RP: Logos and Plans
Date: May 14, 2005
Character(s): Draco Malfoy
Location: His Flat on D Street
Status: Private
Summary: Draco knocks around some ideas.
Completion: Complete
Once he'd made his mind up about something, Draco didn't like to hesitate. He wasn't one for wasting time. That wasn't to say, of course, that he made decisions rashly at all. Quite simply, he didn't like making mistakes. Logically, he knew they were a part of life, and all that. But they were also irritating and he liked to avoid them when possible. So he weighed his options and the pros and cons, ran the numbers in his mind. Hadn't he been going back and forth on this coffee shop lark for weeks?
Draco sat at his drawing board, fiddling with logo ideas. Probably jumping the gun just a tad -- but he was restless, and this was the only thing he knew how to do right at the moment in terms of moving this idea forward.
It wasn't a lark, actually -- not only was Draco not prone to such frivolities, but he was serious about this now. Merlin help him. He'd spent some time in the pubs about town, trying to assess the market for coffee in Stoatshead. Which involved eating at the Five Alarm far more times than he'd ever thought he would, as well as making an attempt at conversation with a couple of the house elves at Socks. Such as it was. He'd not actually caught more than a few sentences between the squeaking, and the referring to themselves in bloody third-person. But, it had been enough to deduce that more than sixty percent of the patrons to Socks ordered coffee or tea.
The sacrifices one made for the good of business.
Of course, somewhere deep -- very deep -- down, Draco wondered when he'd gone completely round the twist. He was a Malfoy, wasn't he? So what the bloody hell was he thinking about, considering running a till -- in the food service industry, no less? Serving coffee and tea to a bunch of prats who likely talked about him behind his back anyway. It had just seemed lowering, at first.
But having turned things over and over again in his head, wasn't it even more lowering having to work for someone else? He was never cut out for working for anyone else. He'd simply not had a choice at the time, being barely able to afford enough food from week to week without having to resort to food vouchers. Now, though, it was important to him to have something of his own; something successful. He had nothing to prove to others, as they could all kiss his arse, but he supposed he had something to prove to himself. In a way, he'd been trying to do that for years. He'd not crumbled and fallen apart when his family's influence and money had dried up, and he never would. He didn't need them; he could build something that was his and make it a success.
He had no doubt that this would be successful, of course.
It would take work, he knew, and time. Much as it pained him, he had no knowledge of the coffee business -- and he personally preferred to drink tea, anyway. His establishment would naturally serve proper Wizarding tea along with the lattes, or whatever they were called. But he had a good head for business, and was good with numbers. Excellent, really. And he was confident that he had what it took to run the place, even if he had no actual knowledge or experience when it came to coffee. How hard could it be to learn? He'd find a book somewhere and read it, that was all.
Ideally, he wanted a place that was classier than the Five Alarm, not as stuffy as Socks -- and no house elves. Roma tried for classy, but couldn't quite manage it, as far as Draco was concerned. Not that he was looking for a setting like that. Something airy, modern, understated. Trendy enough to appeal to the masses without trying too hard and being a cookie cutter version of the Muggle Warbucks. Or whatever it was called.
Draco sat back from his drawing board and folded his arms, reaching for a notebook instead. The one in which he'd been writing out tentative ideas and plans. He'd want to sell food, of course. Breakfast-type things and light lunch fare. But who would prepare that? Hell if he was about to stand in the back and make sandwiches. Well, he'd find a solution. Maybe if he had to resort to that he no one else would have to know.
Probably books of some sort would be in order. If people stayed to read something, they be inclined to buy more things. Perhaps periodicals of some sort. They'd have to be Muggle most likely, but whatever. And Newspapers, for morning reading. Granger could have her childrens' books and fiction. A few publications would suffice. But he'd have to find a means of procuring them. Well, that could be dealt with whenever.
Food, coffee, and books were all second to finding premises, though. He'd have to take a walk about town, and find a suitable place. He could only hope all the good locations weren't claimed already. Location could very well be the most important factor in all this. Somewhere people were likely to notice and then visit. Much as he avoided the general public, that would be difficult to do when trying to run a successful business. He'd need to find a place on the beaten path, unfortunately.
Finally, he picked up his notebook and moved into his sitting room. A lot to do. He was, of course, well up to the task, but it would take time, even for him. Careful planning and execution.
And, unless there was a way to Transfigure 'coffee' into double half-caff skinny iced cappuccino, he'd need to buy a coffee machine.
