Why It Works: Mr. Summit, the Southbank café with the orange lids

You've seen their orange lids all over Southbank. Mr. Summit is the first café in Why It Works, our series on Melbourne venues doing things right. Here are the four things behind it, and what other cafés can take from them.

1. Café branding on everything

Mr. Summit is at 165 City Road in Southbank. The first thing you notice is the orange. It's on the lid, it's on the logo, it's on the umbrella. The menu follows the mountain theme too: almost every item has a mountain name, like the K2 and the Everest toasties.

They didn't just pick a colour and a name and call it branding. They put it everywhere, down to the t-shirts and socks they sell at the counter. You clock it's them before you even see their name.

None of it costs much on its own. Together, every cup carried down the street works as an ad. That's what a clear brand strategy looks like from the footpath.

2. A second café 300 metres from the first

Mr. Summit opened a second café at 34 Fawkner Street, about 300 metres from the first. On purpose. Both shops run the same $10 coffee and toastie deal. A sign in the window counts more than half a million coffees sold since 2022.

Most owners would worry about splitting their own customers. Two shops a short walk apart make the brand feel bigger, not diluted. More locations close together means you keep running into them.

3. Local collaborations instead of competition

They've got a run club with Conditn, the fitness place down the road. They also do sandwich and drink collabs with other small Melbourne businesses. Instead of fighting for the same customers, they share them.

Each collab puts Mr. Summit in front of another business's regulars, and gives both sides something to post.

4. A café community you can see on social media

Staff are in their videos, and so are the owners. When they hit an anniversary, they celebrate it with their regulars, not just with discount codes. The owners said it themselves: the goal was to create a community from day one.

Big credit to @ctrlco, who run their socials. The account shows the people behind the counter, so the café feels familiar before your first visit. Recognising regulars works in person too: it's one of the ideas in our article on why café loyalty cards don't build loyalty.

What other Melbourne cafés can learn from Mr. Summit

• Pick one colour and use it everywhere. Cups, signage, furniture, your videos. A customer should recognise you from a cup in someone else's hand.
• Give your menu a voice. Names that fit your brand are cheap to change and easy to remember.
• Partner with a business nearby. Look for one with the same customers but a different product: a gym, a bakery, a producer. Do one thing together and both post about it.
• Put your team on camera. People come back to places where they know a face. Social media is the easiest place to start.
• Celebrate milestones with your regulars. An anniversary is a reason to invite people in, not just a post.

Watch the episode

The episode is on our Instagram, @aki.media.au, posted as a collab with @mrsummitcafe and @mrsummit.fawkner. You can see more of our work with Melbourne venues on our portfolio.

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