Authored by: Xiyan Chen, Lutong Li, Qingqiu Sun, Jing Feng, Renyi Shi, Lintao Zhong, Chuntian Wang
Summary
In 2021, there are over 17 million visually impaired people in China, and their physical disabilities compared with normal people have brought challenges to the employment. The visually impaired people who are employed are concentrated in a few types of work, such as blind masseuses. Allowing visually impaired people to engage in more occupations is not only of great significance to improving their employment rate and living conditions but also of far-reaching significance to building self-confidence for them.
Our project will create a new job, "Coffee Ambassador". This new job, together with our business model, will help more visually impaired people get a decent job. "Coffee Ambassador" is an innovative social enterprise. It has a group of blind baristas but does not have its own cafes. It provides "Coffee Ambassador" services to enterprises. Coffee drinking occasions are opportunities to provide coffee services not only in cafes but also in enterprise canteens, conference & training events, team-building activities, marketing activities, and other occasions. Enterprises pay for the "Coffee Ambassador" service, which creates jobs for the blind.
We begin to develop seed users from the people around us. The "Coffee Ambassador" service can be launched first in first-tier cities and quasi first-tier cities, and then gradually extended to second-tier cities. The business will make a profit from the first year and aims to develop 50 enterprise clients. Within 5 years, 1000 visually impaired people will become blind baristas in our company.
Our mission is to promote the self-development of the visually impaired and promote social integration through enterprise-oriented services by the visually impaired.
Identify the Topic
Topic Description
In 2021, there are over 17 million visually impaired people in China, and their physical disabilities compared with normal people have brought challenges to the employment. There are several problems that they face. Firstly, most of the visually impaired people are not employed. Although some statistics on the employment rate are published, surveys from some NGOs often show that the real employment rate is less than 50%. Coupled with the impact of epidemic prevention and control, the employment situation is not optimistic.
Secondly, the employment methods for visually impaired people are simplistic. The main way for them to find a job is through the introduction of the people around them. In recent years, the proportion of disabled people looking for jobs through online platforms reached merely 9.1%, and there is still a lot of room for development.
Thirdly, because of physical disabilities, the jobs offered to visually impaired people are very simple, and occupations with simple jobs often do not have high salaries. The per capita disposable income of disabled families in China is only 58.7% of the national average. Creating new jobs for visually impaired people is important for improving their employment rate as well as salary level.
Our project will create a new job, "Coffee Ambassador". This new job, together with our business model, will help more visually impaired people get a decent job. We will introduce the details of our sustainable business model in other parts of our business plan.
Why It Is Important
Caring for the disabled reflects the civilization of a society. There is a group of people that are unfairly treated by God—they are deprived of vision. There are over 17 million visually impaired people in China, and most of them are not employed. The unemployment of visually impaired people brings many problems.
First of all, they have no economic income and live a difficult life, which also brings a heavy burden to their relatives. Secondly, not having a job also makes many people lose confidence. Many people don't even go out of their apartments for many years. They feel that they can't live like normal people.
The visually impaired people who are employed are concentrated in a few types of work, such as blind masseuses. Allowing visually impaired people to engage in more occupations is not only of great significance to improving their employment rate and living conditions but also of far-reaching significance to building self-confidence for them and living on an equal footing with normal people.
Our project aims to help with this so that more visually impaired people will live a dignified life. A new job, "Coffee Ambassador," will be created. This will not only generate job opportunities for them but also break through the society's inherent cognition on visually impaired people.
Problem Diagnosis
Identify the Underprivileged
The visually impaired people are the underprivileged group we care about. Less than half of this group are currently working, and their work is relatively simple, such as that of a blind masseuse. Generally speaking, the proportion of blind people engaged in the massage industry to those engaged in non-massage industries is about 100:1. This figure was published by Jingyang Ma, Chairman of the Shenzhen Blind Association, in the media.
After experiencing rapid development, the number of blind massage shops has begun to decline. Therefore, more new occupations are needed so that the blind can find employment, especially some skill-based new occupations. These new jobs not only create opportunities for the blind to earn an income but also make them more confident, allowing them to do what they like and get more employment choices like normal people.
Among all visually impaired people, we will focus on those who have worked. Among these working visually impaired people, some are willing to explore more career possibilities and achieve further life development. This is the underprivileged group we will focus on.
