Bournemouth · Christchurch
Bournemouth, 2022. Christchurch, after.
The pilot is the proof of the standard — and the place to test it for yourself. Maravi has been trading in the south of England since August 2022, first in Bournemouth's heritage Arcade and then in Christchurch's Saxon Square.
The family confirms five Maravi shops: four open South Coast pilot cafés — one a roastery awaiting its roasting machine — and one in Spain. You can visit the pilot, taste the coffee and inspect the operation before you decide.
The first room
Bournemouth, August 2022.
The first Maravi café opened in Bournemouth town centre, in the heritage Arcade building. It was a small room with a counter, a few seats and a simple menu. The first day's takings were £61. The family's account of that day is not a boast; it is the reason the pilot was built slowly.
British customers took a little persuading. They came back when the coffee was good, the service was warm and the price did not make them think twice. The room had to earn its regulars one cup at a time.
The lesson was not about coffee. It was about trust. A café is a local business before it is a brand, and a franchisee has to earn the same trust in their own town.
That is why the franchise model puts so much weight on the operator, the team and the site — and why the training is built around running the business, not just making the coffee.
Christchurch · Saxon Square
The roastery format, in the wild.
The Christchurch café is a multi-level room in Saxon Square with a roastery built for the roasting machine that is awaited, and the Nia Botanica tea bar. It is the flagship proof that the Maravi standard can carry a larger, destination format — not just a small counter.
Ready for the machine
The roaster is part of the room, not hidden in a back office. When the machine is installed, customers can see the coffee being made.
Beans to take home
The retail wall carries the Maravi range, so the brand leaves the café with the customer.
Nia Botanica
A tea bar with loose-leaf teas sits alongside the coffee, widening the room's appeal.
A destination, not a pass-through
More seats, more reasons to stay and a design that works from morning to evening.
The founder's account
What the pilot cost, and what it targets.
The founder is unusually open about the pilot's numbers. They are his figures, shared to show what a serious applicant can inspect — not an audited set of accounts, a quote or a forecast.
| The pilot | The founder's account |
|---|---|
| Pilot period | Three years, started from scratch |
| Premises | Five Maravi shops: four open South Coast cafés (one roastery awaiting its roasting machine) and one in Spain |
| Outstanding debt | £600,000 after developing and fitting out four premises |
| Minimum daily target | £1,000 per café per day, as a target — not a guarantee |
| Pilot growth | Four open South Coast cafés, one roastery awaiting its machine; one Maravi shop in Spain |
| Funding | Cash flow, supported in the pilot by family investment |
Founder's figures, not audited accounts or a forecast. The pilot's books, leases, fit-out costs and trading history are available to serious applicants under confidentiality and due diligence. The family confirms the five-shop estate; the public Maravi site is being updated.
Evidence, not a forecast
What the pilot proves — and what it does not.
It proves
- A Maravi room can trade in the UK, with British customers and British staff.
- The standard can carry more than one site, in different buildings and formats.
- The roastery format has been built as a destination, with retail and tea alongside coffee; the roasting machine is awaited.
- The operating model can be taught to a team.
It does not prove
- That every town will perform like Bournemouth or Christchurch.
- That a franchisee will achieve a particular level of sales or profit.
- That a site will open on a fixed timetable, whatever the lease or planning position.
- That the business is passive. It is not.
Performance information
No forecast. The books are open privately.
We do not publish a forecast. We do publish the founder's figures, attributed and caveated, because they are part of his account of the pilot. A serious applicant needs more than a headline: they need the cost base, the site, the staffing model, the seasonality and the assumptions.
At the discovery stage, we share the franchise information memorandum and the relevant financial information in writing, under confidentiality, so you and your adviser can test it against your own plan. You are welcome to visit the pilot, speak to the team and see the operation for yourself.
No earnings projection, guarantee or forecast is made on this website. The founder's figures are historical or indicative and must be tested independently.