Feasibility Report Analysis of Coffee Shops Within a One-Mile Radius of the University of North Texas

Prepared by: Robert Buchanan, Christopher Douglas, Grant Koslowski and Miguel Martinez Prepared for: Professor Joseph A. Briseño Prepared on: April 25th, 2014                                  

                                   

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Table  of  Contents  

Introduction  .............................................................................................................................  iv  Methods  .......................................................................................................................................  1  Data  Point  List  ....................................................................................................................................  2  Research  Chart  ..................................................................................................................................  3  

Results  .........................................................................................................................................  7  Individual  Criteria  Results  ............................................................................................................  9  Overall  Weighted  Results  ...............................................................................................................  9  

Conclusions  .............................................................................................................................  11  Recommendations  ................................................................................................................  15                                                              

 

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Introduction

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Introduction The diverse selection of coffee shops located near the University of North Texas in Denton presents consumers with the challenge of selecting the business that meets their particular needs. A student walking to class may prefer shorter lines and quicker service while a professor on a break from teaching may favor taste and a friendly smile. Regardless of what criteria a particular customer holds most important, a great coffee shop will strive to meet a standard that consistently satisfies the greatest number of customers possible. The research and development team at CoffeeReview.com set out to find which coffee shop within a one-mile radius of the University of North Texas best meets the needs of the local Denton customer base. The four local businesses examined by our team include: Jupiter House, Big Mike’s, Whitehouse, and Starbucks. Each coffee shop was evaluated based upon the criteria found to be most important by the experts at CoffeeReview.com. By carefully measuring both the strengths and weaknesses each business demonstrates, the best coffee shop in the selected area near the university became quite clear. The CoffeeReview.com research team produced this report in the hopes that it will provide consumers with an unbiased and thoroughly objective analysis of the selected local coffee businesses. Choosing the right coffee shop can be difficult and confusing, this report seeks to aid in the selection process by clearly outlining the inherent attributes found in each business. The following report will begin by presenting the methods applied to each coffee shop during the evaluation process. All collected data will be interpreted and precisely correlated to the respective business. Once all results are presented, the research and development team will outline the various conclusions drawn from the data. The final section will utilize all previous data and conclusions to offer several recommendations each coffee shop can implement to improve their standings within the outlined evaluation criteria. The given recommendations are ultimately intended to help generate a larger customer base for each business as well as provide consumers with more information and improved options.

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Methods

2 Methods

In order to evaluate each business in an organized, consistent, and complete manner, the coffee shop research team developed a Data Point List (DPL) and research charts based on criteria found to be most important by staff at CoffeeReview.com. A blind survey, open to the university students was conducted in order to determine the best and worst tasting house black coffee among the four coffee shops under evaluation. In order to conceive well-developed conclusions, all surveys, research charts and DPLs for each coffee shop were compared side-by-side. Below is the DPL used to evaluate each coffee shop. Data Point List:

1. Ambiance: (Weighted 20% of Overall Score) • Wireless Internet Capabilities:

Ø Password Requirement Ø Speed of Upload and Download

• Cleanliness: Ø Seating Area Ø Bathroom Ø Food Preparation Area

• Service: Ø Speed Ø Appearance Ø Attentiveness Ø Politeness

• Feel: Ø Noise Level Ø Lighting Ø Decor

2. Cost Per Ounce of Black Coffee: (Weighted 30% of Overall Score)

• Black Coffee

3. Taste of House Brewed Black Coffee: (Weighted 30% of Overall Score) • House Brewed Black Coffee Public Survey Criteria:

Ø Bitterness Ø Acidity Ø Aftertaste Ø Aroma Ø Overall Taste

4. Hours of Operation: (Weighted 20% of Overall Score)

• Convenience: Ø Open Late, Early and Weekends

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Now that the criteria used to evaluate each coffee shop has been presented in great detail by the DPL, the following tables are the actual physical research charts the evaluation team brought to each coffee shop.

Research Chart Ambiance

• The criteria below is rated based on a scale of 5 (best) to 1 (worst).

Ambiance Jupiter House Big Mike’s Starbucks Whitehouse

Wi-Fi Service

Feel Cleanliness

Cost Per Ounce of Black Coffee

• The items below are rated 5 (most affordable) to 1 (least affordable).

Cost Jupiter House Big Mike’s Starbucks Whitehouse

Black Coffee Hours of Operation

• The hours of operation are rated 5 (most convenient) to 1 (least convenient).

Hours of Operation Jupiter House Big Mike’s Starbucks Whitehouse

Convenience

(Refer to the provided DPL for greater detail on each criterion)

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The research and development team provided the following survey to each black coffee tasting participant. Coffee Tasting Survey Taste of House Brewed Black Coffee (Weighted 30%)

• Bitterness and Acidity are rated 5 (most) to 1 (least). • Aftertaste, Aroma and Overall Taste are rated 5 (best) to 1 (worst).

Taste Jupiter House Big Mike’s Starbucks Whitehouse Bitterness Aftertaste Acidity Aroma

Overall Taste The strategy utilized by the research team on the day of evaluations was consistent from business to business. One team member would approach the ordering station and order a black coffee. The remaining three members would carefully look throughout the establishment taking note of customer service, cleanliness along with other general ambiance “feel” factors such as lighting, décor, and noise. The research team would then sit together at a table and test Internet usability with Speakeasy.com, a free web speed monitoring website. While the Internet tests were conducted, one team member would inspect the restroom for cleanliness. Once the bathroom inspection was complete, the cost and quantity of the purchased black coffee as well as the posted hours of business were carefully evaluated. The research team then proceeded slowly to the exit, again taking note of cleanliness and all ambiance feel factors. This process was repeated exactly for all four of the selected coffee shops.

