2025 Wrap Up. Café Reality Check: Adjustment, Relentless Costs & What Comes Next, With Raihaan Esat

2025 was not a “business as usual” year for cafés. It was a year of adjustment.   In this final episode of Bean There, Done That for 2025, Phil Di Bella is joined by long-time collaborator and one of Australia’s top coffee minds, Raihaan Esat, General Manager of International Coffee Traders. Together, they unpack a relentless year for café owners: rising costs across the board, shifting consumer psychology, the comeback of instant coffee, and why knowing your numbers and your customers is now non-negotiable.   They dig into: Why 40–50% of a menu price is wages How automation helps (and where it ruins the café experience) The move from “customers” to “guests” Menu simplification, disposable income and ham & cheese croissants Government and council support that actually moved the needle Innovation from farm to cup and sustainable pricing for coffee farmers   Phil closes with a challenge: grab a pen and map out what December 2026 looks like for you, your café, your family and your community. In this episode: 2025 in one word: “Adjustment” Psychological load on café owners Moving from “the game has changed” to “this IS the game now” Looking ahead to 2026 as a year of recomposition Relentless costs & a new normal Every major cost going up at once for the first time in decades Wages at 40–50% of the menu price 75% growth at Coffee Commune with flat profit: a real-world example Why many product-based businesses have had to accept margin cuts Automation vs humans behind the bar Super-automatic machines, milk systems and “out-automating” each other The shift to using tech in the background to guarantee consistency Why trying to remove the barista turns coffee into a commodity “We don’t need to out-automate each other, we need to out-human each other.” Emotional engagement & the ‘guest’ mindset Moving from “customers” to “guests” in language and behaviour Red Bull, luxury brands and the power of emotional connection First Name Fridays and Tasman’s guest experience in the café Knowing your numbers & your audience P&L, cash flow and understanding demographic + geographic reality Disposable income at record lows and what that means for menus Back to basics: bacon & egg rolls, ham & cheese croissants, muffins Upcoming market segmentation project from Coffee Commune Where people are actually drinking coffee now Total coffee consumption up, in-café consumption per person down At-home and office drinking on the rise The quality and value of modern instant coffee Government, councils & collaboration that actually helps New state government focus on small and medium business in Queensland Moreton Bay and Gold Coast councils funding training for café owners 18% uplift from council-backed Coffee Commune training programs Collaboration between independent cafés to pool purchasing and cut costs From farm to cup: sustainability & paying farmers properly Farmers returning to coffee as prices become sustainable again Direct relationships and paying equitably at origin Why prices needed to rise gradually, and what happened when they didn’t Community, awards & impact Coffee Commune as a place of collaboration, not “another coffee brand” 1,700+ members, 1,200 cafés and 75% growth across the community ICT coffees and roasters winning national and global awards Phil representing hospitality around the 2032 Brisbane Games table Final challenge for listeners “Life is measured in moments – go and create some amazing ones.” Sometimes you’re the pigeon, sometimes you’re the statue Grab pen and paper and write down what December 2026 looks like: Professionally For your family For your circle of friends   Links mentioned: Connect with Raihaan Esat on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/raihaan-esat-081147a9/ Learn more about International Coffee Traders: https://ict.coffee/ Coffee Commune: https://www.coffeecommune.com.au/ Produced by The Podcast Boss