Venture Concept (24A)

Opportunity

The Mount Coffeehouse is a venture that serves a few different purposes but ultimately is a welcoming, homey space where coffee lovers can come to study, hang out, or just come to enjoy quality coffee, or even a combination of all three experiences!

Who has need for The Mount Coffeehouse?

The idea for this coffeeshop stems from the need to support a nonprofit that my sister, Heather Ryan, cofounded with a few of her friends. Among the Christian community in Gainesville, there are numerous churches of varying denominations and multiple on campus ministries. However, when incoming freshman believers arrive at UF, all these different options can be pretty overwhelming. Sometimes, students end up not getting plugged into a Christ-centered community which can be spiritually detrimental. Personally, I know that being deeply involved in a local church and campus ministry has provided me great community and helped me have hope in my faith when circumstances have been challenging in the last two semesters.

All that context to say, my sister created The Mount Retreat, a 3-day summer retreat for incoming college freshmen. The weekend consists of teachings, worship, community building, scriptural study, and intentional breakout sessions with counselors and fellow classmates. Additionally, there will be a ministry fair where freshman will have the opportunity to speak with representatives from various local churches and ministries on campus.

In hearing about my sister’s dream, I started to wish there was way I could support The Mount. At the same time, a dream inside of me to run a coffee shop one day had begun to grow. One day, it all clicked that these two wonderful entities—one already in the works, and one to come—could be connected. At my church, Greenhouse, we actually have a ‘mission’s’ cafe called Arnold’s where all of the proceeds go to fund missionaries that we support across the globe. Since, The Mount is a nonprofit, funding it through a selling coffee could be a great opportunity.

Beyond this business to business reason, people also really love coffee, especially college students. Working at Starbucks on campus, I have seen the need that students have for coffee on many different levels. Coffee and or tea can be exactly what someone needs to wake up in the morning for class or to stay awake studying late into the night. Additionally, people need comfortable open spaces to talk, hang out, and get to know one another. Coffee shops provide an excellent environment for this.

The “window of opportunity” is largely dependent on WHEN I will have obtained the skills and experience necessary to run a coffee shop successfully on my or with the help of co managers. Knowing that, it will probably be a few hours, most likely post graduation that The Mount will be functioning. My window is also dependent on the success of the The Mount Retreat and how soon they will need funding outside of fundraising. However, I think there will always be a need for coffeeshops in Gainesville.

Innovation

Simply, my product/service, aka my innovation is a coffee shop. I aspire first to offer quality, craft coffee to all my customers, studiers and socializers alike. The Mount’s atmosphere will be a homey, lodge-like space. I want there to be lots of windows for the sunrise or sunset to be well seen from my coffeehouse. The Mount Coffeehouse will be located within walking distance from campus for the convenience of students.

Uniquely, my coffeehouse will be a space that operates on a elevated volume control system which means the higher the floor, the quieter it gets. The 1st level will operate like a normal cafe (people talking and meeting up) where the 2nd level will be a quieter, independent study space that creates a focused and productive space. This will resolve customers needs of coming to a coffeehouse where they can socialize collectively and or study productively.

Our main product will of course be coffee. We will offer a variety of roasts—light, medium, and dark—from a local roasting partner of mine, Ethos Coffee. We will offer hot and iced espresso and regular coffee drink. The Mount will also provide a collection of teas (also hot or iced) including black, white, green, and herbal teas. In regards to food, we will sell pastries and sweets like croissants, muffins, biscotti, and perhaps cupcakes. Ice cream is potentially also on the table for selling. We will have four sizes for drinks 6oz, 10oz, 16oz, and 24oz. Prices will vary on size and quality and demand of desired drink.

Venture Concept

The Mount Coffeehouse satisfies the need described above because, as a nonprofit, it will essentially function as a mission cafe to run the affairs and projects of The Mount Retreat. It will also serve as a safe haven for Christians, and students of other religions alike, a space to have spiritual conversations, hang out, and study productively, all the while enjoying good coffee that is ethically sourced.

I think customer will switch to The Mount because of the uniqueness of the elevated volume control systems. I am unaware of any other coffee shops in Gainesville having this design. I think if we obtain a location close to campus, the switch will be smoother because it will be more accessible to all students.

The Mount Coffeehouse will have a few competitors. It’s a blessing and somewhat of a curse that Gainesville has so many coffee shops. Pascal’s Coffeehouse, Patticakes, Karma Cream, Volta Coffee, Cymplify, and more are all well established coffee shops in Gainesville which will present The Mount with the challenge of differentiating itself and providing good tasting coffee and present the elevated volume control system floors in an appealing format.

Conclusion

There is a lot of work to be done, nevertheless, I am excited for the challenge and look forward to further developing how The Mount will not only support a good cause but make a name for itself as a safe haven for all kinds of students in the Gainesville area.