BREWED AWAKENINGS
"Where everyone knows your name"
When Richard and Nancy Marsceau launched Brewed Awakenings, a coffee shop located just across the street from Coe College in Cedar Rapids, they had a dream and a vision.
During a visit to Italy, they were impressed by the many pleasant little corner cafes that served as neighborhood gathering places. They later experienced some similar coffee bars in Breckenridge, Colorado. They began to yearn for a place like these in Cedar Rapids--where people could come together to talk and connect across generations, in a friendly, family-like atmosphere.
“It was never primarily about the money.” Says Marsceau. “People have trouble believing that. What drove me was the desire I have always had to do something for people and the community.”
In addition to being a coffee bistro owner, Richard has been a minister for 25 years, so bringing people together has always been a high priority in his life.
Richard is also a very smart, pragmatic individual. He quickly recognized that in order to realize his dream and create a viable
business, he needed to improve his grasp of several business disciplines. That’s when he called on SCORE.
Frank Torrens, a SCORE consultant and the former President and CEO of Cherry-Burrell in its high growth years helped Richard and his wife and business partner, Nancy, with the top level business advice –like helping them see that serving coffee alone is not the most profitable practice. John Fischer, the former General Manager of the Cedar Rapids Country Club, assisted with the finer points of food service and menu selections.
Perhaps one of the distinguishing characteristics driving this business’s success is that it is family endeavor. Nancy is the food expert. Son Josh is a self-taught master of the art of coffees and roasting - the “bean master” ensuring that “every cup is fresh.” Daughter Heather is the operations manager for their two businesses; Brewed Awakenings has recently expanded services into St. Luke's. And son Nate works the counter. “They bring a real passion to the business.” In addition, store manager, Meg Riney has enhanced the ordering process with delightful blackboard wall menus.
Together the Brewed Awakenings team follow a set of principles laid down in their employee manual and reinforced through team meetings intended to improve the business. This constant reinforcement of a strong sense of mission is a tool often associated with large corporations. At Brewed Awakenings the practice helps them keep the products and the atmosphere consistent and the quality uniformly high.
New coffee roasts of the highest caliber are always being pursued. All the food, from pastries to soups to sandwiches, is fresh. Never resting on their laurels, the team continues to seek new products and methods, always aiming to deliver the “best of the best.”
SCORE folks were helpful in continuously emphasizing this, it seems. “Our business has experienced double-digit growth since we began” Richard confides. Richard has built a business based on his passion for building communities and parlayed his experience in both people skills and food prep. From the time he was a route driver for Pepperidge Farm in Detroit, food service has been interesting to him – as has his desire to help people. Richard clearly values working hard and believes in staying involved as he described the grueling hours and demands of the first six months of the business. “The long hours were the biggest surprise.” But, they were offset by the learning experience they provided, he advised.
These seem to be key traits of any business that succeeds. Of course, and we think that Richard agrees, the odds are greatly improved through the assistance that SCORE provides at no cost to new businesses. Richard was smart enough to ask.
After four years of growth and success, Richard continues to call on SCORE any time he needs to understand another aspect of business. “They are truly great mentors. Thanks to their help, we are living our dream.”
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