Identify the Product or Service
Barista is a new profession for the visually impaired, offering a coffee-making service for consumers. At present, some blind people have begun to engage in this new occupation. In Shanghai, "Bear Claw Cafe" opened its first blind coffee shop in July, following the success of its deaf coffee shops. It is currently in trial operation, and the blind barista makes about 150 cups of coffee every day.
In Guangzhou, an NGO conducted barista skills training for blind people and has trained dozens of blind baristas. By becoming a barista, blind people can start a new career, earn a work income, and improve their social skills.
The Value-chain Analysis
Blind people who work as baristas or provide coffee-making services are involved in the following value chain:
Training: Blind people receive training to master coffee-making skills.
Employment: Some enterprises employ blind people to work as baristas.
Production: Blind people make coffee in the workspace.
Sales and Service: Customers buy coffee and enjoy the services of blind baristas.
In Bear Claw Cafe, we can see such a value chain in action. These steps are indispensable. When each step of the value chain is completed, customers will enjoy the services of blind baristas and are willing to pay for it. Blind baristas create value and earn income within this value chain.
In this value chain, if a cup of coffee is sold for RMB 25, the gross profit of coffee will be RMB 18. With a normal sales volume every day, one coffee shop can support two blind baristas to earn a monthly salary of RMB 4,000.
Identify the Key Issue
We analyze the value chain as follows:
Training: The first step is for blind people to receive training and master coffee-making skills. In this step, the blind are the trainees, and another important role is the training institution.
Employment: The second step is for enterprises to hire blind people to work as baristas. In this step, the blind are job seekers, and the enterprises are usually coffee shop businesses, such as Bear Claw Cafe.
Production: The third step is for blind people to make coffee in the workspace. In this step, the blind take the protagonist role, making coffee. Enterprises need to provide suitable workspace and materials for the blind.
Sales and Service: The fourth step is when customers buy coffee and enjoy the services of blind baristas. In this step, the customer completes the purchase, and what they buy is not just coffee. This coffee also includes the coffee-making service completed by the blind barista in the third step.
Judging from the actual development of the new profession of blind barista, the weakness and bottleneck of the value chain is the second step. There is a lack of enterprises hiring blind people to work as baristas. Among the dozens of baristas trained by an NGO in Guangzhou, only a few have worked in cafes. There are two blind baristas in one coffee shop of Bear Claw Cafe. Even if half of the 100 shops planned to open next year are blind coffee shops, it can only solve the employment of about 100 blind baristas.
Problem Solving
Generate Ideas
We put forward the following ideas after brainstorming to solve the problem:
1. Chain Coffee Shop for the Blind: Bear Claw Cafe operates in the form of kiosks. Our coffee shop can follow the conventional cafe model, where customers can sit down and enjoy their coffee. Blind people serve as baristas within these cafes.
2. Design Suitable Workspace: Some cafes hesitate to employ blind baristas due to concerns about their integration with sighted staff. We can design workspaces in cafes that accommodate the needs of blind baristas while ensuring efficiency.
3. Operation Tools for the Blind: To address concerns about the quality and efficiency of blind baristas, we can design operation tools specifically suited for blind individuals to use in cafes.
4. Job Recommendation Service: Establish a company that provides job recommendation services for blind baristas, similar to domestic intermediary agencies. We can approach cafes to recommend trained and qualified blind baristas.
5. Low-Cost Startup Services: Since there are limited opportunities for employment, blind baristas might consider entrepreneurship. We can offer services such as location selection and store design to assist them in starting their businesses.
6. "Coffee Ambassador" Program: Baristas could offer their services beyond traditional cafe settings, providing coffee at corporate events, meetings, training sessions, team-building activities, and marketing events. Enterprises would pay for these services, creating a new role for blind baristas as "coffee ambassadors."
7. Publicity Services: Many cafes are unaware that blind individuals can excel as baristas. By promoting this new profession, we can raise awareness and encourage more cafes to offer employment opportunities to the blind.
8. Social Activities in Cafes: As blind individuals become baristas, they also open a door to social integration. Organizing social activities in cafes can provide blind people with more opportunities to interact with and work in the cafe environment.
Evaluation Criteria
Scalability: Can this solution solve the problem on a large scale?
Verification: Can the solution's effectiveness be verified soon?
Innovation: Is this solution innovative? Has anyone done it before?
Sustainability: Is the solution sustainable? Can we make profits as a social enterprise?
