Animal cafés have been popular in Asia for some years, and cat cafes are increasingly appearing in other areas of the globe. Cat cafés are popular in New Zealand and Canada, and a few are opening in the United States.
Cat cafes provide individuals with a place to unwind with friends and felines while also enjoying a beverage or food. Many cafés, in addition to serving human customers, aid the cats they shelter by putting the cats available for adoption.
Table of Contents
Follow these ten steps to open a cat cafe:
Make plans for your Cat Cafe.
Create a legal entity for your Cat Cafe.
Taxes must be registered for your Cat Cafe.
Create a Business Bank Account and a Credit Card
Create an accounting system for your Cat Cafe.
Obtain the Required Permits and Licenses for Your Cat Cafe
Purchase Cat Cafe Insurance
Create a Cat Cafe Brand
Make a website for your Cat Cafe.
Configure your Business Phone System
Starting a company entails more than just registering it with the state. We’ve put up this easy-to-follow guide on opening your own cat café. These stages will guarantee that your new company is well-planned, correctly registered, and legally compliant.
STEP 1: Make a business plan.
A well-thought-out strategy is vital for entrepreneur success. It will assist you in mapping out the intricacies of your organisation and uncovering some unknowns. Consider the following crucial topics:
What are the initial and continuing expenses?
Who is your intended audience?
How much money may you charge your customers?
Fortunately, we have done a lot of the legwork for you.
What are the expenses of starting a cat cafe?
The beginning expenditures for starting a cat café company are significant. Among the most significant costs are:
Buying or leasing a location for the cat café
Creating a cat-friendly environment in the place
Purchasing a Point-of-Sale system to sell your cafe’s items
Purchasing food preparation equipment for the production of food and beverages
Purchasing cat pods, litter boxes, food and water dishes, food and litter, and food and litter
Purchasing ingredients for the preparation of meals and drinks for consumers
Food preparation equipment and supplies might be skipped by business owners who wish to keep initial costs low. Instead of creating meals and drinks on-site, a cat café may collaborate with a neighbouring cafe to do so. Kanchan Singh utilised this setup to launch Crumbs & Whiskers. An employee would collect clients’ orders, then travel to a neighbouring café to pick up the food and beverages and bring them back to the cat cafe.
What are the continuing costs of running a cat cafe?
The continuous costs of running a cat café are significant. They include rent, utilities, food prices, labour compensation, and any other expenditures associated with cat care.
Who is the intended audience?
Cat lovers are the target demographic for a cat café company. Cat lovers may visit for a number of reasons, including
Spending time with cats if they do not own one
to spend time with friends in an enjoyable setting
to help a shelter that they believe in
How can a cat café generate revenue?
Cat cafes generate money in two ways. Customers are charged by the hour for the time they spend with the cats, as well as for the food and drinks they purchase.
How much money may you charge your customers?
The amount a cat café may charge guests varies greatly depending on where the cat cafe is situated. Crumbs & Whiskers in Washington, D.C., for example, costs between $18 and $22 for a 70-minute session. Cat Cafe Madison in Madison, Wisconsin, on the other hand, costs $7 for a 60-minute visit, plus $1 for a beverage.
Customers who adopt cats frequently pay an adoption fee, although companies seldom profit from this price. Instead, it merely contributes to the cost of essential veterinarian care, food, litter, and other comparable expenditures. For a café, a smart POS system may provide weekly data that can be utilised to fine-tune the pricing.
What kind of profit can a cat café make?
A cat café company might generate big cash if it is situated in a popular neighbourhood. Even at a cost of $7 per person, ten visits may make $70 in an hour. With 10 visits, the income rises to $200 per hour at $20 per hour. Furthermore, a café may often accommodate more than ten people.
How can you increase the profitability of your company?
Once established, a cat café may boost income by holding events. Events often attract a large number of people, and a company may charge extra for each individual since there is a special event going place.
STEP 2: Establish a legal entity
Sole proprietorship, partnership, limited liability company (LLC), and corporation are the most frequent business structure forms.
Creating a legitimate company organisation, such as an LLC or corporation, shields you from personal liability if your cat café is sued.
STEP 3: File your taxes
Before you can begin for business, you must register for a number of state and federal taxes.
To register for taxes, you will need to get an EIN. It’s really simple and completely free!
Taxes on Small Businesses
Depending on the business form you choose, you may have multiple choices for how your company is taxed. Some LLCs, for example, may benefit from being taxed as a S company (S corp).
These guides will teach you more about small company taxes:
Taxes on LLCs
LLC vs. sole proprietorship
Corporation vs. LLC
S Corp vs. LLC
How to Form a S Corporation
S Corporation vs. C Corporation
There may be state taxes that apply to your company. In our state sales tax guides, you may learn more about state sales taxes and franchise taxes.
STEP 4: Establish a company bank account and credit card
Personal asset protection requires the use of distinct business banking and credit accounts.
