Change

Over time things change. 

Sixteen years ago, a teenage punk was dreaming about opening a coffee shop, a restaurant, or a nightclub. 

Twelve years ago, a teenage punk turned college student committed to opening a small coffee house, with 2-3 baristas (at most) working alongside him, in his hometown or in the suburbs of Chicago. 

Eight years ago, a college student turned young adult and a close friend debated on opening a coffeehouse in Louisville, Detroit, Chicago, or somewhere in Southwest Michigan. 

Five years ago, a young adult turned man decided he had found the perfect business partner (another close friend) and was reimagining his original coffee pub dream. 

Eighteen months ago, these two ridiculous men finally decided on Lexington, KY to open up a coffee shop.  One came up with the name, the other came up with the mission, and together they helped create a coffeehouse, on the shoulders of a community. 

Salvador and Chris, roughly 5 months before the shop opened its friendly, bright blue door.

Four months ago, one of the men left the company to chase a dream of his own.  And, dream chasing is oh so fun.  The team wishes him well every step he takes!

Two months ago, the once teenage punk had to head to a universe foreign to A Cup of Common Wealth, but one that made the shop possible. He entrusted a little dream to a very solid group of baristas who understood the mission, while he worked with them from afar.

Things change a lot. 

A Cup of Common Wealth in its short existence has changed so much and continues to adapt and evolve.  It thrives because, at its core, it’s based off of a mission: “Embrace community.  Serve others.  Create culture.”  The mission is the only constant at the shop. 

At the helm: Joe, Katie, Jeff, and Alex lead the coffee shop’s day-to-day operations, the fun marketing, and the behind-the-scenes purchasing.  They’ve found a way to pump energy and excitement through a bright blue door throughout some enormous changes this summer. 

It’s bigger than what was originally thought. 

Lexington has taken the shop in as its own and guides it.  While the team plays around behind the bar: pulling shots, steaming milk, washing dishes, and marking each other with sharpies; it is the community that breathes life into the shop. 

The community made an herb so special and vibrant.  The community (particularly Dusty) made trivia the most important thing in the world on Wednesday nights.  The community has made coffee sleeves mean more than just something to keep our hands from burning.  The community has accepted another shade of blue.  The community has embraced another coffee shop into their world.

Joe (Shop Manager) high-fiving the infamous, Basil!

Lexington has let the shop serve them as best as it could and with some of the craziest cats around.  And, because of the crazy there have been some amazing characters working as baristas through the past eighteen months: always cool Dustin, effervescent Basil, knows-how-to-use-a-whisk Marty, calm and collected Joe, gritty Lizzie, crazy-fun Trotsky, centered Delia, quirky Megan, sassy and motherly Ashley, steady Jeff, sweet-as-a-button Madelyn, street-credified Katie, tough as nails Carrie, live-every-moment Alex, insanely talented Zach, kind-hearted Hannah, classy and good-hearted Blake, sarcastically witty Bonnie, spunky Allison, go with the flow Evan, regal-bearded Zach, energetic Shivani, high-fiving Chris, and booming laugh Salvador.  And with each character, they’ve brought something special, some new energy, some new life.  They each have been a piece of the fabric of this uniquely, elaborate tapestry.

Pictured Left to Right (Top): Jeff, Joe, Katie, Evan 

Pictured Left to Right (Bottom): Bonnie, Allison, Zach, Blake, Alex

As each person leaves, they leave a mark that is special.  A lasting legacy.  And, each legacy lends itself to the mission and to what we strive to be every day.

Everything changes as everything stays the same.  A Cup of Common Wealth.  

Thank you, Lexington!

GUEST BLOGGER TIME

Today we have a guest blogger, our very own - Jeff Poling.  We figured we'll mix in guest blogs from time to time as we get back into our own blogging bell-bottomed pants and once again pretend we know all about this stuff!  

So, without further ado...Jeff Poling has been with us for over a year and from the beginning "wow"ed customers with his latte art skills and made baristas smile with his punnerific (is that a word?) personality.  For this blog, he wanted to catch our customers up on the happenings around the shop and the gratitude the team shares.

As I write this, my computer sits on my lap and I look down to see coffee stains on my shorts. My hands are numb and a bit callous from handling hot portafilters for something like 12 hours – just the way I like it. I believe that work is glorious, I believe that work has dignity, and I really, really enjoy what I get to do every day.

Most of that is because of you – the Lexington community.

When you walk in our wide-open door, you’ll see six words painted on the wall (at this point they’re covered in part by our massive condiment bar.) This is what they are:

Embrace community. Serve others. Create culture.

A little over a year ago, Sal and Chris opened the door to the shop with this in mind. This is the mission statement – this is the number one reason why we exist. As you all well know, they spent the next few months working tirelessly (well, they tired, but they worked anyway) at this very thing. While they were at it, they brewed hundreds of air pots of coffee, made loads of pour-overs, pulled countless shots of espresso and steamed gallons upon gallons of milk and did everything they could to serve the best coffee available…

…but the main thing was still the main thing.

It was still all about the community.

