March 11, 2012
The FabCafe in Shibuya has a fascinating business model: patrons can purchase coffee and pay to use its on-site laser cutter. Customers just need to bring their desired material and an Adobe Illustrator vector file if they want to use the laser cutter.
Spoon & Tamago reports that it costs 2,000 yen (about $24) for one to three people to use the laser cutter for 30 minutes; solo designers must pay 5,000 yen (about $60) for the same period.
FabCafe opened on March 7, so it's too early to tell whether its designer-centric business model will pay off. For an unusual coffee shop strategy that didn't go so well, check out this topless coffee shop.
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