We recently connected with Liset Adkins and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Liset, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.

I never thought I would be a business owner. In fact, I didn’t believe that was an option for me. As a first generation American, my duty was to go to college, get a degree, and then get a secure job in my field. I did go to college and got a teaching degree, but did not pursue teaching after graduation. Many years later when my husband suggested that we open a business, I immediately said no. It was not secure, we had no experience and it sounded way too risky. Little by little my husband helped me see this could be a reality for us.

March of 2021 was when we decided to open a coffee shop. I love coffee, and my husband has always wanted a business owner so we thought it made sense. We talked to a few people and they encouraged us to go for it. We truly had no idea what we were getting into, and some might think it was reckless. Over all, what we felt truly passionate about was creating a space for the community where people could meet, build new friendships, and enjoy good quality coffee. We think that everybody deserves to have the option of good coffee without having to leave their neighborhood, and we also wanted people who have felt too intimidated by “coffee shop culture” to feel comfortable walking into our shop. Thinking about those things is what kept me motivated during the process of making it all happen. When permits, licenses, and hiring contractors felt daunting and almost impossible, remembering the good that could come out of our shop is what kept me going.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I was born and raised in Chicago. My parents are both immigrants from Guatemala. Coffee has ALWAYS been a part of our culture. Even when I was too young to drink it or really appreciate it, I knew it was there and I would some day drink it. The name of our business, Café Calidá, is inspired by my Guatemalan roots. In Spanish, calidad means quality. Guatemalans use calidá (the d is dropped) to refer to something that is cool, awesome, and overall good. Since our overall desire was to bring good coffee to a deserving community, we thought it was the perfect name for us!

We just celebrated our two year anniversary and something that I am incredibly proud of is having our very own custom blend available to our customers. We partnered with paralelo14coffee to come up with our Mezcla Chapina. They are amazing at what they do, and always emphasize paying coffee farmers above fair trade. It is truly an honor to partner with them and offer our customers something special. We serve this blend in house daily, and we also sell 12oz bags of beans for customers who would rather brew it themselves at home. We are working on being able to ship out soon so that it could be available to our friends and family who do not live near us, and to anyone who appreciates GOOD coffee and understands the importance of paying coffee farmers above fair trade!

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

We have been so lucky to have incredible customers that tell others about us. Whether its a review, a social media post, or word of mouth, it has been so cool to see all the different people that come to our shop. I also have to give so much credit to my husband who spends the most time at our business. Anton sees each customer as more than a transaction or sale, he treats each person with kindness and makes it his mission to make each drink to the best of his ability. We do not usually partake in social media trends and we do not pay influencers to post about us because we want out growth to be organic and authentic.

Can you tell us the story behind how you met your business partner?

My business partner is my wonderful husband of 9.5 years, Anton Adkins. My business would not be what it is without him for many reasons! He is a visionary and he can do whatever he sets his mind to do. It has been amazing to see his relationships with our customers flourish. Like myself, Anton was also born and raised in Chicago. Apart from running the business together, we also have three young children.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cafecalida/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cafe.calida/
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/caf%C3%A9-calid%C3%A1-chicago-4
• Other: https://www.google.com/search?q=cafe+calida&rlz=1C1JZAP_enUS923US923&oq=cafe+calida&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUqDwgAECMYJxjjAhiABBiKBTIPCAAQIxgnGOMCGIAEGIoFMhUIARAuGCcYrwEYxwEYgAQYigUYjgUyCAgCEAAYFhgeMggIAxAAGBYYHjIICAQQABgWGB4yCAgFEAAYFhgeMggIBhAAGBYYHjIICAcQABgWGB4yCAgIEAAYFhgeMggICRAAGBYYHtIBCTUwMzdqMGoxNagCALACAA&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

Image Credits
JBG Photography Vanessa Vee Photography Actually Creative LLC