NOVEL NEXT 88
Park Jun-su, the part-timer at Song Cafe, moved his hands swiftly as he pulled shots of espresso.
Ding!
“Two more Americanos, please!”
“Coming right up!”
At the sound ringing out from the order counter, Park Jun-su quickly discarded the coffee grounds and set up another shot. Even for Park Jun-su, an experienced cafe part-timer, a bead of sweat would always trickle down his spine when working in such a packed cafe.
“Phew.”
As he straightened his back for a moment and looked around, he could finally see the end of the long queue.
‘I just applied without much thought when I heard they were looking for cafe part-timers nearby…’
Who would have known that this cafe would be running a free 100 Americanos event to celebrate its opening?
Who could have guessed?
Thanks to that, people had been swarming like bees and lining up since before the cafe opened. It seemed to have quite an effective promotional impact.
“Wow. That must be one serving~”
“The amount is really generous.”
As he filled a large cup to the brim with Americano, he could hear customers peeking inside whispering to each other.
‘Yes, this is the standard serving size.’
He remembered how shocked he was when he first learned the menu recipes and their outrageous quantities.
“And the price is incredibly cheap too?”
“Wow. This is amazing!”
Those who shifted their gaze to the menu board chattered excitedly.
‘Yes, that’s the regular price.’
Somehow, Park Jun-su felt his chest swell with pride. Though it wasn’t his own store, he still felt good hearing the praise.
‘This is completely different from where I worked before.’
The trendy independent cafe where Park Jun-su used to work charged at least 6,000 won for an Americano, and the quantity wasn’t particularly generous.
‘Every time I called out “Americano ready~” and faced those disappointed looks, I felt so hurt!’
He couldn’t give more due to cafe regulations. He’d break into a cold sweat when occasional complaints about the small quantity came in.
‘Compared to that, here… Are they even making a profit?’
The low prices and generous portions were so impressive that such doubts naturally arose.
“We should come here from now on. It’s cheap and the portions are big.”
“I heard Song Woo-yeon’s brands are known for good value. The chicken feet place next door is crazy good value too.”
“Oh, chicken feet sounds good. Right, this whole area belongs to her, doesn’t it? Isn’t the soup rice shop in front the original one?”
“Soup rice shop? Ah… I’ve been there, but it’s a bit…”
As the customers’ voices faded, Park Jun-su glanced to the side.
‘That must be her. Chef Song Woo-yeon.’
Park Jun-su had watched ‘Raid the Refrigerator’ a few times too. With her encyclopedic knowledge of cooking across various fields and her bouncy ideas, she had long since become a ‘fan-favorite chef’ among viewers.
Though she’d mentioned several times that her main job was closer to business than cooking, he’d never really felt it until now.
‘She’s quite savvy. Running a big event like this naturally creates buzz.’
Not only were people lining up to drink coffee, but passersby who saw the scene would also show interest and peek in.
That alone would have spread the word throughout the neighborhood.
Song Woo-yeon was greeting customers who recognized her, occasionally taking pictures with them.
‘She’s almost like a celebrity.’
She still looked very young. When you think about it, it’s really impressive.
‘I’m not asking for much, just opening my own cafe someday would be enough for me. This Song Cafe seems to be a franchise too, maybe I could try opening a franchise…?’
Even as these thoughts ran through his mind, Park Jun-su’s hands moved quickly. And as he pulled the 100th and final shot…
“Here’s our last customer!”
“Wow~ Thank you!”
“We officially open tomorrow, so please show us lots of interest~”
“Yes!”
Finally, it’s over!
Park Jun-su inwardly cheered. Whew. His stiff body seemed to be screaming in protest.
After seeing off the last customer, Song Woo-yeon turned around to face the part-timers.
Clap!
She clapped her hands to draw the attention of the exhausted part-timers.
“Good work, everyone~”
Her bright smile made her look as vivacious as others her age. She looks even younger than on TV. Park Jun-su swallowed those words.
“We’ll wrap up here for today. See you all tomorrow!”
“Yes~!”
After a quick bow, Song Woo-yeon swiftly walked away. A person waiting right beside her immediately followed.
It was a man in a well-fitted suit with his hair slicked back. Though he wasn’t sure, Park Jun-su guessed he must be Song Woo-yeon’s subordinate.
Suddenly realizing Song Woo-yeon’s position, Park Jun-su inwardly marveled.
“Well then, shall we start cleaning up?”
Yu Sol, the female employee acting as manager, stepped forward to direct the part-timers. While wiping various surfaces with a cloth, Park Jun-su casually approached Yu Sol.
“Manager.”
“Yes. Is something the matter?”
“Ah, it’s nothing much. I just noticed earlier that you seemed close with Chef Song.”