I’ll never forget that this was the most unique thing about coming to work here – I felt like I was reaping a lot of what Sal and Chris sowed – friendship. All you regulars who were there from the start welcomed all the new baristas with open arms. You didn’t just limit your conversations to be with Sal and Chris, and I’ve come to appreciate that even more as things have changed so much over the last few months.

As most of you know, but some of you may not – Chris got his dream job, and he’s now based out of Denver, Colorado. He’s doing something he’s always wanted to do, and we couldn’t be happier. He still loves Lexington and he loves all of you – but man, does he love his work, and we’re glad for that.

And Salvador has really taken on the consulting end of the business. There’s a little section on our website that will tell you more about it, but basically here’s the deal: Salvador is a business mastermind, and one of his goals (and of the company) has been that we get to share all the knowledge we know – whether it’s just about coffee or if it’s a lot more practical than that. So he’s still with us, but he’s helping other people open their own coffee shops in their own parts of the world and spread the same love and joy that we have here.

It’s for that reason that you’ve seen a lot of new faces, even in the last few months. Some things have changed around here, but some things haven’t.

See, we still have the same six words on our wall:

Embrace community. Serve others. Create culture.

That’s still our goal. It’s still something we strive for every day, even if we struggle with it at times. It’s still the reason we exist, and it’s still our number one priority – we strive to create all kinds of culture: from really great coffee to really awful puns; we strive to embrace every aspect of our community, from little kids who like hot chocolate and whipped cream to college students who only ever drink IVLs (who can blame you?) to the working-class 9-to-5ers who bring in their mugs faithfully for a $1 refill of our beloved coffee; and we strive to serve others in every possible way, from serving you a drink to being a resource for directions around town to taking pictures of you and your friends upon request.

Lexington, you’re incredible – every last one of you. We don’t see you just as customers, but as friends, and that’s how we want you to feel every time you walk in and every time you walk out and every time you see us outside of the shop at the grocery store or our favorite restaurants. We’re fortunate in that we have the best customers in the world, but you’re more than just customers – you’re friends, and we hope you feel welcomed and valued at every single turn.

And Lexington, thank you. Thank you for making it a joy to get up and get in here at 5:30 in the morning to start the coffee-slinging process and enjoy every second of it until late at night. Thank you for all the smiles, all the high-fives, all the hellos, and all the crazy songs you sing with us. Thank you for bearing with us as we adjust to a new organizational structure and things like training and operations, marketing, and purchasing are taken over by relative rookies.

Thank you for paying it forward both to your friends but also to complete strangers. Thank you for sharing tables together and making our little space work.  Thank you for bedding in our new baristas and making friends with them. Thank you for trivia nights. Thank you for pop-up concerts in the park. Thank you for being a part of your community. Thank you for going to Farmer’s Market on Saturday mornings (and sometimes bringing us blueberries and other yummy stuff – we love it!) Thank you for sharing your joys and your struggles with us. We know it can be harder when you have less of a chance of seeing the same two people every time you come in, but you guys still befriend us and you make our job a lot of fun, so thank you.

A whole lot can change over the course of a year, and a whole lot has. But the hope is that the love and the passion grows with time and with the more people we get on both sides of the bar. Thanks for your contribution to all of it.

We love you, Lexington. 

Meet Joe and Basil!

*Photo by Bradley Quinn Photography

The Man of Many Names!

Joe is originally from Danville, Kentucky, but has called Lexington home for the past 1,460 days – give or take 50 days. Already with a background (and love) in wine & beer, plus blessed with a preternatural palate, Joe quickly found a passion for all things coffee.  

Joe loves making pour overs, while chatting about music, beer, and the happenings around the city. He also holds the distinction of:  "Barista with the Most Nicknames"  – Joebro, Rathbone, Joseph Joe, and SoProJoeBro, just to name a few.  And…you’ll find few others in the city with such a vast trivia knowledge.

He has been a part of the shop since the very first month and has been the Lead Barista since February.  Sometimes, you can find him practicing his ninja moves in the kitchen and his Mortal Kombat training behind the bar. 

The Herb!

One summer afternoon in July, Basil wandered into the shop looking for a cappuccino… and she hasn’t left since. 

Originally from Northeast Tennessee, her first job involved tedious work in a laboratory with a strict “no talking” rule.  Not surprisingly, Basil didn’t last long, and quickly found a niche in naming the days of the week, practicing her killer rap skills for anyone that will listen, and occasionally serving them coffee. 

Her superpower: talking to animals. 

Her weakness: Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s face. 

In Basil’s short career at the shop, she has had a meteoric rise from barista, to Lead Barista, to Coffee Bar Supervisor.  She hopes to continue this trend and become Barista Empress of the Galaxy within the next two years.

The Dynamic Duo!

You can catch these two crazy cats in the shop mixing it up with our coffee friends, training our staff to make some tasty drinks, tidying up the shop whenever they get the chance, keeping some ridiculous owners in line, and sometimes…they’re even out and about the town representing A Cup of Common Wealth at various events throughout Lexington.  

When you see them, give them a high-five while you talk cats, music, beverages, food, and science – you won’t regret it!