We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Jennifer Brogee. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Jennifer below.
Jennifer, we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.
When I was a kid I loved the idea of solving problems. My favorite books were Nancy Drew mysteries. My dad would bring home a yellow spine hard cover book every once in a while from the hardware store. I would try to make the books last as long as possible by only reading one chapter a night. I decided that I wanted to be Nancy Drew and so I invented my own detective agency. Using markers and construction paper, I created hand-drawn brochures including my logo – a sunshine or a rainbow? something easy to draw – and delivered them to my neighbors’ mailboxes. I didn’t get a call back but my optimism on being able to solve problems for peop[e stayed.
I learned to love others from God, my parents, and my church. I wanted to share the love that I had been given, yet in a concrete, physical form. That’s why, as a mom of two toddlers and still working a full-time job as a software developer, I convinced three others (my husband and my parents) to join me in building a coffee shop – the only coffee shop in the area – in downtown Lima, Ohio in 2003. It was a very optimistic dream. Even the SBA counselor told me it was a bad idea because of the deteriorating economics of the downtown. However, I was stubborn enough to push past all the foreboding warnings and the coffee shop was born.
I realized over time that it was too much too soon. We had to educate a lot of people on what a cappuccino was. We lost a lot of money. However, we persisted and the coffee shop is still there today. Instead of standing alone, it is joined by more than three other independent coffee shops in the downtown area. Without the belief that I am serving others, without prayer, without dedicated employees, and without the support of my family and friends, this coffee shop would not still be there. I thank God every day for the support system that allows our coffee shop to persist and thrive.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
We are a woman owned coffee and coworking company that believes love belongs in business. We provide premium coffee, subscription boxes, custom designed gift boxes, and coworking space. It might sound like a strange combination, but our mission is to build connections between people through coffee, gifts, food, and welcoming spaces.
Our current goals are to increase our gift box footprint online because we ship all over the US and Canada, and to expand our coworking center by remodeling the second floor of our building. Built in 1917, the second floor has over 6000 square feet of space and we don’t think it’s been used since the 1980s. Once finished it will be a beautiful space that will encourage relationship building and inspire our members.
We need to raise $200,000 to finish the remodel of the second floor and we expect a ROI within 2 years. We are exploring funding options and are considering a community stock issue.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
The three most important qualities: * a desire to truly serve your customers with your unique skills and assets
* flexibility and persistence – even when it doesn’t make sense
* invest in your team to bring out their best
How?
Ask your team for help.
Read your mission statement often.
Review your financial statements frequently to stay on track.
Hire good people; let people go when they aren’t advancing the mission.
Design the job around your people.
One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?
I am looking for people who want to invest in our vision. Our five year vision is to build a coworking+coffee model that can be shared with small businesses across the US. We want to empower small business owners by giving them another stream of revenue that fits with their existing model. We think we can help coffee shop, restaurant, and building owners become more financial sustainable by serving their community through coworking spaces. Instead of setting up a franchise model, we will offer the technology and expertise in getting going and they will only pay for the help that they need from us.
To connect – contact us here: https://www.thecoworkingcenter.com/pages/partnerwithus
Contact Info:
- Website: https://meetingplaceonmarket.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/meetingplaceonmarket/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/meetingplaceonmarket
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-meeting-place-on-market/
