Happy New Year, everyone!
We hope 2014 is as eventful and exciting as 2013.
In 2013, we moved from Texas to Kentucky. We wrapped bandanas around our heads then sanitized, scrubbed, degreased, and cleaned our new little space. Our family and friends helped design, stage, paint, construct, and everything else they could do (in between) to make sure our dream came true.
We opened up shop on July 1st and then proceeded to hire a staff that turned out to be a group of rockstars. We made it to some events and acted ridiculous. We lost a window. We bought a new window. We made new friends and extended our family circle as a community embraced us. Our awesome city made some headlines - because of its kindness and its love. And, we slung some coffee. A lot of coffee.
We couldn’t have asked for a better year, but now we look to 2014! Not so much in terms of resolutions, rather in terms of looking ahead.
Coffee Education and Classes!
One of our goals for the year is to talk more coffee. To do this, we want to have some coffee educational classes and start a “coffee club.” This should afford us some outlets to showcase roasters, share some information about coffee regions and farms, and dive into the sourcing side of the industry, all the while sipping on our elixir.
Coffee Brewing
We also want to highlight some different brewing processes, so we’ll be adding some things to our drink line-up. You could possibly see some coffee from a chemex, an aeropress, and maybe there will be some Kyoto-style iced coffee making its way into our quaint shop.
Retail
We know we don’t have the largest retail line-up around; therefore, we’ll be spending some time at the beginning of the year to bulk up our offerings. Would love to hear your ideas, but here’s what we got running through our heads:
- Some headgear
- Shirts and Hoodies
- Mugs, Tumblers, and Mason Jars
- Coffee Brewing options and grinders
- Additional tea and some fun tea merchandise
Expansion
This is probably one of the most frequent questions we get from people. We’ll just say we are definitely considering it and researching the possibility.
Know that if and when we expand, we commit we will continue to fulfill each line of our mission. We will only expand, if we can do that every day.
2014 Note
One final note as we look ahead to the rest of 2014, we will strive to support you. You’ve been so inviting and loving to the “A Cup of Common Wealth” team.
When we think back on 2013, we can list so many times you have supported us through understanding, through gifts, through food, through love, and through life.
We hope that you realize how supportive you all have been…and to remind you, here are a few things you’ve done for us:
- When we opened up late (twice), instead of being upset you checked on us to make sure we were okay and weren't working too hard; then scolded us for our 16 hour work days.
- You didn’t judge us when you found out we took mini-breaks and napped in the kitchen from time to time.
- You turned our Pay-It-Forward board into this loveable, growing member of our family. We thought it would be a sheet of butcher paper that hung from our wall.
- You put up corkboard to help support all of the coffee sleeves searching for a spot on the Pay-It-Forward board.
- You built us a condiment bar that doubled as a retail unit.
- You brought in food, more food, and more food, and more food.
- You’ve endured our atrophying chairs.
- You’ve bought us a chair
- You’ve shared your memories with us.
- You checked in on all of us, when we decided to get a new window. So. Much. Love.
- You’ve accepted us for who we are and have never questioned it.
So, in 2014 it’s all about support.
We’ll high-five you when it feels right and when it feels weird; we’ll hug you whenever you want it; we’ll make you as much coffee as you can handle; we’ll rap to Jay-Z when we’re atop buckets; we’ll sing in the shop whenever we work up the courage; we’ll make up as many nicknames as we can; we’ll keep asking you to draw in books; we’ll make up games and draw on chalkboards for your entertainment; we’ll facilitate some random acts of kindness via java jackets, corkboards, and markers; and, we’ll hope we support you as much as all of you have supported us.
Cheers!
