The tourists will be arriving in mere months and this cafe that borders James Bay and downtown Victoria is now on the market!
Jucee opened its doors at 701 Belleville Street in May 2021, and after successfully surviving through a worldwide pandemic, the current owners have decided to pursue other business ventures.
“It’s with a heavy heart that we have to sell out the business that we put our lives into creating; however, with opportunities elsewhere we have decided to pursue that,” said the current owners of Jucee.
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The business is on the market for $78,000 through a business broker, Paul Mon-Kau. That price includes the 600 square foot space, the name and the assets which include all established, branded social media accounts, a bought and paid-for Rocket espresso machine as well as multiple Vitamix Blenders. The lease on the space is up for renewal in July 2026.
“Their espresso machine is really quite something,” Mon-Kau told Victoria Buzz. “Those Vitamix blenders aren’t cheap and those Rockets come from Milan, Italy, special order, they’re not readily available in stock in BC.”
Mon-Kau explained that the process for opening a business like this from scratch takes months between getting designs drawn up, branding created, construction completed, permits approved and brand recognition.
People who begin a business endeavor in food and beverage are often down over $55,000 before customers are even in the door.
“There’s certainly a tie in value for a buyer where not only are you buying this stuff for quite a reduced rate, even though its gently used or whatever you want to call that, you’re able to get open and be making money right away rather than just opening months down the road,” explained Mon-Kau.
The business doesn’t necessarily have to remain “Jucee,”—whomever purchases the business can do what they want with it; however, by changing the name they may lose out on any established name recognition.
The sellers assured Mon-Kau who spoke with Victoria Buzz on their behalf that employees have nothing to worry about. The current owners are not shutting down and the business brokerage sometimes takes months to make a deal, and even then, new owners may consider established employees an asset to the future of their business.
“It’s more often the case that these deals take quite a while,” said Mon-Kau. “It’s not something that takes weeks, it’s more likely something that takes a year.”
“So to give some comfort to employees, it’s not, ‘the sky is falling,’ or anything like that. They likely have their jobs for the foreseeable future.”
With tourists inbound, this business opportunity could be lucrative for a local Victorian who’s always wanted to open their own cafe.
