Self-Service Coffee Shop Franchise or Your Own Chain: Which to Choose

According to Businessmens.ru, demand for vending franchises grew by 17.9% in 2025, but applications for self-service coffee shops specifically fell by 32.3%. In Q1 2026 demand for franchises overall dropped by 28.4% year on year, and in Moscow and St Petersburg by roughly a quarter. Interest in ready-made coffee models is cooling, which makes the choice between a franchise and your own chain more interesting than it looks.

Let us look at both sides honestly, including what franchisors are reluctant to talk about at meetings.

What you are buying in a franchise

Proven unit economics. Not an abstract calculation but the figures of the network's operating points, if the franchisor is willing to show them.

Help with choosing a location. The most valuable part of the package, because a weak spot cannot be rescued by marketing.

Access to technology infrastructure. An accounting system, telemetry, equipment settings, tested recipes.

Purchasing terms. Equipment and ingredients at network prices rather than retail ones.

The brand. Its value depends on how recognisable the specific network is in your city. Sometimes it is a real asset, sometimes just a sticker on the housing.

What you pay for

A lump-sum entry fee.

Royalties: fixed or a percentage of revenue.

An obligation to buy equipment and ingredients from the network or its partners.

Restrictions on territory, range and prices.

The main cost line is usually not the entry fee but the difference in ingredient prices over several years. That is what to calculate first.

A comparison on the merits

ParameterFranchiseOwn chainSpeed of launchfaster, processes are readyslower, everything is built from scratchRisk of a mistake at the startlower thanks to others' experiencehigher, you learn with your own moneyMargin per pointlower by the amount of royalties and the markup on ingredientsall yoursFreedom of decisionslimited by the contractcompleteTax perimetereach partner runs the business separately, revenue is not consolidatedall revenue is yours, special-regime limits come closer fasterCost of exitequipment is often tied to the networkassets are entirely yours

The tax argument worth remembering

From 2026 the VAT rate has risen to 22%, and the income threshold up to which a business on the simplified tax system can work without VAT has fallen to RUB 20 million a year. For a growing own chain this means that revenue growth brings you closer to a change of tax regime.

In the franchise model each partner runs the business separately and does not consolidate the revenue of the whole network. This is a lawful feature of the structure, not an optimisation scheme.

The practical conclusion: calculate not the margin of one point but net profit after tax over the whole growth horizon. Sometimes your own chain wins at five points and loses at fifteen.

When a franchise is justified

You are launching for the first time and have not worked with coffee equipment.

In your city the network's brand is genuinely recognisable.

You need help with locations and do not yet have your own understanding of traffic.

You plan 1-3 points and do not intend to build a service department.

When your own chain is better

You already have operating points and an understanding of the economics.

You plan more than five to seven machines in one city.

You have access to locations through your own connections or your main business.

You are ready to deal with service, logistics and settings yourself or to hire someone.

What to check with the franchisor before signing

Figures of operating points, not presentation averages. Ask for the spread: how much the best point makes, how much the worst, how many closed in the past year.

Terms on ingredients. The price of beans and milk compared with the market, multiplied by your forecast consumption over three years.

Who is responsible for service. Whether there is an engineer in your city or the call-out comes from another region.

What happens with an unsuccessful location. Whether the network helps with relocation and at whose expense.

Exit terms. Whether you can take the equipment, and what happens to the points on termination.

A conversation with current partners. Not those whose contacts the franchisor gave you, but ones you found yourself.

Conclusion

A franchise buys you speed and lower risk at the start, and you pay for it with part of your margin for the whole term of operation. Your own chain gives you the full margin and full responsibility for mistakes.

A sensible scenario for many is to start with one or two own points in an understandable location, get a feel for the real numbers, and only then decide whether you need someone else's model. The experience of the first point costs less than the entry fee and stays with you for ever.

Frequently asked questions

Is a self-service coffee shop franchise more profitable than your own business

At the start and with a small number of points, often yes, thanks to ready processes and help with locations. When scaling, royalties and the markup on ingredients begin to eat noticeably into margin.

What is the main thing to check with a franchisor

The spread of revenue across operating points, including the worst and the closed ones, and the price of ingredients compared with the market over a three-year horizon.

Why is demand for franchises falling in the capitals

Rent is high, the best places are taken, and the trade levy per machine in Moscow in 2026 is about RUB 11.2 thousand per quarter. In Q1 2026 demand for franchises in Moscow and St Petersburg fell by roughly a quarter.

How many points do you need for your own chain to make sense

From five to seven machines in one city. That density justifies your own logistics and makes servicing economical.

To calculate your own model: payback calculator. On equipment and partnership: working with partners and dealers, DrinkX station.

How this works on the under-counter station — on the home page; short answers on installation, water and service are in the Short answers section.

For business

What a station would earn for you

We’ll run the payback on your numbers: traffic, cup price, rent.

Calculate payback DrinkX modules