Chapter 23

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Okay.

Whatever happens, I have to put the first button on well.

[TL/N – saying that the first steps/preparations must go well in order for the rest to be successful too]

If this store does well, so will I.

Perhaps this will be something that can dramatically increase my recognition in this industry. It’s also an opportunity to make use of the field that I had specialized in in my previous life.

Then it’s a lottery.

‘Let’s hit the jackpot. From this moment on, this store and I are a community of destiny.’

A sense of ownership arose in the cafe that I didn’t even know existed until a few minutes ago.

“Boss.”

“Huh?”

“This cafe, I’ll risk my life to save it.”

“You don’t have to risk your life.”

“Since ancient times, it has been said that life is a script and that death is instant.”

[TL/N – trust me, I don’t know what’s happening here either lol—]

“Daewon, this friend’s personality is kind of funny.”

The owner laughed.

“Student, even if things don’t go well, don’t feel too pressured. I can just put things back the way they were.”

You seem to think that I’m joking.

However, I’m not.

I was going to prove it—the fact that there is no industry as sensitive to trends as cafes.

And…

The fact that no other human being is as sensitive to trends as I am.

*

Four males sat around a table in a cafe devoid of customers.

I was the first to open my mouth.

“I’ll be honest with you.”

“Yes?”

“This store is, to be clear, tacky.”

“So…..”

The owner had a slightly hurt expression on his face, but that wasn’t any of my concern. If it was something that I had to say eventually anyway, it was better to say it from the beginning.

“I thought about it after looking around for a while, but I think this place is closer to resembling that of an old coffee shop than an actual modern cafe.”

There were retro sensibilities everywhere, but an old-fashioned coffee shop did not suit a university district.

The owner looked around the store with a faint look and replied, “When I was a student, I often went to cafes with this kind of atmosphere. Back then, the word ‘cafe’ was rare. It was all coffee shops…”

No wonder…

‘I thought it was strange at first, but it seems that there was a reason for this.’

The owner seemed to have set up a store that he thought was good based on his own experiences.

Unfortunately, he was wrong.

Often, in order for a cafe to succeed, three factors had to be considered.

Location, design, and publicity.

‘Fortunately, the location of this store is fine.’

The owner was worried about the location, but I thought the opposite. University districts are always great, if not the best environment, to set up shop.

Then, something else was the problem.

I had to think about why he couldn’t save this store.

‘You said earlier that you often went to cafes like this when you were a student.’

This was the problem.

‘The interior is completely tailored to your taste.’

That’s not a good idea.

The interior should not be designed to suit the ideals of the store owner. If money is the goal, then it should be thoroughly tailored to the customers’ tastes.

This is a university district. It would be necessary to explicitly target the eyes of college students.

As a first step, I pointed at the table in front of me and said, “First of all, the biggest problem is this table.”

At my words, the owner asked with a puzzled look, “the table?”

“Yes.”

I ran my fingers across the table, picking up the tablecloth on the corner and said, “I don’t like this tablecloth. It makes this place feel more like a restaurant than a cafe.”

This was the first problem.

A checkered tablecloth.

At first glance, it may give the business an old-fashioned feeling, but it also has the disadvantage of lowering accessibility.

“These days, students don’t just come to cafes for coffee—it’s the opposite. I could be drinking coffee while I’m here to do something else, and a tablecloth might make it difficult to work. If possible, I think it’d also be nice to fix the chairs and desks to be more comfortable.”

“Um…..”

After thinking for a while, he said, “I don’t know yet. Wouldn’t the students be occupying seats for too long?”

I gave a proposal to fix the store so that students can study comfortably, but it seemed that he still viewed the concept of a cafe as a place to chat with coffee.

‘It’s going to be overturned as Starbucks takes over Korea’s cafe industry.’

It was still too early, so I couldn’t help it.

From the owner’s point of view, it was natural that the idea of people studying at cafes was dissatisfying.

‘But that doesn’t mean we can completely ignore the demand. This is still a college campus.’

By forcibly ignoring it, it will blow the merit of the shop’s location.

He had to accept it.

However, there was a different way to convince him to accept this.

“Then if you put a time limit on each person, you’ll be fine. Two hours per drink. It can also be convenient for students.”

“Well…if that’s the case, then there won’t be any losses.”

Would there have been a loss in the first place!

In theory, it was beneficial to the cafe owner.

‘Statistics show that the break-even point is divided from when a customer stays in a cafe for more than 102 minutes.’

On average, coffee shops near universities had better turnover than this.

‘It’s mainly because students usually visit when their timetables are empty.’

With the exception of some long-term residents, it’s beneficial for the most part. Fortunately, even long-term residents can also be cut to two hours.

“I said I’d leave this up to you, so I understand. What’s next?”

“This.”

I pointed to the ceiling this time.

“The lights are way too dark.”

The light shone softly.

It shouldn’t be this subtle.

It feels more like a bar than a cafe at this point, doesn’t it?

It truly feels like an old-fashioned coffee shop.

“For college students these days, cafes are bright and sophisticated spaces. I wish this place was brighter than the classroom.”

A single light can change the atmosphere of the store 360 degrees.

Just like my tape art.

Surprisingly, the owner didn’t seem to be too bothered by this part.

“So I should just change the light bulbs, right?”

Maybe it was because it didn’t cost that much money. So perhaps it was because of money that he was negative about the changing of chairs and desks a while ago.

‘Wait. If that’s true, then I think there is a way to solve the money problem…..’

A solution came to mind.

