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A Bengaluru cafe's yearly revenue (bottom-up, with a supply-side check)

You run the case. Read the prompt, answer questions from the notes below, and share data only when the candidate asks for it or gets stuck. Score at the end.

Case timer

00:00

Target length:

1. Read the prompt aloud

Read it slowly, then pause. Let the candidate ask questions before they structure.

Estimate the yearly revenue of a single busy cafe in central Bengaluru.

Format note: Candidate-led: you drive the estimate and ask for the facts you need; the interviewer answers or asks you to make an assumption.

2. Answers to clarifying questions

Give these answers only if the candidate asks. If they ask something not listed, give a sensible answer or say it does not matter here.

If asked: One cafe, or the whole chain?
Answer: One cafe.
If asked: In-store sales only, or delivery orders too?
Answer: In-store only.

3. The hypothesis a strong candidate states

Listen for an early, testable guess like this one. It does not need to match word for word.

A busy central cafe probably serves a few hundred customers a day, so I expect yearly revenue of a few crore rupees (1 crore is 10 million).

4. A model structure

Compare the candidate's structure with this one. A different split can be just as good if it is clean and fits the problem.

Yearly revenue = customers per day x average spend x days openThis comes from revenue = customers x spend per customer x days open, with the counter's capacity as a check on customers.
- Customers per day (demand side), checked against counter capacity (supply side)
- Average spend per customer
- Days open: about 360

5. The working, step by step

Each step shows how a strong candidate works it out. Share a new fact from it only when the candidate asks or is stuck, and let them do the math: the result in the dark box is what they should reach.

Step 1: Supply-side check on customers
What a strong candidate does: Candidate: "I will assume about 400 customers a day, then check it from the supply side. How fast can the counter serve?" Interviewer: "About one customer a minute." Candidate: "And how long is it open, and how busy?" Interviewer: "14 hours a day, and busy about half the time." Candidate: "Then the counter can serve about 420 a day, close to my 400, so 400 is reasonable."
Customers the counter can serve per day: 60 × 14 × 0.5 = 420
Step 2: Daily revenue
What a strong candidate does: Candidate: "What does a typical customer spend?" Interviewer: "What would you assume?" Candidate: "About INR 300: a coffee and sometimes a snack."
Daily revenue (INR): 400 × 300 = 120,000
Step 3: Yearly revenue
What a strong candidate does: Open about 360 days a year.
Yearly revenue (INR): 120,000 × 360 = 43,200,000
Step 4: In crore
What a strong candidate does: Indian business figures are often given in crore: 1 crore is 10 million.
Yearly revenue (INR crore): 43,200,000 ÷ 10,000,000 = 4.32

The recommendation to listen for

At the end, say: "The CEO walks in. What is your recommendation?"

About INR 43 million (about INR 4.3 crore) a year. First, about 400 customers a day, a number the counter's capacity of about 420 a day supports. Second, an average spend of about INR 300 gives about INR 120,000 a day. Third, about 360 open days a year gives about INR 43 million. Checking customers two ways makes the answer much stronger than either estimate alone. If the interviewer pushes on any input, flex it and show the new answer.

Risks a strong answer names: Average spend could be higher if many customers buy food as well as coffee.

Next steps: Count customers for one busy hour and one quiet hour to test the 400 a day.

Strong versus weak

A strong answer

Estimated customers two ways, used local prices and local units, and stated each assumption so it could be challenged.

A weak answer

Picked a customer number with no check and gave the answer with no currency.

Score the candidate

Score each criterion from 1 to 5. A 2 or a 4 sits between the descriptions.

This case has no exhibit. Score Exhibit reading on how the candidate used the data you gave them: did they pick out the number that matters and say what it means?

Structuring

1: No clear structure, or a memorized framework that does not fit the problem.
3: A sensible structure, but with some overlap, a gap, or no clear priority.
5: A structure built for this problem, with no overlap and no gaps, a stated hypothesis, and a clear first step.

Math

1: Frequent errors, no units, or needed heavy help to finish.
3: Right answers but slow or messy working, or one error caught late.
5: Accurate and clearly narrated, with units, a sense check, and what the number means.

Exhibit reading

1: Read the chart aloud without finding the number that matters.
3: Found the key number but gave only part of the so-what.
5: Pulled the right number quickly and said what it means for the case.

Synthesis

1: Summarized what was done, with no clear answer.
3: Gave an answer, but with weak reasons or no next step.
5: Answer first, then two or three reasons with numbers, the main risk, and next steps.

Communication

1: Hard to follow: long silences, no signposting.
3: Clear most of the time, with some rambling.
5: Calm and concise, signposted each step, and checked in with the interviewer.

Total

0 out of 25

Score all five criteria to see the band and the feedback template.