Having seen them chatting intimately, his curiosity was piqued. They were even using informal speech and joking around.
Of course, it wasn’t just simple curiosity.
‘I wonder if there’s a way to make a connection with Chef Song Woo-yeon?’
A bit of such shallow self-interest was mixed in too.
‘Even if not that, I’m curious about Song Cafe’s profit structure. Can they really make money selling coffee like this…’
As a potential future franchisee, he had some points he wanted to check. Surely Yu Sol, as the manager, would know more than a mere part-timer.
“How do you know each other?”
Starting with some small talk first.
As Park Jun-su asked with sparkling eyes, Yu Sol calmly tucked her hair behind her ear.
Then, looking at Park Jun-su, she blurted out:
“CEO Song.”
“Pardon?”
“It’s better to call her CEO Song, not Chef Song. She prefers to be called that way.”
“Ah, yes.”
Park Jun-su froze at the sudden correction of the title.
“And about how we became close… Well, that’s the thing. I’d rather ask that question myself.”
Yu Sol muttered softly.
“I thought she was just another part-timer, but it turned out she was the CEO.”
“What?”
That can’t be. It’s not like she’s some chaebol heir undergoing successor training.
“You think it’s nonsense, right?”
Yu Sol smirked.
“But it really was like that. She worked just like us. If she had been slacking off, I might have been suspicious. But she just worked normally, like any ordinary part-timer.”
“Wow…”
“It was quite a while before I found out she was the CEO.”
“That’s amazing.”
What an interesting connection.
Just then, a familiar voice suddenly rang out from behind Park Jun-su.
“Thanks to that, I got to know the true capabilities of our Manager Yu, who handles work calmly and meticulously.”
“?!”
Startled, Park Jun-su turned around to find the person he had been observing from afar now right in front of him.
Song Woo-yeon!
Her bright smile as she brushed back her long black hair was quite striking. Park Jun-su froze, unable to say anything.
“Oh, CEO Song.”
“I told you to just call me Woo-yeon. Be comfortable.”
“I can’t do that. This isn’t a private setting.”
“If Manager Yu says so.”
Song Woo-yeon grinned and exchanged friendly banter with Yu Sol. Wow. It’s really Song Woo-yeon.
Song Woo-yeon turned to Park Jun-su and asked:
“I wonder what our Park Jun-su-ssi was so curious about that he approached our Manager Yu? She doesn’t have an easily approachable image.”
“Oh, n-no. I was just curious about how you two became close…”
“Ah, is that so? Well, back then, we only had one soup rice shop.”
Song Woo-yeon laughed out loud, as if reminiscing about the past.
Park Jun-su barely managed to hold onto his escaping wits. This might be one of the few opportunities. How often would he get to meet Song Woo-yeon this closely in the future?
“Um, CEO Song.”
Park Jun-su remembered Yu Sol’s advice and corrected the title.
“I have some questions, would it be alright to ask a few?!”
“For a moment. Team Leader Jo outside is pestering me to come out quickly.”
Looking where Song Woo-yeon pointed, Park Jun-su saw the suited man from earlier talking on the phone. It seemed he had slipped inside during that gap.
“Oh. Yes. Then, what I’m most curious about is… How can Song Cafe offer such low prices and generous portions?!”
Seizing the opportunity, he asked his biggest question first.
“Song Cafe isn’t even that big, but with such low prices, I’m wondering if you’re making any profit!”
“Ah~ It’s natural to be curious. Many customers asked about that today too. Whether we can make any money like this.”
Song Woo-yeon wasn’t as arrogant as one might expect. Rather, she seemed like someone who knew how to listen attentively even to Park Jun-su, who was just one of countless part-timers to her.
“There’s just one secret.”
Song Woo-yeon looked around, then gestured for him to come closer as she leaned in.
Park Jun-su unconsciously leaned his upper body forward too. Song Woo-yeon cupped her hands around her mouth and whispered softly.
“It’s a trade secret. The so-called… ‘magic of turnover rate’.”
The magic of turnover rate?
As Park Jun-su looked puzzled, Song Woo-yeon straightened up and grinned.
“Regular cafes don’t have good turnover rates. In Korea, cafes are closer to ‘places for conversation’ rather than ‘places to drink coffee’.”
“Ah, that’s true.”
“The main reason is probably Korea’s ever-changing climate throughout the four seasons. There aren’t many days when you can comfortably spend time outdoors, right? Maybe spring and fall. And there’s also the marketing of various companies. Well, that’s not the important part, so let’s skip it. The crucial point is this.”
Song Woo-yeon looked straight at Park Jun-su with sparkling eyes.
Her black eyes, filled with confidence and passion, looked like a night sky dotted with stars.
“The price of coffee includes the ‘seat cost’ based on this turnover rate.”