Cafe2U is the world's premier mobile coffee franchise. We offer franchisees the opportunity to take control of their lives!

Join the UK’s Number One Mobile Coffee Franchise

Cafe2U is the UK’s leading mobile coffee franchise system, delivering fresh espresso coffee and great food to businesses, events and functions. Cafe2U is a member of the British Franchise Association and has over 85 franchisees in the UK.

Cafe2U… The UK’s Leading Mobile Coffee Franchise

With over 250 franchisees worldwide, Cafe2U is the UK’s (and the world’s) leading mobile coffee franchise system, delivering fresh espresso coffee and great food to businesses, events and functions. In the fast-growing coffee industry, Cafe2U offers opportunities for small business entrepreneurs to own their successful mobile coffee business without the hassles of landlords, rent or staff. With over ten years' operating experience and over 85 UK-based franchise partners, our expertise is both extensive and proven.

The Cafe2U business model is based on weekday success, with our franchise partners able to increase this regular revenue through event and function work, so you can balance your lifestyle and business goals. Whether your aspirations are to operate a single van or to build a multi-van business, Cafe2U have the proven formula to help you achieve your goals.

Each Cafe2U franchise owner is equipped with a state-of-the-art all-electric mobile café fully compliant with all Food Safety and Local Government requirements.

Cafe2U's exclusive coffee blend is roasted to a unique recipe that uses only the finest beans. All Cafe2U branded products are made with only top-quality ingredients to ensure that the food and beverages served are of the highest standard.

Training and Support

At Cafe2U our training and support is second to none. We make sure you have the tools for success. In March 2009, the Cafe2U Acceleration Package was launched. This four-week training and support program for all new Cafe2U Franchise Partners ensures that your business gets off to a flying start.

The Cafe2U Acceleration Training and Launch Programme provides new Franchise Partners with:

1 week of classroom training, incorporating:

Professional barista training
Safe food handling (HACCP Certification)
Food management systems
Franchise Partner training manuals
Business operations manuals
Business development manual
Launch promotional pack
Business management training
Local area market training

1 week Franchise Partner (in territory) pre-work conducted under supervision of the Franchise Development Manager (FDM) – a personal coach and mentor to help you get up and running

2 weeks in territory launch program with a Franchise Development Manager to fast track the development of the business

2 weeks of minimum £275 per day Franchise Partner Revenue Guarantee.

Best of all, your till will be ringing and your customer base will start to build!

The FDM is always available for help and visits each Franchise Partner quarterly to document success and plan improvements and growth. Franchise Partners are supplied with a local area marketing toolkit and in January/ February Cafe2U holds its Annual Conference where Franchise Partners from around the UK and Ireland gather for a motivating weekend of learning and networking.

Financial Information

Our franchise fee (excluding your vehicle) starts from just £20,950 plus vat; which includes your exclusive territory licence, training, launch and marketing pack.

Your Cafe2U all-electric mobile café and all your equipment is £49,950, and can be funded over 3, 4 or 5 years. We can assist you in arranging finance (subject to finance approval) even if your personal investment is just £20,000.

You could even qualify for a Government backed Business Start-Up Scheme which would allow you to borrow up to £25,000 without investing any money of your own. This figure doubles, if the business has two Directors. We are more than happy to discuss this option in more detail with you.

Some of the Benefits of being a Cafe2U Franchise Partner

No % royalty –Fixed weekly fee
Low initial investment
No prior experience necessary
Booming industry – according to the British Coffee Association; in the UK, we now drink approximately 98 million cups of coffee per day.
High profit margins
High level of daily repeat business.
Industry leading 4-week training, including Acceleration Package and income guarantee
Ongoing support and training

What we look for in a Cafe2U Franchise Owner

Like any business, owning and operating a successful Cafe2U franchise requires 100% commitment. With this in mind we encourage you to carefully consider the following important points whilst you conduct your due diligence:

Determine your motivation for wanting to join the Cafe2U team
Assess any lifestyle and income implications of owning and operating your own Cafe2U franchise
Determine if your financial situation supports the establishment of a Cafe2U franchise.
Ensure you have the desire to be the very best in mobile coffee.

Franchise Territories

We have a unique territory-mapping program based on a sample of existing territories. This allows us to provide you with an exclusive Cafe2U territory, which we know will provide a customer base sufficient for the needs of a successful franchise.

Exclusive territories allow you to choose your area and never compete with other Cafe2U Franchise Partners. With Cafe2U, your neighbours are your teammates, not your competition.

Prime territories are available across the UK.

Cafe2U News

Cafe2U Through it, Stronger with Amanda & Steve Lawrence

October 28, 2022

Amanda Lawrence has been the Cafe2U franchise owner in Braintree, Essex, since November 2020.

Amanda previously worked as a bank manager. She has two boys, and a husband, Steve, who was also a bank manager.

When Amanda wanted a change of pace and more time with her family she considered opening a coffee shop; so, when she accepted voluntary redundancy from NatWest Bank in 2020, she had her heart set on a high street coffee shop. However, when she and her husband, Steve, considered the level of competition and the risk of dropping footfall, they decided it was better to go mobile as it has fewer overheads. She also liked the idea of working on her own with no staff to manage and, theoretically, less stress!

Being a bank manager meant that she was fully aware that going into business with an established, franchised, brand was far more secure than trying to ‘go it alone’ and her research brought her to Cafe2U.

In November 2020 Amanda invested in the Cafe2U mobile coffee van and café franchise, serving the Braintree area. As this was a franchise resale it already had an eight-year-old diesel van equipped with a diesel generator to drive the café equipment, but in September 2021 the couple invested in a new all-electric van.

Steve also left his bank career to join Amanda in the Cafe2U franchise in June 2021.

He says: “We love it, and so do our customers. One battery drives the van and the other powers the coffee machine, refrigerator and freezer, the heated oven and the lights. There’s no noisy diesel generator and no fumes, and one overnight charge delivers more than enough power to get the van through our 45-mile round, delivering coffee and food to 25-30 local workplaces.”

The couple, from Coggeshall, Essex, has also found the electric van saves money as well as benefitting the environment.

“It saves us about £350 a month in fuel costs compared to the old diesel van,” says Steve. “Even at current electricity prices, charging both batteries nightly costs about £180 a month. There’s also no road tax to pay, so that saves about £240 a year, and because the electric engine has no clutch, gearbox or exhaust, there’s a lot less to go wrong, so it saves us hundreds of pounds on repairs and replacements.”

The van livery highlights the fact that it’s all-electric, which customers like, and Steve adds: “The cost savings mean we have not had to put up our prices to cover the increase in fuel costs.”

Amanda tells us that: “Cafe2U's Franchise Development Manager, Mustafa, has been incredibly supportive and has even re-built the coffee round to suit me. He has kept in touch with regular Zoom calls and has helped me liaise with the ‘Good Till Company’ (the company that supplies our tills), to ensure everything in my van is running smoothly. He has also been available to offer me advice whenever I've needed it and to help me figure out exactly what I want to get out of the business.”

After sitting at a desk for ten years, Amanda has found running her cafe2U business hard work but incredibly rewarding. She loves the freedom of being self-employed and the support she receives from Karen (Cafe2U's Operations Support Manager) and Mustafa has been invaluable.

Laughing Amanda adds that: “The main challenges for me are the aches and pains after a long day! BUT I know they'll be worth it in the long run, and that helps keep me going.”

How to become a Cafe2U franchisee

If you’re thinking about becoming a Cafe2U franchisee and want to discover similar experiences to Amanda and Steve, you can find out more about the process by applying BELOW today!

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