476: Founder Friday! The Story of Story Coffee w/ Don Niemyer of Story Coffee Co.

Each one of our shops tell many stories. The story of our own arrival as owners, the story of the coffee and the efforts it has taken to get to a finished product, the story of our community and customers and the parts they play in shaping their world and shop itself. A coffee shop is at once a reflection of the people and a light that guides us to the future. Today we are going to hear the story of one such shop, whose owners have had quite an adventure as writers of and participants in their coffee shop story.

Don Niemyer is the co-owner with his wife, Carissa, of Story Coffee Company in Colorado Springs, Colorado.  

Today you’ll hear how Don and his wife, along with their two daughters, moved into a 99 square foot Volkswagen Rialta and lived in it for 4 years, traveling the nation visiting coffee shops and getting insights and inspiration for their dream of opening something that would be compelling and elegant, yet simple and with minimal debt. In 2015 they built and opened a Tiny House Coffee shop where customers are served inside as opposed to only at a walk up window and to this day it’s the only one in the world that they are aware of.  

Working with Robin Pasley of Pasley Commercial Interiors, they created a design that was named “Most Beautiful Coffee Shop in Colorado” by Architectural Digest Magazine and has been featured in books such as “101 Things to Do in Colorado Springs before you Die”. 

Story Coffee has been featured in other national magazines such as Fresh Cup and Barista Magazine, and Don has written for Barista Magazine, detailing their adventures around the nation in a series called The Rialta Coffee Tour which is still available at BMAG online.  

Don and Carissa are constantly chasing the idea and practice of simplicity, and today we’ll talk about how they work that principle into their business, and into their lives.

In this conversation we cover:

• How Don go into coffee and the adventure of started a coffee shop
• Why hope and belief in a better future are essential 
• Practical skills and learning from industry mentors 
• How simplicity and focus can set a coffee shop apart in the market and allow for consistent experiences
• Values provide a guiding light for decision-making and saying yes or no to opportunities.
• Opening a second location and how it aligned with their values and the story they wanted to tell 
• Empowering and resourcing people to fulfill their dreams and responsibilities
• Being part of a community, like the Key Holders Coaching Group, provides valuable feedback and support.
• Why cultivating a mindset of curiosity helps in simplifying and aligning with values

Enjoy!

Links:

https://www.storycoffeecompany.com/

https://www.facebook.com/storycoffeecompany/

@storycoffeecompany

 

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• 070 : Founder Friday w/ Kristian Hedborg, Alkemisten Kaffeebar, Gothenburg, Sweden
• 380 : Founder Friday! w/ Cary and Cindy Arsaga of Arsaga’s Coffee Roasters
• Simplicity is the MVP of the Cafe (blog)
• 224 : Essentialism: Focusing on what truly Matters w/ Greg McKeown

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