More Than One Shop
Recently, a customer made a comment about us being “just one shop.”
It wasn’t meant kindly — there was an implication that somehow, we were less. Inferior.
And it got me thinking…
Does having multiple locations really make a business more credible? More successful?
Over the years, we’ve been told countless times that we should expand. Open more shops. Franchise. Grow bigger. And yes — we’ve thought about it.
But the truth is, our Soho shop keeps us more than busy enough. It keeps us on our toes. And we’re incredibly grateful to say it’s thriving.
So what exactly is wrong with being one shop — and doing that well?
Because what people truly love about our shop isn’t just the fresh coffee.
It’s the history.
The original counter.
The old shelves.
The shop window that’s seen decades pass by.
And, of course, the family behind it all.
If we were to branch out — go bigger, bolder — would we lose that essence?
I suppose it depends on the business. But if you walked into Algerian Coffee Stores in another city, would it be the same. You wouldn’t see us behind the counter. You wouldn’t step into a space filled with years of stories, with history worn into every surface.
It would be new. Different.
So much of what makes us who we are is rooted in that personal, familiar approach. Our family has been running the shop for 80 years now, and on some days, you’ll even find three generations behind the counter, quietly keeping it all going. It’s in the small moments you see; grinding spices in our little grinder, weighing out teas, packing parcels. Preparing everything in a way that feels real, not rushed.
If all of that had to be scaled up to supply multiple branches… would it still feel the same?
Would it become just another mass-produced product?
Or maybe that doesn’t matter to some.
Maybe all that matters is consistency — the same recipe, the same taste, the same beans.
But for us, it’s more than that.
I remember, as a child, coming to work and being taken to Patisserie Valerie for a croissant. We knew the family, and they knew us. There was something comforting in that — something real.
When they sold the business and it expanded rapidly, it changed. It no longer felt the same. Everything became more distant; it was just a brand. And, if I’m honest, the quality didn’t feel quite as it once was.
Growth doesn’t always mean improvement. Sometimes, it means letting go of the very things people fell in love with in the first place.
That’s what people connect with. Not just the product — but the people, the rituals, the feeling.
There’s often a certain rhythm in businesses like this — maybe not perfect, maybe not polished, but real. Perhaps “chaos” isn’t quite the right word. Maybe it’s heart. They’re family-run, by people with families. Sometimes the day starts a little later because the school run didn’t quite go to plan. Sometimes things run behind because life simply happens.
But doesn’t that make it feel more human?
And for me, that’s exactly what makes me love places like that even more.
And that’s what we hold onto.
Because for us, it’s not just about selling coffee or tea. It’s about the experience of it — the conversation across the counter, the smell of freshly roasted coffee, the small, imperfect, human moments that can’t be replicated at scale.
Could we expand? Possibly.
Would it still feel like us? I’m not so sure. Maybe there’s simply too much history rooted in 52 Old Compton Street — or perhaps, too much heart.
Of course, there are businesses that grow and manage to keep the soul intact. But that balance is rare — and it requires letting go of a level of closeness that, for us, is everything.
So for now, we choose to stay as we are.
One shop.
One space.
One story — still being written, day by day, behind the same counter.
And that’s not something to apologise for.
It’s something to be proud of.
Comments
Marisa, wonderful things come in small bottles so please don’t change, the shop is just perfect.
I been going algier shop for several years discovered walking through soho staff great coffee great you survive 100 if rubbush keep up.
Small is beautiful. That’s the point of your shop. It is unique and a part of history. Don’t change.
Beautiful sentiments. The Algerian Coffee Store has a soul, and you cannot franchise souls!
You are THE Shop
What a ridiculous comment from that customer! You are absolutely the finest shop in the kingdom and it is always a pleasure to pop in and take away some wonderful beans. You can’t be unique and also part of a mult-store chain. It never works. Stay as the ACS please. There needs to be something unspoiled in life.