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Results

8 Results

The following section outlines the results found during the public coffee tasting survey as well as the evaluations conducted by the CoffeeReview.com research team. The results are based upon the criteria outlined in the DPL.

Ambiance (Weighted 20% of Overall Score) • The criteria below is rated based on a scale of 5 (best) to 1 (worst).

Ambiance Jupiter House Big Mike’s Starbucks Whitehouse

Wi-Fi 2 11.63 Mbps

5 44.0 Mbps

1 12.79 Mbps

4 40.73 Mbps

Service 3 2 1 5 Feel 4 3 2 5

Cleanliness 4 2 2 4 (Mbps = megabits per second)

Cost Per Ounce of Black Coffee (Weighted 30% of Overall Score) • The items below are rated 5 (most affordable) to 1 (least affordable).

Cost Jupiter House Big Mike’s Starbucks Whitehouse

Black Coffee 4 $0.19 per oz.

4 $0.19 per oz.

5 $0.18 per oz.

3 $0.21 per oz.

Taste of House Brewed Black Coffee (Weighted 30% of Overall Score)

• Bitterness and Acidity are rated 5 (most) to 1 (least). • Aftertaste, Aroma and Overall Taste are rated 5 (best) to 1 (worst).

Taste Jupiter House Big Mike’s Starbucks Whitehouse Bitterness 4.05 3.35 3.58 3 Aftertaste 2.64 2.76 2.52 3.11 Acidity 3.17 2.7 2.82 3.05 Aroma 2.94 2.76 3.23 2.76

Overall Taste 2.29 2.23 2.82 3.23 Hours of Operation (Weighted 20% of Overall Score)

• The hours of operation are rated 5 (most convenient) to 1 (least convenient).

Hours of Operation Jupiter House Big Mike’s Starbucks Whitehouse

Convenience 4 5 2 3

9 Individual Criteria Results

Overall Score Jupiter House Big Mike’s Starbucks Whitehouse

Ambiance (Weighted 20%)

3.25 3 1.5 4.5

Cost (Weighted 30%)

4 4 5 3

Taste (Weighted 30%)

2.29 2.23 2.82 3.23

Hours (Weighted 20%)

4 5 2 3

Overall Weighted Results

Overall  Results  

Jupiter  House:  3.34  

Big  Mike's:  2.87  

Starbucks:  3.05  

Whitehouse:  3.37  

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Conclusions

12 Conclusions The research and development team at CoffeeReview.com set out to find which coffee shop within a one-mile radius of the University of North Texas best fits the needs of the Denton consumer base. The team chose this area to conduct their test for the foot-traveler in between classes to grab a satisfying cup of coffee without the need of transportation. Whitehouse, Starbucks, Jupiter House, and Big Mike’s fell within the defined zone. The team voted and agreed upon the top four criteria that the average consumer would weigh their views on the best coffee shop. These four criteria included price and taste of product as well as ambiance and hours of operation of the business; the team assigned thirty percent weights on each of the first two items and divvied twenty percent to each of the latter two. For the two objective criteria, the team ranked the business as leading in lowest cost of black coffee and ranked the business as leading for the largest number of hours served during the week. The team performed a peer survey for the category of taste and averaged the results based on five indicating factors: bitterness, aftertaste, acidity, aroma, and overall taste. The research and development team ranked the ambiance category by vote with the best overall scoring the highest marks. The team believed that by marrying two objective functions with two subjective selections, that they would be able to discern a clear winner for the best coffee shop. The following section displays the top contenders of each category and explains why these shops received the highest marks: Ambiance – cleanliness and service were the most deciding factors in this category; the top two defeated the rest with their exceptional staff and spotless restrooms.

• Whitehouse • Jupiter House

Cost – the cost of black coffee is just one of the items the coffee lover can enjoy; however, the team needed a no frills basis to rank each shop and black coffee was voted as the consensus.

• Starbucks • Big Mike’s

Taste – our peer group of twenty college students filled out a blind taste test and the results show that the winning tastes fall under:

• Whitehouse and • Starbucks

Hours– in this category, the shops that remained open the longest throughout the week won the fight.

• Big Mike’s • Jupiter House

13 In the end, Whitehouse and Jupiter House narrowly beat the rest of the competition. Whitehouse ranked highest in two of the four categories and Jupiter House trailed narrowly behind. We hope that our readers view these results as well-weighted and objectively determined. We would also like our readers to know that we enjoyed each coffee house that we visited. Ultimately, we hope that this analysis informs the consumer, but simultaneously, we trust that this report does not tarnish the individuality and eclectic nature of the city that we love.

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Recommendations

16 The CoffeeReview.com research and development team recommends Whitehouse as the best place to get coffee within a one-mile radius of the University of North Texas campus. While it may be the most expensive and its hours of operation are not the most convenient out of the four, it has the best taste and ambiance among them. For a nice, relaxing place to drink coffee on your time off, we recommend Whitehouse.