We decided to discuss this again a little later.

“And next, there is a separate suitable person for this….”

I looked at Kyu-tae.

“Kyu-tae, can you make a uniform or something like that?”

“So suddenly? Why do you need a uniform?”

“This is important at cafes.”

Sales could fluctuate up and down with just a single uniform. In particular, female customers value the overall atmosphere of the cafe, especially when they think of staff.

I took out my sketchbook to draw a sketch and said, “I need two sets like this.”

“It looks like it’s from a movie.”

“But you can’t make it too fancy. The key is to make it neat and tidy so that customers won’t feel awkward. What do you think? Can you do it?”

“Hmm. That’ll be a bit tricky to make. Wouldn’t it be better to buy a few from Dongdaemun?…”

[TL/N: Dongdaemun Market is a large commercial district with traditional markets and shopping centers, it is also a popular shopping and tourist destination ]

“Let’s do our homework with this.”

“I’ll do it right away.”

Aside from that, there were several more conversations. However, after that, it was mostly business-related things—things like organizing a separate take-out menu, creating a coupon system, and placing bean samples.

“It would be a good idea to write down what kind of beans you use here on the menu. Even with the same coffee, if you write down the region of origin, it’ll feel different when you drink it.”

There was a difference between knowing and drinking and drinking without knowing.

It may simply be a difference in mood, but selling that feeling is the business of a cafe.

“You don’t have to sell too many different menus. You can drink if there are customers, but don’t if there aren’t any customers.”

“I need to clean up the alcohol.”

“Yes. Alcohol is rather damaging to the atmosphere of this place.”

Various pieces of advice poured out constantly.

Seeing me like that, the owner said in a puzzled voice, “I think the student knows more about cafes than me.”

“….ah.”

It was the moment when I pretended to know too much.

“You did win a big competition after all, but it’s definitely different. You feel like a professional.” He muttered in a pleased voice.

I let out a slight sigh of relief.

‘A single award plays a big role.’

It’s a good thing I tried.

I scratched the back of my head and said, “My friend’s friend works at a cafe.”

The friend’s name is Kim Dae-won, and Kim Dae-won’s friend is me.

“I’ve learned a lot from talking to them a long time ago.”

“You’re lucky. If I were alone, I wouldn’t have thought of this. Daewon has a good friend.” The owner smiled and sighed while saying, “I hope the business will go well with this change.”

“It’s just this week.”

“This week?”

I emphasized once again as if I were sure.

“Try it out for this week only, and if you don’t see any visible results, you can go back to your original state.”

There was a reason why I could say this,

First of all, two of the three factors for the success of the cafe mentioned above are now in place.

Location and interior.

All that’s left is publicity.

And…

I had a way to solve this as well.

The success of this cafe is predestined.

*

“What? There’s a store like this?” A tall, handsome man muttered as he entered the cafe.

It was Ju Ji-hoon.

Several students muttered behind him, “Wow. I’ve been passing by here every day, but I didn’t know this place existed.”

“I thought it was a bar because the store was so dark.”

“It feels a bit old-fashioned.”

They were Ju Ji-hoon’s schoolmates—his architecture colleagues to be exact.

I called them to this cafe.

“Brothers, it’s been a while.”

“Awww. I really don’t get to see my junior often. After you’ve met us, why didn’t you transfer to the Architecture Department?”

“I didn’t want to.”

“When an adult speaks, everything has a reason…”

“First, sit here.”

The reason why I called them here today was simple.

“So, you want us to make furniture for this place?”

It was furniture.

You might call the Architecture Department to ask what kind of furniture was best, but the Architecture Department was originally a department with one leg in furniture design.

It’s in line with interior design.

“Have you ever made them before?”

“They’re a bit difficult to deal with.”

“Please make some for this place, too.”

“Hmm.”

They agonized for a while and said, “What about payment?”

In the end, money was the problem.

‘No matter how much I’ve known you, I can’t help you with your work for free.’

“The owner will give it to you.”

“The owner?”

“Yes. He left me with the budget for interior design. Of course, I can’t really take care of them or anything like that. But you’ll be paid more than a part-time job.”

As I spoke, they looked at each other and said, “Wasn’t our final assignment about interior design practice?”

“It was.”

“Let’s complete it with this.”

“Good. We can earn money and it’s simple.”

Apparently, they also received a similar assignment to ours.

I was lucky.

I handed them a few sheets of paper and said, “Please match the design like this.”

It was a Nordic-styled design.

Rather than having it stand out, the design is faithful to the basics.

The plainness stood out.

“Did you really design this?” The architecture seniors muttered with a surprised look.

“It’s really nice, right?”

“I’m really curious to know what’s happening in your brain. I almost want to open that head of yours.”

“······.”

Like this, one problem has been solved.

I decided to communicate with my seniors in the Architecture Department through Ji-hoon.

‘Good. Then next is the decoration.’

It was time for the Sculpture Department to step up.

Hanseol, whom I met for the first time in a long time, smiled brightly.

“Our Jaeha, what fun things are you up to now? Last time was amazing.”

“If someone heard you say that, they’ll think I’m a prankster.”

“Huh? Aren’t you?” She giggled.

It seems that the past was just an illusion.

‘Ji-hoon’s personality is the exact opposite of Hanseol’s.’

At first, I thought Ji-hoon would have a strong personality and Seol would be passive.

But after spending a little more time together, I realized that that wasn’t the case.

With a bitter smile, I asked,

“Sister, do you have any thoughts on doing an art exhibition of your works?”

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