My husband used to buy our coffee when he was in London in the 60s . Now we can buy it on line which makes it easier for us since we live in Birmingham. I would resent a chain of what we still call the Algerian coffee stores. I would miss the voice of the lady who answers the phone when I put an order through. Please , carry on the tradition. Small is beautiful.
Stay the way you are! Don’t become like Lina Stores. I even saw Lina Stores in Kyoto, Japan. I love your place, it reminds a bit of my Dad’s old village stores in the 1960s.
Nothing wrong with one shop, better service, consistency, control and better able to maintain what you are about. Stay with one shop please !
Love this post. The best coffee, the best shop, the best owners on the planet.
Stay single! Don’t get eaten alive by PE! You’d get the money but lose your sole.
I’ve been in & out of the shop for 50 years and still get EGT on subscription – well worth it too!
Marisa – you are as good at provoking responses as you are at selling coffee! The short answer is 100% Do Not Expand if you wish to survive. What your customers are telling you here is that they stick with your business because they love it as it is. So changing it is obviously going to be a risk. Your family has worked hard to earn their loyalty, and through all the (mostly miserable) changes Soho has endured, you are as remarkable for your tenacity as for your other fine qualities. The Patisserie Valerie saga is about many things; one of them – a very important one – is that expanding to “exploit” a very particular, specialised enterprise financially is not as easy as creating a spreadsheet. Successful small businesses are about heart as well as brain. The fact that your small team all work together in one location is a vital part of your great business strength. Employing people on other sites where you don’t see them every day is bound to add stress to the business – stress which is potentially damaging. You are particular; you are specialised; you are unique. That’s why people stay customers for 50+ years and make 52 Old Compton Street a pilgrimage site when they come to London. How many other businesses can say that? And others love the brown paper parcels. I did when I lived a long way away; now I’m in London, I love the shop with all its honest-to-goodness quirkiness and bashed shins. Enough! Get the coffee on!
I have been buying coffee online from Algerian Coffee for the past 40yrs and always great service.
If I ever have a trip into London I must make a pilgrimage to the actual shop.
Yes, you are THE Shop, I discovered you many years ago when London was just a short train ride away, which it isn’t now, but I was so delighted when I realised you mail ordered. I don’t buy coffee anywhere else, why would I! My hubby was converted to coffee after sampling some Kopi Luwak and agrees, getting the best coffee isn’t a luxury, it’s a necessity. Don’t ever change😄
Well said and I entirely agree with you
Thanks for your gorgeous writing full of kindness, values and meaning .
52 old Compton Street it’s a must for me Anytime I visit the UK London specialy coming from Paris ( France)
Votre café est splendide, savoureux et parfumé….قهوة في القمة
Thank you and please stay the way you are 💚
I love to make the journey into Soho to visit the store. My favourite shop!
We started getting our coffee from you as a result of a voucher given as a Christmas present a few years ago and not looked back.As we live in Yorkshire we only get to visit the shop once or twice a year but its become a place we look forward to experiencing.As an oldie it reminds me of other shops visited years ago,family shops selling all manner of products but now largely gone.Of course the product has to be first class but thats a given at Algerian and long may you continue,
I’m another far away customer who has beans delivered. I say you’re perfect just the way you are!
Well said and well written. In my mad City work of the 1990s, I only had time to dash in and out of your beautiful shop. And though I was always in a rush, it felt like time stopped for a few gentle,welcome minutes. Please never change your warm ethos of kind informative, generous and helpful service. Great products too. This can’t be replicated or scaled up.
Please stay as you are. You operate excellently on line, you don’t need another shop. I have bought from you online for over 12 years. We have visited the shop occasionally.
We live in the far north of Scotland. I love saying my tea is from a specialist shop in Soho.
Janet
The uniqueness of the ’ Stores ’ is one of the reasons why I make my pilgrimage here. One off, original and definitely not a soulless franchise. The whole point is to go to the
Holy Land of Soho for salvation.
Thank you.