To set up a coffee shop in Iraq, lock down licenses, power, and supply chain before signing a lease. Register a trade name and entity (LLC is standard) with the Ministry of Trade or KRG counterpart, then obtain: municipal baladiya commercial license, Ministry of Health food-safety approval and staff health cards, Civil Defense fire NOC, signage permit, and a separate shisha permit if you plan hookah. Choose high-footfall areas—Baghdad (Karrada, Mansour), Erbil (Ainkawa, 100m Road), Basra (Al-Jaza’ir)—and negotiate a 3–5‑year lease that allows hood/ducting, generator placement, and branding. Budget USD 60k–150k for 90–140 m²: fit‑out at $400–800/m², a 2‑group espresso machine/grinder $8k–20k, HVAC $10k–25k, furniture $10k–30k. Secure 40–60 kVA three‑phase power (private generator contract or owned genset), voltage stabilization, and UPS for POS. Install RO with remineralization to ~80–120 ppm hardness to protect boilers and improve extraction. Staff 6–12 (baristas $400–700/mo; manager $700–1,200) with SOPs for dialing in, milk texturing, and cleaning. Use Arabic‑enabled cloud POS with offline mode and delivery integrations (Talabatey, Lezzoo), accept cash, cards via local acquirers, ZainCash/AsiaHawala. Localize menu: espresso standards, Turkish/Arabic coffee with cardamom, iced drinks, dates and pistachio items. Target unit economics: COGS 25–32%, labor 20–25%, rent <12%, daily sales $800–1,200 to break even.
