Building our Foundation on Past Wisdom and Strong Partnerships
I'm excited to share the latest progress to our renovations at the coffeehouse and our plans to grow our team in the second half of the year! It's hard to believe we have 11-plus weeks of summer left, and in that time we plan to finish our renovation and move toward our soft opening! Many moving parts are all coming together, and I am very thankful for the partnerships we have formed along our journey thus far! 😊
Our progress update for July!
Highlights for July included finishing a detailed floor plan, which will put us in a position to finish the rough-in for electrical, plumbing, and interior construction in August/early September.
We also continued with the restoration of the entrance.
I did a little research on our building, and it turns out that the land for the entire town of Barronett, WI was purchased in 1900 by J.C. Jensen. Mr. Jensen built our store and sold it to Matt Arnes, who established the Matt Arnes Store & Post Office. In those early days, the locals would trade for the comforting essentials, incuding coffee, sugar, and other items. For bigger purchases, Matt Arnes would extend credit, offering a helping hand to those who were carving out their dreams, one acre at a time. Fast forward to the present day, and we are on the brink of reviving the practice of trading for the comforting essentials of coffee and building community😊while our patrons pursue their dreams. Only today the context of the community will encompass not only the local residents but also the travelers passing through daily, and will extend beyond the town’s geographical boundaries to neighboring towns near and far.
As we move into August, our focus will shift toward beginning the search for exceptional partners to join our journey.
If you know someone who is passionate about coffee, values community, and strives to make a meaningful impact, we encourage you to refer them our way! We will also begin our search for a store manager and roastery manager. We are looking for partners, not employees. 😊
Why partners, not employees…
At Bear Lake Coffee Co., we believe building a genuine partnership with employees requires transparency, fairness, and commitment to their well-being and growth within the organization. Looking back over my career, the best teams I have had the privilege to be a part of were never defined by the credentials of their members. They thrived on trust and a love for their work; they embraced the diversity brought by each member and worked tirelessly to uplift each other and the organization. Steve Jobs once said, “Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do.”
If you've made it this far in the blog, thank you for reading and supporting us. Together, we are building a community that celebrates great coffee, meaningful connections, and the simple joys of life. This past month has reminded me to embrace the wisdom of the past: that we are not islands and that it takes the right partners to create something truly special. In life, it is the journey with the right partners that truly matters. I can't wait to share our progress in August with all of you!
Warm regards,
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