When you combine your personal and business accounts, your personal assets (your house, vehicle, and other possessions) are at danger if your company is sued. This is known as penetrating your company veil in business law.
Furthermore, understanding how to develop corporate credit may help you get credit cards and other financing in your company’s name (rather than your own), lower interest rates, larger lines of credit, and other benefits.
Establish a business bank account.
Opening a business bank account is not only required when asking for business financing, but it also:
Separates your personal assets from the assets of your firm, which is required for personal asset protection.
It simplifies bookkeeping and tax reporting.
Create a net 30 account.
Net 30 accounts are used to develop and grow company credit while also increasing cash flow. Businesses use a net 30 account to purchase items and refund the whole debt within a 30-day period.
Many net 30 credit suppliers submit information to the main business credit agencies (Dun & Bradstreet, Experian Business, and Equifax Business Credit). This is how firms establish business credit in order to get approved for credit cards and other lines of credit.
Apply for a business credit card.
Obtaining a business credit card benefits you in the following ways:
Put all of your company’s costs in one location to separate personal and business spending.
Build your company’s credit history, which will be important for raising funds in the future.
STEP 5: Establish business accounting
Recording your numerous costs and sources of revenue is crucial to assessing your company’s financial status. Keeping precise and thorough accounting also makes yearly tax filing much easier.
STEP 6: Obtain all required permissions and licences
Failure to get appropriate permissions and licences may result in significant penalties or possibly the closure of your firm.
Requirements for Federal Business Licensing
Federal laws govern what may and cannot be added to, marketed as, or processed with food. A Food and Drug Administration resource on the procedure of opening a food company is attached: How to Launch a Food Business
Requirements for State and Local Business Licensing
A cat café may need state permissions and licences to operate. Visit the SBA’s reference to state licences and permits to learn more about licencing requirements in your state.
For information on local licences and permissions, visit:
Check with the clerk’s office in your town, city, or county.
Contact one of the local organisations mentioned in the US Small Business Associations database of local business resources for help.
Occupancy Certificate
A cat café is often conducted from a storefront. A Certificate of Occupancy is often required for businesses that operate from a physical site (CO). A certificate of occupancy certifies that all building rules, zoning laws, and government requirements have been satisfied.
If you intend to rent a space:
In most cases, it is the landlord’s obligation to get a CO.
Before leasing, ensure that your landlord has or can get a valid CO for a cat café.
A new CO is often required after a big remodelling. If your location will be refurbished before opening, incorporate wording in your leasing agreement saying that lease payments would not begin until a valid CO is given.
If you intend to buy or create a location:
It is your responsibility to secure a valid CO from a local government entity.
Examine all building regulations and zoning standards for the area of your company to guarantee that your cat café will be in compliance and able to receive a CO.
Regulations Concerning Food
When selling food, you must get a licence from your local health authority; all enterprises serving food must pass a health inspection. Tips for Passing a Health Inspection
STEP 7: Obtain commercial insurance.
Insurance, like licences and permits, is required for your company to operate safely and legally. In the case of a covered loss, business insurance protects your company’s financial well-being.
There are several sorts of insurance plans designed for various types of companies with varying risks. If you are unaware about the hazards that your company may encounter, start with General Liability Insurance. This is the most popular coverage required by small companies, so it’s a good place to start for yours.
Workers’ Compensation Insurance is another important insurance product that many companies need. If your company will have workers, your state may require you to purchase Workers’ Compensation insurance.
STEP 8: Establish your brand
Your company’s brand is what it stands for, as well as how the public perceives it. A strong brand will help your company stand out from the crowd.
How to Market and Promote a Cat Cafe
Hosting events is one of the most effective methods to advertise a new cat café company. Cat cafés may feature cat-related talks, gatherings, movie evenings with cats, or yoga with cats. Organizing events offers people a cause to attend. They will most likely tell their relatives and friends about their visit to your cat café.
Alternatively, you may use a smart POS system to include social network connections to your personalised receipts.
How to Keep Customers Returning
Customers who return to a cat café might be kept by giving lower pricing to those who visit regularly. Memberships with unlimited visits are a popular approach to create consistent traffic and income. A cat café may also utilise its POS system to implement a loyalty programme to promote return visits.
STEP 9: Create your company’s website.
After you’ve defined your brand and designed your logo, the next step is to build a website for your company.
While developing a website is an important step, some may be concerned that it is out of their grasp due to a lack of website-building skills. While this was a fair concern in 2015, online technology has made significant advances in recent years, making the lives of small company owners considerably easier.
The following are the primary reasons why you should not put off developing your website:
Every genuine company has a website, period. When it comes to bringing your company online, it doesn’t matter what size or sector it is.
Social media accounts, such as Facebook pages or LinkedIn company profiles, are not a substitute for your own business website.
STEP 10: Install your company phone system.
Getting a phone for your company is one of the finest methods to keep your personal and professional lives distinct and private. That isn’t the only advantage; it also helps you automate your company, provides it legitimacy, and makes it simpler for prospective clients to identify and contact you.