I firstly set about trying to define what those key metrics ought to be.

A little research later and I’d tracked down a fantastic framework for e-commerce businesses (called ‘For Good Profits’) - they encourage business owners to become laser-focused on just 3 things;

- Total number of customers
- Frequency of units per customer
- Average order value

I’m so lucky and incredibly grateful for the way you all support me and seem to appreciate the beans/bottles of coffee, so I certainly hope to maintain (more than any radical change or becoming at all pushy - I’d hate this!)

I aim to see if I can increase each of these metrics, incrementally each quarter by around 30% without any negative impact (Please do let me know how I’m doing!), and I’m making a dedicated effort to increase my Instagram following (my highest converting lead generator), so I thought I’d share that here too, with great success this month.

Starting out with little to no plan has meant I’ve been spinning wheels a little, with vague focus as to the direction or growth strategy… it’s time to pull my big-boy pants up!

I’m serious about growing CC, and so establishing and sharing these targets I hope helps others in their own pursuits, and holds me to a level of accountability.

A couple of weeks later, after conversations with loved ones and very-much appreciated colleagues, I’d re-galvanised - both in my full-time role (as Lead UI/UX Designer for www.resi.co.uk) and for CC Coffee too! I realised that by opening up, speaking from the heart and remembering what’s truly important, you can quite quickly find yourself again, even when you feel absolutely lost.

What followed was a new sense of drive and focus, with more frequent marketing experimentation, and then the double-whammy of my first Black Friday and then a full-page feature in global start-up magazine, Courier, that I’d been anticipating for a few months. Sales were increasing…

I’d wondered what sort of impact the Courier piece would have, both in terms of coffee sales and ‘Start Something’ packages (the ‘micro-consultancy’ that I run alongside the coffee to help others start their own ventures). Website visits increased 200% and orders were coming in, accompanied by messages of support! Two very excited prospective start-up founders placed orders for brand/website packages too, further boosting my cashflow position and for the third time this year, taking me back into the green (You may have noticed I’ve zoomed out on the visual cashflow above?) and ending my first year in business on an-almost-dizzying £1,496.40!!

Up next, Christmas! A few well-timed social media posts and messages to favourite customers about their gifting plans led to floods of orders; lots of smaller stocking fillers and much larger custom hamper orders. Every weekend since the end of October my girlfriend and I have been in the kitchen roasting orders, really enjoying working closely together to fulfil them as they come through - It’s genuinely become a joy again, and I can’t wait to sit down to start planning 2022!

Secondly, I decided that roasted whole beans alone make the sales proposition much more of a challenge, given that I’m operating in a very “Me too” marketplace (so much competition, without many real differentiators and a relatively low bar to entry). With this in mind, I’d been curious about a new product I’d seen in the US - a liquid instant coffee concentrate… This got me thinking, and a bit of tinkering later, I had one of my own.

I've heard word that Starbucks are due to launch their own in the next 12 months and whilst it’s not a widely-known product group, I wanted to get a head-start on the other UK roasters, launching FUEL ‘Liquid Instant Coffee’ in August!

Initial feedback has been really positive, and for sure there’s further work to be done, but it seems to be a pretty exciting proposition to those that fall in-between the ‘Take your time’rs (those that love the delicate craft of brewed coffee) and the ‘Instant’ lot, just looking for a quick caffeine fix. Pop 2 or so tablespoons in a mug and just add hot water!

It’s a simple concept, and versatile too - great for espresso Martini’s, cold brew or over ice-cream.

You really don’t need to be raking in the big bucks to think strategically about your place in the market, or to think about innovation with your product range.

I’ve now received my ‘Pedlars’ licence to trade (essentially a door-to-door salesman…), for when the coffee bike is finished in the coming weeks and have received a kind offer of a rooftop spot in Brixton if I’d like it (I’m thinking of using it as a rooftop, pop-up, coffee shop!).

Elsewhere this month I’ve been focusing hard on refining the roast processes and keeping my costs down, whilst still pushing on with the development of the business - with in-person card payments now a possibility (stop me if you see me!), coffee subscription packages and a new ‘Start Something’ page on the website for those of you looking to launch your own little business.

There’s even been some interest from newspapers and magazines in my ‘Credit Card’ start-up story, with messages received from the Metro newspaper and Courier business magazine. Be interesting to see what comes of those for sure, if anything, but again so great to be receiving so much positivity from absolute strangers. Blows my mind a bit to be honest - watch this space though.

There have been hiccups along the way for sure, like a small batch of ‘Beta’ that nearly broke a couple of home grinders (…apologies to those affected!), and a once (or maybe twice) delayed order - but I’m failing forwards I promise, learning quickly and hopefully improving all the time.

I’d always wanted to start a business of my own, with a couple of “almost”s in my twenties. With CC I’m getting to take it slowly, with no pressure from investors or immediate growth, taking each decision as it feels right and solving each little problem as it comes along.

This was always going to be a wild adventure, one that I couldn’t be sure would work; Would people like (and buy) the sort of coffee I liked? …Could I get sales from customers outside my immediately group of family & friends? …How long would £1,000 genuinely last?

Every penny spent has to be justified, from bulk-buying labels/packaging, to carrying enough bean stock to fulfil orders, and now it seems to be working I need to make some decisions as to where to take the business next - I’d love your thoughts, both in terms of ideas (Should I offer a subscription model? What sort of roast would you like to see next?) and also input or collaboration of other kinds (if anyone, for example, likes the sound of getting involved either from a fulfilment perspective or to invest in the next phase of CC - My Grandma always said “You don’t ask, you’ll never get!”).