Social Inclusion: Does the solution help promote social inclusion and equal treatment for the blind?
Rating Sheet
Scalability
"Coffee Ambassador" is an innovative social enterprise. It has a group of blind baristas but does not operate its own cafes. Instead, it provides "Coffee Ambassador" services to enterprises, expanding the opportunities to offer coffee services beyond traditional cafes. These services can be offered in enterprise canteens, conference and training events, team-building activities, marketing activities, and other occasions. Enterprises pay for the "Coffee Ambassador" service, which in turn creates jobs for the blind.
Many enterprises may feel that there is no suitable position for the blind within their organization, but they can create opportunities to invite "Coffee Ambassador" to appear and provide service within their premises. As a marketing activity, the service of blind "Coffee Ambassadors" can be a Cause-Related Marketing event for the enterprise. When serving as a supporting service for company meetings, training, and team-building activities, the blind "Coffee Ambassador" not only enables employees to enjoy quality coffee but also provides good spiritual incentives to employees.
"Coffee Ambassador" has expanded the employment scope of blind baristas. Many enterprises, especially large and medium-sized ones in various industries, are particularly suitable to become customers of "Coffee Ambassador" services. Additionally, "Coffee Ambassador" can also provide services for cafes, where we supply qualified blind baristas and cafes pay us a training fee.
The "Coffee Ambassador" service can be launched initially in first-tier cities and quasi-first-tier cities, then gradually extended to second-tier cities. After introducing our company's business, we analyze its scalability. The revenue potential of our company can be significant, even surpassing that of a chain coffee shop company. While there are large chain coffee shop companies like Luckin Coffee, most chain coffee shops in China own less than 20 shops, according to industry research reports. This is not a large business and cannot support the employment of many blind people. "Coffee Ambassador," with its To B model, has the potential for a larger business scale due to:
Flexibility of the Business Model: The service is highly flexible, with potential clients across various departments such as marketing, HR, training, and CSR. "Coffee Ambassador" serves a wide range of enterprises and can also provide services for cafes, essentially expanding the workplace for blind baristas.
Rapid Revenue Growth Through Regional Expansion: Since there is no need to invest in physical stores, our company's business can more easily expand to new cities. Once we operate steadily in one city, we can quickly expand to the next.
Improvement in Social Responsibility Consciousness: The growing awareness of social responsibility among Chinese enterprises is a crucial foundation for promoting our business. While not every enterprise has a suitable job for the visually impaired, they all have opportunities to invite "Coffee Ambassador" to provide services.
Action Plan
We already discussed the problem and our solution in other parts. Now, we will focus on the action plan, including Go-To-Market, personnel, and organization, etc.
Target Clients:
ESR (Employee Social Responsibility) department, HR (Human Resources) department, and marketing department are the main departments we will work with when targeting an enterprise client. Of course, only large enterprises usually have ESR departments.
Price:
For "Coffee Ambassador" activities, we usually charge enterprise fees based on the number of people we serve. For example, for a one-day meeting, the Coffee Ambassador will charge 60 RMB/person. If 50 people attend the meeting, the daily income is 3,000 RMB. We will arrange two blind coffee ambassadors to support an activity with 50 people.
Go-To-Market:
We began to develop seed users from the people around us. Many of our family members work in enterprises, and many of our classmates' parents also work in enterprises or own them. We will develop the first batch of seed users in two ways. The first way is to introduce the "Coffee Ambassador" service to our family members, and they will introduce it to appropriate departments of their enterprises. The second way is to participate in activities where students' parents gather at school, such as the monthly campus open day. We will set up our booth on the open day, and the blind barista will provide services for parents, then introduce our "Coffee Ambassador" service to them. We believe that this group is a very ideal seed user group and they will become our first batch of customers.
Personnel and Organization:
There are currently seven students in our team. We have a CEO, a Sales Director, a Service Director, an HR Director responsible for the recruitment and training of blind baristas, and an Operation Director responsible for the supply of coffee and other materials. Another two team members work in the service department and the HR department, respectively. We will start cooperation with NGOs and recruit blind baristas to join our company.
Financial Forecasts
Average Event Price
Average event price will be RMB 7,000. The attendee number will vary for each event. Our target clients will be large and medium-sized enterprises. Our assumption is that, on average, we will provide two blind baristas to serve the event and make fewer than 200 cups at each event. If we only calculate the cost of a cup of coffee, enterprises have the option to buy branded coffee, which is cheaper. However, the coffee made on-site will have better quality, and the experiences we bring to the attendees will be impressive. That's why some enterprises choose the "Coffee Ambassador" service.
