Start-up: Sisters Lydia and Rachel channel their passion for food and sustainability at Taylor’s Café

Lydia and Rachel Taylor opened Taylor’s café Brussels in December. Located in Rue Haute, the zero-waste and vegan café is open for breakfast, lunch and tea. The sisters tell The Bulletin about their experience of setting up a new business in Belgium.

What is your background?

We were born and raised in Belgium in an English household, and we both moved to the UK for university before returning here. We feel connected to our English roots and hope to bring a little bit of Britishness to the Brussels cafe scene.

Why the decision to make the café vegan and zero-waste?

Our business was born out of a passion for food and sustainability. In our everyday lives, we try to consume as consciously as possible by choosing to eat vegan food, by minimising our waste and by buying second-hand when possible. These values are at the heart of our cafe. We source ingredients from local suppliers that deliver in reusable packaging and we offer reusable packaging for customers to take away their food and drinks. Our goal is to attract not only vegans and people striving to live sustainably, but also coffee and brunch enthusiasts. We expect our customers to include a mixture of tourists and locals.

What was your experience of setting up a business?

Opening a business involves a lot of red tape and it was challenging to map out the necessary administrative steps due to the sheer quantity of paperwork, the precise yet convoluted order in which it must be completed, and the paucity of information regarding the process. We benefited enormously from the free services Brussels provides entrepreneurs such as Hub.Brussels and Crédal. At first we were determined to achieve everything independently. With time, we realised the importance of leaning on the people around us. Opening a business requires you to be a jack of all trades; sometimes seeking advice from experts in a particular field such as accounting or from well-established business owners is invaluable.

How did you finance the start-up?

We opted for the crowdfunding platform Growfunding, whose services include the guidance of a coach from start to finish. The process pushed us to amp up our social media communication and to approach partner businesses for the crowdfunding rewards, which helped us gain social media visibility. It’s our intention to use the cafe to organise events such as a book club and workshops, and lend the space to activist organisations.

What have been the key challenges?

We started this project around three years ago and had just signed the lease to the premises when Covid-19 struck. It has been a logistical, financial and emotional challenge to power through the uncertainty of setting up a business during a pandemic. As challenging as it may be, creating a business from scratch is very rewarding, especially as it aligns with our values and allows us to create an experience for other people to enjoy.

Taylor’s café Brussels
Rue Haute 228
@taylorscafebrussels

Do you want to share your start-up story? Contact sarah.crew@thebulletin.be

This article was first published in the Expat Time magazine, winter 2021-22