Australian born mobile coffee franchise Cafe2U has celebrated its 10th anniversary, counting 100 Australian and 50 franchises throughout the UK in its network, and preparing for imminent US and NZ expansion. The brand is also set to launch in the Middle Eastern and Asian markets during 2010.  

With a current turnover of $20 million the franchise has experienced growth of about 40 percent each of the past four years, despite the effects of the GFC.    

Simpkin pinpointed the mobile aspect of his franchise model, alongside Australia’s ever growing obsession with coffee, as two overriding reasons why. 

“During the GFC shop fronts felt the effects of the global crunch but we continued to experience growth,” he said. “We rolled through it because mobile businesses were seen by investors as an alternative to renting a space in a quiet shopping mall. You are going to the customer, not the other way around which means that when or if businesses close you simply have to fill the slot by driving to new customers.  

“There is also limited competition; you are not competing for the same dollar as you do in a mall. In addition, compared to fixed locations mobile operations such as ours are a low investment model which offers a high return.”