7 Small Business Tips The Owners of Two Franks Cafe Live By

For sisters and business partners Angie Markou and Chryssie Swarbrick, launching their cafe and general store Two Franks in Coburg, Victoria in 2023 was more than a small business venture, it was fulfilling a childhood dream. “We grew up in our parents’ house across the road from some shops; there was a milk bar, a butcher shop and a wool store. We would look through the windows of our bedroom and imagine having a cafe across the road and what that would be like,” says Angie.

Although Angie and Chryssie had grown up, started their own families and left Coburg, they never let go of their dream. “I was visiting my parents one day and saw a ‘for lease’ sign at the butcher’s shop, which was the only one left out of the shops that were there when we were kids. I called Angie and I said, ‘What do you want to do? This is going to be our only chance to do something here’,” says Chryssie. “We are both very sentimental people and we care about the area that we grew up in. So, when we were presented with this final opportunity, we didn’t really have a choice. We didn’t want to go over to our mum and dad’s house and see someone else giving it a go.”

Angie and Chryssie’s small business journey has only just begun, but they already have so much wisdom to share. We chatted with them about their advice for other small businesses, the importance of staying organised for the end of financial year (EOFY), and the essential supplies that keep Two Franks running smoothly.

Tips for Running a Successful Small Business

Angie Markou and Chryssie Swarbrick smiling and standing behind the counter at their cafe Two Franks with coffee and cinnamon buns on display.

Identify Your Market Gap

Your first step towards a successful small business? Finding your market. Though starting their own cafe was the dream, Angie and Chryssie could see it was an amenity the community needed. “After the milk bar closed, which was such an important part of the community, I’d visit Mum and Dad and there’d be nowhere in the area to get a coffee or pick anything up. So, it was something we wanted to do, but it was also a conscious business decision that we wanted to fill that gap in the market,” says Chryssie.

Embrace Your Support Network

Both Angie and Chryssie agree that building a strong support network is an essential part of preparing yourself for your journey to becoming a business owner. “It can be harder than you think. I would compare it to the same feeling as having a newborn, especially in the early stages, because it’s all you’re thinking about. Having a good support network around you that understands the challenges you’re going through goes a really long way,” says Chryssie.

Two Franks co-owner Angie Markou handing a takeaway coffee to a customer over the cafe counter, which has a commercial coffee machine, a display of pastries and a display cabinet on top of it.

Adapt Quickly

Even the best-laid plans can go awry, so how do you prepare for a bump in the road? “My advice would be to go into it with no expectations,” says Angie. “You need to be prepared to pivot and change your ideas to make it work. When we started out we were open five days a week, but since that time there’s been a boom in Coburg and there’s a few other cafes. We’re now open every day to keep up with consumer habits. As a small business owner, you’ve got to have resilience and to be able to adapt as everything changes around you. Know it’s ever changing and you just have to go with it.”

Play to Your Strengths

An important part of Angie and Chryssie’s successful business partnership is how they embrace their strengths. Whether you’re flying solo or managing a business as part of a team, it’s essential to identify your own skill set and outsource anything that isn’t in your wheelhouse. “We knew Chryssie would be doing our social media because that's what she’s done in other roles, and I’ve focused more on the ‘big picture’ things, like invoices and business plans and finance. We cross over here and there, obviously, but it runs better when people are doing what they're best at,” says Angie.

Angie and Chryssie’s Top EOFY Tips for Small Businesses

Two Franks co-owners Angie Markou and Chryssie Swarbrick managing inventory in their store, one using a tablet and the other a pricing gun.

Develop a System That Works for You

What works well for some people might not always work for others. Finding systems that help you stay organised is a key part in staying on top of admin year round. “Angie's very much a paper person and I'm very much a digital person,” says Chryssie. “I don't like holding onto papers, I know that I'll lose them. You need to work out what sort of person you are when it comes to managing your admin and how you can develop a system that will work to your strengths to make you better prepared.”

Two Franks co-owner Chryssie Swarbrick sitting at a cafe table writing in an invoice book, surrounded by ring binders, manila folders and a restaurant docket book.

Keep Consistent Records

For Angie and Chryssie, staying on top of your processes and record keeping is a big part of making tax time a breeze. “We try to be really vigilant throughout the year, making sure that we're up to date with reconciling everything and when invoices come in, we add them to the spreadsheet that goes to our accountant. It’s all about making sure you’ve got the information you need and that it’s organised for when you need it. That's the most important thing, just being consistent and organised,” says Angie.

Engage External Support for Tax Time

Starting your own business is no small feat, but Angie and Chryssie say that engaging external services can make things a little easier. “We had an accountant on board to finalise the structure of the business before we even opened our doors,” says Angie. “Luckily, most of [our tax return] is done by him, which is wonderful, but we are really strict and organised with how we present that information to him. Plus, having staff makes it all a bit more complicated, so using an accountant was the way we needed to go.”

Angie and Chryssie’s Top EOFY Supplies

The lead-up to the end of the financial year is prime time to consider supplies to stock up on or the tech you could upgrade, so you could claim them in your next tax return. Check out what’s on Angie and Chryssie’s EOFY shopping list for Two Franks.

For Smooth Selling: A Square POS

“We use the Square POS, which is really user-friendly and easy to train people on. We’re able to personalise it to our needs and make it really streamlined. Receipt rolls are a big one too. There’s been times where we've had to rush to Officeworks to stock up,” says Angie.

Two Franks co-owner Chryssie Swarbrick kneeling outside her cafe, writing "Come inside! The coffee is warm" with a chalk pen on an A-frame blackboard.

For Pricing Stock: Chalk Pens and Pricing Guns

“We use chalk pens a lot – they’re really handy. We write on our retail fridge doors and our glass cabinets every day. We also have pricing guns to price all of our pantry and fridge items,” says Angie.

Two Franks co-owners Chryssie Swarbrick and Angie Markous collaborate at a cafe table covered in files and folders, one reviewing a tablet while the other takes notes.

For Instore Operations: A Tablet

“We use a tablet instore for a whole bunch of things like for our staff to clock in and out, to access [accounting software] Xero and play music. We’re looking at getting a second tablet so we can do other things like checking customer orders from the website,” says Chryssie.

For Filing Important Documents: Folders and Clear Sleeves

“We’ve got display folders that contain our procedures and recipes written out for our team to go through in the shop. We also use a lot of clear sleeves to keep things like paperwork or resumes when they’re handed in,” says Angie.

What to Try:

This is general information only. Seek professional financial and/or legal advice to determine the right outcomes for your business or individual needs.