Noticed a pattern with new coffee shops on Woodward - they keep skipping one key step

I was at a networking event last week for small business owners and three separate coffee roasters talked about opening spots near Midtown without checking their lease fine print on build-out costs. One guy told me he spent $18,000 on ventilation he thought the landlord would cover because he skimmed the contract. Has anyone else seen this kind of oversight cause problems for food businesses around Detroit?

3 comments

3 Comments

emmap165d ago

My buddy lost $12k on a downtown spot cause he missed the plumbing clause in month six.

emmag405d agoMost Upvoted

haha yeah that hits a little too close to home honestly. I did the exact same thing with my first spot, just skimmed through thinking oh I got this, only to find out three months in that the HVAC system wasn't up to code and it was all on me. $11k later and a lot of cold coffee in the winter. I still joke that my biggest mistake was trusting myself to read a contract before my second cup of coffee. At least now I know to triple check every single line before signing anything.

johnb955d ago

Did you catch that part about the ventilation costs up front? Honestly, what saved me was calling the landlord myself and asking for examples of what they covered for other tenants before I signed anything. That way I knew exactly what I was on the hook for.