Character(s): Draco Malfoy
Location: His Flat on D Street
Status: Private
Summary: Draco knocks around some ideas.
Completion: Complete
Once he'd made his mind up about something, Draco didn't like to hesitate. He wasn't one for wasting time. That wasn't to say, of course, that he made decisions rashly at all. Quite simply, he didn't like making mistakes. Logically, he knew they were a part of life, and all that. But they were also irritating and he liked to avoid them when possible. So he weighed his options and the pros and cons, ran the numbers in his mind. Hadn't he been going back and forth on this coffee shop lark for weeks?
Draco sat at his drawing board, fiddling with logo ideas. Probably jumping the gun just a tad -- but he was restless, and this was the only thing he knew how to do right at the moment in terms of moving this idea forward.
It wasn't a lark, actually -- not only was Draco not prone to such frivolities, but he was serious about this now. Merlin help him. He'd spent some time in the pubs about town, trying to assess the market for coffee in Stoatshead. Which involved eating at the Five Alarm far more times than he'd ever thought he would, as well as making an attempt at conversation with a couple of the house elves at Socks. Such as it was. He'd not actually caught more than a few sentences between the squeaking, and the referring to themselves in bloody third-person. But, it had been enough to deduce that more than sixty percent of the patrons to Socks ordered coffee or tea.
The sacrifices one made for the good of business.
Of course, somewhere deep -- very deep -- down, Draco wondered when he'd gone completely round the twist. He was a Malfoy, wasn't he? So what the bloody hell was he thinking about, considering running a till -- in the food service industry, no less? Serving coffee and tea to a bunch of prats who likely talked about him behind his back anyway. It had just seemed lowering, at first.
But having turned things over and over again in his head, wasn't it even more lowering having to work for someone else? He was never cut out for working for anyone else. He'd simply not had a choice at the time, being barely able to afford enough food from week to week without having to resort to food vouchers. Now, though, it was important to him to have something of his own; something successful. He had nothing to prove to others, as they could all kiss his arse, but he supposed he had something to prove to himself. In a way, he'd been trying to do that for years. He'd not crumbled and fallen apart when his family's influence and money had dried up, and he never would. He didn't need them; he could build something that was his and make it a success.
He had no doubt that this would be successful, of course.
It would take work, he knew, and time. Much as it pained him, he had no knowledge of the coffee business -- and he personally preferred to drink tea, anyway. His establishment would naturally serve proper Wizarding tea along with the lattes, or whatever they were called. But he had a good head for business, and was good with numbers. Excellent, really. And he was confident that he had what it took to run the place, even if he had no actual knowledge or experience when it came to coffee. How hard could it be to learn? He'd find a book somewhere and read it, that was all.
Ideally, he wanted a place that was classier than the Five Alarm, not as stuffy as Socks -- and no house elves. Roma tried for classy, but couldn't quite manage it, as far as Draco was concerned. Not that he was looking for a setting like that. Something airy, modern, understated. Trendy enough to appeal to the masses without trying too hard and being a cookie cutter version of the Muggle Warbucks. Or whatever it was called.
Draco sat back from his drawing board and folded his arms, reaching for a notebook instead. The one in which he'd been writing out tentative ideas and plans. He'd want to sell food, of course. Breakfast-type things and light lunch fare. But who would prepare that? Hell if he was about to stand in the back and make sandwiches. Well, he'd find a solution. Maybe if he had to resort to that he no one else would have to know.
Probably books of some sort would be in order. If people stayed to read something, they be inclined to buy more things. Perhaps periodicals of some sort. They'd have to be Muggle most likely, but whatever. And Newspapers, for morning reading. Granger could have her childrens' books and fiction. A few publications would suffice. But he'd have to find a means of procuring them. Well, that could be dealt with whenever.
Food, coffee, and books were all second to finding premises, though. He'd have to take a walk about town, and find a suitable place. He could only hope all the good locations weren't claimed already. Location could very well be the most important factor in all this. Somewhere people were likely to notice and then visit. Much as he avoided the general public, that would be difficult to do when trying to run a successful business. He'd need to find a place on the beaten path, unfortunately.
Finally, he picked up his notebook and moved into his sitting room. A lot to do. He was, of course, well up to the task, but it would take time, even for him. Careful planning and execution.
And, unless there was a way to Transfigure 'coffee' into double half-caff skinny iced cappuccino, he'd need to buy a coffee machine.