How do I check a café’s morning and afternoon sales before buying?

Ask the seller to export sales by hour, weekday and season from the till system. Look for a morning peak, a lunch lift and an afternoon slump, and see how the pattern changes in winter or when a nearby office is empty. If the reports cannot be broken down by time, that itself is worth noting, and you will need other records to build the picture.

Then confirm with your own eyes. Sit in the café on different days, count customers and note what they order. Morning trade is often takeaway coffee and quick items, while afternoon trade may be seated guests who stay and buy food. Each has different staffing, stock and waste. Check whether the afternoon holds up or whether the owner is carrying it with extra hours.

Ask what drives each period. A transit stop, a school or a large employer can supply the morning, and a change nearby could end it. Discuss with your accountant how the hours the owner works fit into the earnings. If you plan to add an afternoon menu or later hours, test the idea with the staff before you assume it will pay.

Key takeaways

• Request till reports by hour, weekday and season rather than daily totals alone.
• Sit in the café across different days to compare what you see with the reports.
• Find out what feeds the morning trade and whether it could change.