A Café In London That Charges Customers By The Minute

The newly-opened Ziferblat café in London has an unusual business model–it charges customers by the minute instead of the items they order.

Ziferblat is a Russian café chain, and currently has 10 outlets in Russia. Instead of paying for items, customers pay for the space and comfort.

It charges 3 pence per minute; the average cost of a cappuccino at a typical café is £2.65, which works out to about 90 minutes that a person can spend there. The vibe is warm and convivial and the place feels like a friend’s cozy apartment–there is a piano for people to play, a self serve espresso machine, a cupboard with cookies, and a fridge with milk.

Ivan Mitin, the founder of Ziferblat, told The Guardian “It’s funny to see people queuing here to wash their dishes. It’s not obligatory, but it’s appreciated. They even wash each other’s dishes. It’s very social. We think of our guests as micro tenants, all sharing the same space.”