Laura: COVID-19 Changes Everything for a Small Coffee Shop

Laura and her husband loved coffee. In fact they loved coffee so much, they visited almost every coffee shop in New York City. But they were getting tired of traveling from their home in New Jersey all the way across the Hudson river just for a good cup of joe. The solution? They decided to open their own coffee shop. 

They chose Newark because of its proximity to the city, and large university and residential population. 

In 2016, they opened Black Swan Espresso. They hired a top coffee roaster and sold pieces by local artists. The coffee shop became popular with locals, including the employees of Audible and Prudential, which had offices in the area. Senator Cory Booker even stopped in on occasion. 

In March 2020, as news of COVID-19 began to spread, Laura noticed there was less foot traffic in the shop. By mid-March it was completely empty. Newark was one of the places hit first and hardest by the virus. Soon Black Swan Espresso had to close its doors. 

“We reopened for pick up,” Laura said. “Then we had to pivot and start baking our own food in the shop since we couldn’t get deliveries from New York.”

Like many businesses, Laura has made efforts to transition her business online. Black Swan Espresso sells their baked goods, coffee, and art on their website. But even with loyal residential customers, the shop still lost a lot of revenue from big companies and the university when they went remote. 

“Because we’re small, we don’t have as large an overhead as other businesses, but we were hard hit by this pandemic,” Laura said. “We were surviving off our revenue and now might have to dig into the reserves.”

One of the hardest parts of shutting down was that Laura had to cut the hours of her eight employees. Despite her lost revenue, she was determined not to furlough or lay anyone off. 

“The employees are the ones I’m really worried about,” Laura said.  “They’re so young and so talented. They’ve built the coffee shop to what it is today.”

Laura and her employees each received a $500 grant from SaverLife and Prudential. 

“Saverlife came in at a good time to help people pay their bills and pay their rent,” Laura said. “I educated the staff and told them who could apply.” 

Laura’s employees mostly used the grants to pay their bills including cell phones, rent, and electricity. Laura put her own grant straight back into the business. 

Despite the difficulties the business has faced, Laura sees a bright future for Black Swan Espresso, and has plans to expand. She envisions the shop as a space for high quality coffee, community building, and career building for her employees. 

“We didn’t know one of our employees was a skilled baker. Now he’s making our treats!” Laura said. “It’s a matter of providing the opportunities for people so they can grow.”