May the Fairest Coffee Win

Coffee has become an integral part of our daily lives. No matter what kind of job someone does, or if they’re a student, it seems as though most people get a least one cup of coffee every day. If you own a coffee shop, you’re in extreme luck. There is no doubt that a coffee shop will always have good potential to be very profitable.

Big chain coffee shops were a huge hit with the public. Now there’s one at every corner, sometimes there are two Prets or Starbucks on one street. With huge marketing schemes, like how Pret offers a subscription, it’s a wonder how local shops stay in business, especially in an area like Mayfair.

Living in Mayfair, every now and then, I need an escape from the hustle and bustle of Central London. However, it has been extremely difficult finding a charming little place where I can enjoy a cup of reasonably priced coffee and music that doesn’t make conversations hard to listen to.

I took it upon myself to figure out why there are hardly any locally owned coffee shops in the area. However, it isn’t too difficult to guess. On London’s Monopoly board, Mayfair is the most expensive neighbourhood one can buy property on. As the saying goes; life imitates art, however in this case, art imitates life. Mayfair is indeed London’s most expensive neighbourhood. While it used to have a variety of homeowners, most buildings have now turned into businesses and offices.

But seeing as how business people need coffee to run their day-to-day, any local shop would be heavily profiting from being on the main streets of Mayfair. But locally owned cafés stick to the hidden alleyways.

Everbean has been opened for 11 years, always in the same little corner of Mayfair, owned by Onur and his wife. His café is located in a small, narrow street, that was surprisingly still buzzing with people who worked around the area. The shop had to stay closed during the pandemic, they’re still trying to pay off their debt from having the business still running. With “work from home” still keeping a lot of workers from having to be in the area, things have remained tough.

There’s already two Starbucks on Berkley Street, with a Pret at both corners. Chains are paying the same amount of rent as locally owned coffee shops, yet local business owners keep their prices rather affordable.

So, what’s the secret to staying in business in an expensive area like Mayfair? Loyalty.

“We don’t use advertising,” Says Onur. “We go by word of mouth. Our customers are very loyal”. Standing outside of Everbean, there is no doubt that there is no lack of customers. Almost every table in the charming café, including the outdoor ones, were taken.

Outside of Everbean

In a place like Mayfair, it’s important to support local businesses that care about quality.