Since its been nearly four weeks since I started drafting this post and because I really should be packing for my trip to San Francisco but I’d rather procrastinate, its the perfect time to finish up and share!
Aside from the nitty gritty of business plan writing, site selection has been and continues to be one of our major focuses…and a true test of our patience. After almost 5 months of searching, we found what we thought to be our spot — everything about it seemed perfect. We loved the neighborhood and the building had just the character we have been talking and dreaming about. But right before the holidays and as we were nearing final lease negotiations with the building owner, we received surprising news that the owner had leased the building to someone else. Ouch! After the shock, disappointment, and tears (okay, maybe that was just me) passed, we started searching listings again and reached back out to real estate agents. After the holidays, we began pursuing a building in our immediate neighborhood, which is mostly residential. We have been able to get lots of support from our neighbors but have definitely hit some roadblocks along the way. Hopeful things will work out but a bit more careful this time around, we’re letting the property hunting continue on.
Its been easy to let the pitfalls of starting up a business dampen our moods but getting more involved with the coffee community here and remembering why and what we hoped to build here with specialty coffee and quality baked breads keeps us motivated! So we were thrilled to be one of the sponsors for New Orleans inaugural Thursday Night Throwdown (TNT) latte art competition held at Spitfire Coffee in the French Quarter in January. Check out the new New Orleans Barista Social Club website for more details and upcoming events.
