One or two cappuccinos - at Rue Saint Viateur

This Sunday I have been trying out two coffee shops with outdoor gardens at Rue Saint Viateur, an area in which many artists, intellectuals and other folks hang about. The presence of two shops with similar concpets appears to increase the attraction. The cappuccinos are sold in rather small size, encouraging people to go from one place to the other. The prices for a cappuccino are the same at the two places, and the cups in which the coffee is served are identical: terracotta brown. The manières in making the coffee are also similar. However, at the first place, today there were two "cool guys" with moustaches preparing the coffee, whereas at the other place there were a somewhat older man and a woman who prepared the drinks. The first place had better precision and timing, whereas in the second place the coffee taste was more distinct. I liked both.

Somebody told me that this is exactly the way the market works: similar businesses tend to gather beacuse they attract the same audience. But what about diversity in a system? If something is missing, is there a market for this as well? A bit further away in the same area, there were two shops with another strategy: different products, similar names: D 'un sport à l'autre (From one sport to the another) and D'une glace à l'autre (From one icecream to the other). I bought a volley ball in the sports shop. So, approaching the fall, I hope to be able to play with it.