Serving People Serving Coffee Since 2005
Issue link: http://baristamagazine.epubxp.com/i/686001
75 www.baristamagazine.com In anticipation of the April opening of Royal Drummer in the city's Ballard neighborhood, Neil coordinated a pop-up coffee cart outside the construction site of the upcoming café. Inspired by the successful pre-opening pop-ups of now-established companies like Sightglass Coffee and Analog Coffee, Neil says, "It wasn't about trying to make a ton of money. It was more important to us to meet the neighbors and learn our market. It also enabled us to hire the team we wanted early on and make sure everyone was comfortable with our product and equipment." Other coffee professionals echo Neil's interest in the possibilities pop-ups afford in terms of community and customer engagement. When asked what made their pop-ups successful, almost every respondent cited community connections, newfound familiarity with a city's food culture, and/or the opportunity to make specialty coffee accessible to customers as major markers of success. Lindsey and Will contend that mobility creates a new realm of possibilities for specialty coffee, but also for other forms of small business development. "Pop-ups open people's minds to what coffee can be," says Lindsey. "Seeing coffee interact with other aspects of life—whether it be art galleries, outdoor festivals, fl ower shops, or some other unexpected place—makes it possible for multiple businesses within a community to share mutual passions for experimental, personal, and inclusive concepts." Recounting his own experience, Will agrees. "Pop-ups drastically changed coffee culture in my town," he says. "Through setting up a brew bar at events around town, I could share a coffee experience with thousands of people over the course of years, and now a large percentage of Greenville is familiar with and seek out specialty coffee. In turn, this helps any brick-and-mortar in the area." Though the retailers we talked to for this story passionately argued that pop-ups provide ideal conditions for infl uencing coffee culture, few said they'd be willing to leave the physical shop life and return to pop-up mode knowing what they know now. "Having done both a pop-up and brick-and-mortar, I wouldn't go back to exclusively running a pop-up," says Lindsey. "They're a great way into coffee, but I don't think they're sustainable as a long-term business." Others expressed concern about the fi nancial viability of pop-ups and the ability to manage high volume. "At the end of the day, a pop- up will take a lot of work in order to perform on a high level and with high volume," says Jared. "It's not enough to just say, 'I can make good coffee, so I'll start a pop-up.'" While those we spoke to say they saw their return on investment in social or cultural capital, no one reported making signifi cant fi nancial gains. In fact, no one we spoke to even mentioned making money as one of the motivating impulses for their pop-up. "Our model is focused on cultivating a local presence," says Tanner. "If it was all about money, we'd design a totally different business." Despite their reservations, few coffee professionals are willing to resign pop-ups to the annals of specialty-coffee history. They argue that adjudicating the future of pop-ups is not as simple as devising a pros and cons list. "I think pop-ups will always have a place, and they should," says Jared. "Anyone furthering specialty coffee out of love for it deserves to stay in business."