It seems like every medium-sized town in America has at least one juice shop. What would drive someone to open their own?
When Flo Eysler looks out his window, he doesn’t see natural juice everywhere. Instead, he sees pandas and pagodas and food covered in oil. But in his mind’s eye, he thinks he might just be the person to bring the natural product to China.
Eysler, a German, living in China, has started iF Juice. He hopes that in a decade it will be the natural juice brand of China.
With initial funds of 500,000 yuan ($78,700) and a clear business ethic in mind, Eysler and Au opened the first iF Juice store in November 2007.
The company now provides about 200,000 bottles of various juices a year to about 10 hotels, 30 supermarkets and 20 restaurants.
The main product, 300 ml of orange juice, sells for 18 yuan, a price that Eysler thinks is affordable. For the past four years he has opted not to open any new outlets, though he and Au expect to open five new shops in Beijing in the year ahead.