What is your mission, vision and/or values? Our mission at its base has always been to provide high quality coffee from friendly baristas in a clean environment 24/7/365. From there, Bennu has really evolved to have several more core values that spring from what the owners bring, what the team brings, and what the community has asked for. As an owner, Steve came to Bennu with a long history in the Austin coffee scene both as a barista and as an owner. For him it was very important that coffee = community. For Stephanie, she brought a background in social work and a need for purpose in the business. This combination resulted in a coffee shop that strives to be more than just a business, but rather an integral part of the community it is in, a space that feels like home to the staff and customers alike and that gives back rather than just existing to make a profit. This means so many things: from a commitment to fair trade coffee and going local with almost all of our vendor partnerships, to keeping prices extremely low for our customers, to providing health insurance to our employees in spite of being small enough that it isn't a requirement for us, to giving back to our community through donations and even volunteering as a team throughout the years. A coffee shop is like a living thing though and sometimes it surprises you by what it becomes! While we never set out to make a space that was primarily a work/study space, that is quickly what our community kind of decided we were and so we embraced that part of our brand identity. This has guided us as we've grown. For instance, we instituted a policy early on that we would never have events of any kind. That way our customers knew what they could expect at Bennu 24/7 whether that means a place to study or read a good book or somewhere relaxing to meet for business or pleasure. Finally, we give the managers of each of our three locations a lot of ownership in how they run their locations. We find that each location has a different customer base/a unique community and the team on the ground knows their community the best. We've been really fortunate to have wonderful staff over the years who know how to nurture just the right qualities in each specific location to make it the best for its specific customer base. While we started out with notions of what Bennu would be, we have held those loosely while still keeping our values as our foundation and we are really proud of what Bennu has evolved into under the influence of those values, each team member over the years who has poured into it, and our community who has both grown us and loved us.
The number one thing that stands out about us is likely that we were truly 24/7/365. Prior to COVID, we NEVER closed. Also, because we want to foster community, all our locations are pretty large with lots of seating.
How did you get to where you are today? Tell me about how your shop started and what has brought you to where you are today.
Bennu Coffee Highland was born into a pandemic but just like our namesake, it has risen from the ashes! We began the process of this location back in 2018 which is crazy since we opened in 2020. This is our first location that is in a new build and that we've had the opportunity to design and build from the ground up. For Bennu Coffee Highland, we knew we wanted to go HUGE. Our other two locations were often at capacity pre-pandemic and Highland is in the same development as ACC's main campus as well as the new home to KLRU. We knew the potential was there to be a very busy shop, so we went for it, making this location our biggest by close to 1000 sq ft with tons of seating options and double the equipment. This was also our first location to be afforded a sizable budget. This time around we were able to hire an incredible design team and with the help of the collective knowledge of our barista team, we built our dream coffee shop. Highland has it all from the old-world library vibe that's always been in our hearts to outlets literally EVERYWHERE. From communal seating to a cozy wingback - we have something for everyone with the idea of maximizing the seating space as much as possible. We even have a secret door hidden in a bookshelf and color changing custom art by Ryan Runcie. Opening in the summer of 2020 was not for the faint of heart and the first 12-18 months we just had to squeeze our eyes shut and leap and then just keep falling for that entire time. It was tense but by November of 2021, we were able to expand our hours here to 24/7/365 and that turned everything around. Highland's growth exploded and it's finally reaching the potential we knew was there.
What makes your shop unique?
Highland is a very large coffee shop with lots of hidden treasures such as a secret door to the back of house and a very cool color changing piece of art by artist Ryan Runcie. Building it from the ground up allowed us to build outlets into, well, everything! And people seem to really love the little library nook area to the right when you first walk in.
Oh! Highland also seems to be haunted by a harmless ghost who has become sort of the mascot of that location. Just as with the other two locations, Highland's community is making their mark on the space - in this case by leaving notes for each other in the slats in our walls on the backs of their internet codes. We love it when a space becomes more than we ever imagined for it, and we see the personality of its community coming through.
What is your shop best for?
Study Space, Client Meetings, Day Dates, Self-care, quiet space for journaling etc., Patio Hangouts, Group Meetup’s, Dog Approved
Answers provided by Stephanie Williams, Co-Owner of Bennu Coffee
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