Tuesday, September 17, 2013
I love a good cup of coffee. Whenever I travel I always look for the local café’s and coffee roasters. I’ve been taught well by my friends. In Charlottetown this past summer, my husband and I took Madeline to see Anne of Green Gables (it was great, but not as great as our Anne!). The day we went happened to be a day that the Charlottetown Market was open and so off I went. It is a small market with many interesting booths. The coffee roaster is Brett Bunster (husband of Teresa Doyle for those who know her). He has been a coffee roaster for 25 years. His booth was small and had 3 hip, young adults (his son and 2 nieces) serving the coffee and the lineup was long. They only sell coffee. Brett was outside the booth with big bags of beans and was busily talking to people and filling orders. I joined the line behind about 15 other people (this is a Wed morning in mid August). It was really fun to watch Brett in action. He knows his coffee and loves it, and he has exceptional people skills. He manages to talk to every person and make a connection with them, and genuinely enjoys the whole process. It was very busy and the energy was great. I bought coffee for a few friends as gifts and of course got some for ourselves. Later in our vacation, my friends and I were having dinner with Teresa and Brett at their home in PEI. I had the opportunity to sit and talk to Brett about his business. I’ve been a self employed yoga teacher since 1996 and I always enjoy the opportunity to talk to people who are in similar situations and who live in a small town. We all benefit from each other’s inspiration and wisdom. At one point in the conversation Brett said to me “yup, it’s taken me 25 years but I have a really successful business.” I think about that statement often. Sometimes it takes a long time to grow something good. My own experience in my small business is that I have to expand and contract many times over the years because of changes like new trends, the economy, changing weather, the birth of my daughter etc. For me, being in business is like doing yoga. Paying attention, adjusting as I go, staying dedicated and trying to always be open to new opportunities and possibilities. I hope I’m as energetic and passionate as Brett is, when I reach the 25th year of self employment.
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