Event Sold
We will start in a tier-one city, such as Shanghai. Despite the numerous large and medium-sized enterprises in Shanghai and the thousands of events that occur monthly, only a small percentage will accept our innovative service in the first year. Our estimation is that we will sell 100 events in the first year.
In year two, we will expand this model to four tier-one cities, including Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen. Along with further penetration in Shanghai, we plan to increase the event number to 700.
In year three, we will further expand to over 20 top cities in China, such as Chengdu, Hangzhou, Nanjing, Suzhou, etc. Along with repeat purchases from loyal clients, the sold events will increase to 3,500. This is a rapid increase but possible if we deliver our services well.
Cost Calculation Method
In the financial forecast table below, the cost of each event is not listed because the variable cost of each event is low. The salary cost and the equipment cost are the main costs for the company and are considered fixed costs. The variable cost for each event is primarily the coffee material, which will be less than 10% of our event revenue.
With the expansion of the business scale, the size of other operation teams, besides the number of Coffee Ambassadors, will also increase. The cost of this part is included in the "Sales and Marketing" and "Other Expenses."
Financial Forecast:
Key Assumption:
Average Event Price
Average event price will be RMB 7,000. The attendee number will vary for each event. Our target clients will be large and medium-sized enterprises. Our assumption is that, on average, we will provide two blind baristas to serve the event and make fewer than 200 cups at each event. If we only calculate the cost of a cup of coffee, enterprises have the option to buy branded coffee, which is cheaper. However, the coffee made on-site will have better quality, and the experiences we bring to the attendees will be impressive. That's why some enterprises choose the "Coffee Ambassador" service.
Event Sold
We will start in a tier-one city, such as Shanghai. Despite the numerous large and medium-sized enterprises in Shanghai and the thousands of events that occur monthly, only a small percentage will accept our innovative service in the first year. Our estimation is that we will sell 100 events in the first year.
In year two, we will expand this model to four tier-one cities, including Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen. Along with further penetration in Shanghai, we plan to increase the event number to 700.
In year three, we will further expand to over 20 top cities in China, such as Chengdu, Hangzhou, Nanjing, Suzhou, etc. Along with repeat purchases from loyal clients, the sold events will increase to 3,500. This is a rapid increase but possible if we deliver our services well.
Cost Calculation Method
In the financial forecast table below, the cost of each event is not listed because the variable cost of each event is low. The salary cost and the equipment cost are the main costs for the company and are considered fixed costs. The variable cost for each event is primarily the coffee material, which will be less than 10% of our event revenue.
With the expansion of the business scale, the size of other operation teams, besides the number of Coffee Ambassadors, will also increase. The cost of this part is included in the "Sales and Marketing" and "Other Expenses."
Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
Client | 50 | 300 | 1,500 |
Revenue | ¥ 700,000 | ¥ 4,900,000 | ¥ 24,500,000 |
Event Sold | 100 | 700 | 3,500 |
Average Event Price | ¥ 7,000 | ¥ 7,000 | ¥ 7,000 |
Cost and Expense | ¥ 650,000 | ¥ 4,440,000 | ¥ 22,500,000 |
Ambassador Employed | 5 | 30 | 200 |
Ambassador Salary Cost | ¥ 250,000 | ¥ 1,600,000 | ¥ 10,200,000 |
Ambassador Training | ¥ 40,000 | ¥ 240,000 | ¥ 1,200,000 |
Sales and Marketing | ¥ 180,000 | ¥ 1,000,000 | ¥ 4,500,000 |
Other Expenses | ¥ 200,000 | ¥ 1,600,000 | ¥ 6,600,000 |
Profit | ¥ 30,000 | ¥ 460,000 | ¥ 2,000,000 |
Risks
Our project has the following risks:
Social Awareness: Many people may think that blind people cannot provide coffee service.
Mitigation plan: We will create a lot of publicity materials to spread the story of the blind barista. When communicating with enterprises, we will show their leaders videos of the "Coffee Ambassador" from previous activities. We will use facts and compelling stories to change social perceptions.
Market: It is not easy to open the market for new services.
