harming your business.

If you consistently schedule too much staff, your business
will spend too much and suffer. There’s a fear of not
getting to all your customers in time and annoying them
with a wait. But scheduling solely for peak hours and
having your employees standing around the rest of the
shift can do more harm than good.
On the other hand, if you under staff, your juice stars may
get frazzled and feel overwhelmed by how much there is to get done.

Eventually, you’ll come to understand the needs
of a juice bar, but until then, be willing to
schedule yourself to fill in as needed to keep
waits down and save money.
It’s equally important to check in with your staff
on a monthly basis to talk about recurring
problems and inefficiencies. Take them out to
lunch and give them a place to voice those
concerns.

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How To Star Your Own Juice Bar Business

Step 10: Decide on a Style/Design

Here’s another area that can be overwhelming.
Your style and design directly influence how you want
your customers to feel about your business. You want to
be warm and welcoming but still able to express your
own flare and passion. Just be careful not to overdo it
and risk scaring away customers.

The best way to figure this piece out is to talk to prospective customers. Get feedback
from the people who would be frequenting your juice bar. Talk to them at existing juice
bars. See what people like and don’t like. If you’re still not sure, talk to some contractors
and see what’s most commonly requested of them.

Here, you get designers competing for your prize money. For
as little as €60, you get to choose from a large selection of
high-quality logo options, giving you flexibility and options,
and hopefully providing some inspiration.
If you’re struggling with some name ideas, some ideas for
you to think about are:

• Juiced
• Just Juiced
• Fruitastic
• The Juice Jungle
• Fresh Juicery
• Fruit Lagoon
• VitaFruit
• FruitFusion

Take your time with choosing your style. Remember, it should express you and your
business, so make it appealing!

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How To Star Your Own Juice Bar Business

Step 11: Create an Accounting Plan

Having an accounting plan is a must for any business.
As a business, you’ll be an employer. As such, you’re
responsible for payroll taxes and documenting all your
income. Which is why it’s so critical to have every dollar
accounted for and everything in order.
Equally important, you’ll be able to project your sales
more easily with proper tracking, in addition to knowing if you are on track to stick to your
budget. You’ll also be able to tell if anything is missing from your store, making an
accounting plan part of your store’s security measures.
These are only a few accounting software that we’ve seen shops use:

• Quickbooks
• Kashflow
• SageOne
• Xero

Step 12: Get Into the Juice Bar Community

If you’re exploring franchise options then you’ll be joining a community with built-in
support networks.
But if you’re planning on being an independent shop, then it’s important you get involved
in the juice bar community.

Look on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter for accounts to follow and groups to join. Join
local juice meetups.
This is an opportunity to network, find out about new recipes, and learn new industry
best practices and techniques to optimize your business.

You never know where your big break or a great employee may come from, so become
involved in the industry community and go to trade shows and meetups whenever
possible!

The Bottom Line

Starting a juice bar business is a lot of work. Running one is equally hard if not harder.
But if you do it right, it’s not only rewarding, it’s a lot of fun.
You get to be your own boss and brighten people’s lives on a daily business! On top of
that, you’re helping them improve their health!

Hopefully, you put this guide to use.

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Important Notes

Recipes of natural juice bar for business
The recipes for preparing natural juices are not as obvious as it may seem at first glance.
You have to be very careful with the mixtures of fruits & vegetables that we make at the
time of juice preparation.

Did you know that there are fruits that should not be combined?
To make a good juice recipe it is necessary to make a good combination, for this we can
classify the fruits into four large groups:

Acid fruits: For example, orange, pineapple, lemon, maracuya, grapes, grapefruit, etc.

Semi acid fruits: Examples of these fruits are strawberries, peaches, peaches, etc.

Sweet fruits: Among these are papaya, banana, guanabana, etc.

Neutral fruits : For example: coconut, peanuts, avocados etc.

When making your recipe you must be careful not to mix those of one group with those
of another.
Now that you know the right combination between fruits you can make the recipes that
come to your imagination.

Suggestions for natural juice drinks:

Refreshing juices: The juices made with acidic fruits are the best to quench thirst. Make
combinations between orange and tangerine. The juices of lulo are effective to refresh.
The slushies with the acid fruits are usually very requested.

Juice to lose weight: Pineapple is a natural diuretic. A pineapple juice is
ideal for those people who have a weight loss plan. In no time you think
of making pineapple juice with milk, the result is a very toxic drink.

Shake-type juices: Is there anything more delicious than a banana shake? Banana shakes
are preferred by athletes because they provide great energy. In general, sweet fruits are
ideal for preparing milkshakes.

Recipes with coffee: Surely one or another client will come to your business. Or from a
group of friends, there will be one that does not feel like a fruit juice, for this reason, it is

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important that you know how to prepare an alternative drink that does not have fruit.
One recommendation is to prepare drinks with coffee, tea water, and aromatics. For
example, a milkshake with coffee would be an option to consider.
Fruit salad: Consider selling fruit salads. There are people who like to
feel the piece of fruit in their mouth. You can offer this product, I
think it does not go against your original business plan of selling
juices.

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