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Coffee shop and café companies in the Romford area

495 coffee shop and café companies have a registered office in the Romford area (RM postcodes), and 205 of them were formed in 2025 or 2026. In their latest accounts, the typical one held £5,215 in cash and owed £22,657 at year end.

Companies House register, 1 September 2026, and accounts filed in the last twelve months. Compared with the official category “Unlicenced restaurants and cafes” (SIC 56102), which also covers café, juice or smoothie bar. Covers companies with a registered office in RM postcodes.

The numbers

Coffee shop and café companies in the Romford area (RM postcodes) compared with the same category across the UK. Typical figures are medians.
MeasureRomfordUK
Registered companies49544,437
Formed in 2025 or 2026205 (41%)36%
Being struck off or in liquidation86 (17%)16%
Typical cash at year end£5,21568 accounts£8,573
Typical amount owed at year end£22,657190 accounts£27,813
Typical number of employees3194 accounts4

What this means if you’re starting one

More of these companies are closing than in most trades

17% of coffee shop and café companies in the Romford area (RM postcodes) are currently being struck off, against 9.6% of all companies there. Nationally that rate is higher than 94% of UK industries.

Closures run high here. It is a churn signal, not a survival rate, but it means the common failure points are worth learning before you start.

Most of your competition will be other newcomers

41% of the 495 coffee shop and café companies in the Romford area (RM postcodes) were formed in 2025–26, against 26% of all companies in the Romford area (RM postcodes). Nationally, that share of new companies is higher than 95% of UK industries.

New rivals are arriving faster than in most trades, so your customers already have fresh options. Being new is not a difference on its own.

Cash is tight in this trade

At year end the typical coffee shop and café company in the Romford area (RM postcodes) holds £5,215 in cash and owes £22,657; that cash figure is lower than 89% of UK industries.

Typical operators end the year holding less cash than they owe, so there is little slack if takings dip or a big bill lands early.

Planning a business like this in Romford?

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What these figures can’t tell you

Companies are counted where their registered office is, which may be an accountant or a home address rather than a shop. Sole traders and partnerships are not on the register, and electronically filed accounts cover roughly 60–75% of accounts filed each year. The figures describe companies that exist; they cannot prove demand for your idea or predict whether it will work. How the figures are built.

Coffee shop and café in other places

Other businesses in Romford

All business benchmarks in Romford