Mitigation plan: Our sales strategy will start with enterprises of our acquaintances, such as those of our parents or our classmates' parents. The first batch of clients will be more likely to start cooperation due to this trust relationship. We aim to create a deep impression with our service to impress participants in activities, who will then use word of mouth to introduce "Coffee Ambassador" to more people around them.
Limited Market Size: Only a small percentage of companies may need on-site coffee service.
Mitigation plan: In addition to serving enterprise events, we will also provide services for cafes. We will supply qualified blind baristas to cafes, which will pay us a training fee. We strive to create new job opportunities for blind people. "Coffee Ambassador" is just the starting point; we need to develop more new occupations for blind people as part of our company's long-term plan.
Blind People’s Awareness: Blind people may find it challenging to work as a barista and may be unwilling to invest time in training.
Mitigation plan: Coffee Ambassadors need not only to learn skills but also to maintain a positive psychological state. We will initially recruit blind people who already have this mindset. We will also cooperate with NGOs to help more blind people establish a positive attitude.
Safety: Since the service site may be in a place where our blind associates have not been before, there are safety risks for blind people on the road and at the site.
Mitigation plan: We will have individuals with normal vision accompany the blind to the workplace. In the initial stages, when our staff is limited, we will recruit volunteers to provide this support. For on-site safety, we will ask our clients to assist and provide safety guidance for the Coffee Ambassador.
Long-term Plan
Vision: Let the visually impaired grow in their new career.
Mission: Promote the self-development of the visually impaired and promote social integration through enterprise-oriented services by the visually impaired.
Long-Term Goals:
Within 5 years, 1,000 visually impaired people will become blind baristas.
Within 10 years, expand our services by the visually impaired to more than 100 cities.
Within 10 years, create 10 new services by the visually impaired based on the "Coffee Ambassador" starting point.
Our Strategy for Achieving Long-Term Goals:
In the first three years, we focus on cultivating the "Coffee Ambassador" service, establishing the team foundation and customer base of the enterprise, and also forming popularity and brand recognition in society.
Strengthen staff training and service management to ensure high-quality service and create a widely spread positive word of mouth.
Have visually impaired people and sighted individuals work together to form a good corporate culture of equality and mutual care.
On the basis of the large-scale development of the Coffee Ambassador business, actively develop new services suitable for the visually impaired.
Practice lean entrepreneurship to support the sustainable development of the company with a healthy financial situation.
Review and Reflections
What Are Successful
Framework Application: We believe the tasks required by Social Innovations 2.0 provided us with a good framework to think within. We studied the framework carefully and improved our plan step by step. Our team includes members with solid business knowledge, and we also sought input from industry experts, which helped us work from a strong methodological base.
Validation Through Dialogue: We engaged with potential enterprise clients and blind individuals to validate our plan. Their positive feedback and suggestions were encouraging and valuable.
Teamwork: Our team met every week online. We recognize that teamwork is crucial for the success of this project.
What to Improve
Project Timeline: We found the project timeline to be challenging. If we had built our team earlier, we would have liked to run a "virtual company" for a period, which could have further improved our business plan.
Understanding Team Strengths: Initially, we did not fully understand each member's strengths, which impacted the task assignments in our first plan iteration. We believe this is an area that can be enhanced.
Summarize Learnings
Understanding the Blind Community: Our project has deepened our understanding of the situation of blind people. Their life stories have been a source of motivation for us, and we are eager to contribute positively to their lives.
Business Knowledge in Practice: We have acquired practical business knowledge. While some concepts can be learned from textbooks, the true understanding comes from applying them in real-life projects. We are grateful to Social Innovation 2.0 for offering us this opportunity to practice and learn.
Comments from the Evaluation Panel
First, I would say that your project is of some novelty. The project summary is well written, and the underprivileged group, the problem, the solution, and the plan are all very clearly summarized. I appreciate that you conduct investigations and used data to analyze the problem. I also appreciate that you made explanations about your assumptions of the key data in the financial part.
In terms of the solution itself, I think the demonstration of the market demand is not sufficient. "Coffee ambassador" is finding a good career for the blind from the supply perspective, and I believe your solution could provide employment opportunities for some blind people. However, if you wish to provide employment opportunities for hundreds and thousands of people as you said, then, no matter for the project report or actually carrying out this project in real life, I think the analysis for demand is quite essential. Without sufficient demand, coffee ambassadors would have no place to realize their value.
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