We recently connected with Lauren Vaxmonsky and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Lauren thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you talk to us about your team building process? How did you recruit and train your team and knowing what you know now would you have done anything differently?

When we first opened our coffee shop, it was just myself, my business partner and husband Ryan, and a close friend we hired to help out. That friend moved on after about six months, and for nearly a year after that, it was just the two of us keeping things afloat. Our first “real” hire came organically—a customer who stood out immediately for his genuine love of coffee and prior barista experience. We interviewed him and it felt like a natural fit. After that, we brought on another team member. Just before COVID, our first hire moved out of state, and we planned to fill his position. Shortly after, COVID hit, causing us to scale back on operations, and we maintained just that one employee for a while.

Those early years were incredibly hard. Ryan and I would work the café during the day, then switch to admin and marketing tasks in the evenings and on our one day off. It was exhausting, and it often felt impossible to focus on growth when we were barely keeping up with the day-to-day. But in hindsight, that period laid the foundation for everything. Because we were the ones doing every job in the business, we built strong systems from the ground up and developed a deep understanding of what it takes to keep the café running. That hands-on experience still informs how we train, lead, and support our team today—we know what’s reasonable to ask of our baristas, because we’ve been in their shoes.

About four years in, we reached a turning point. Having our daughter pushed me to truly embrace delegation and shift into a leadership role. We eventually moved into a larger space with a kitchen and began expanding our team in a more intentional way. Today, we have ten employees, including baristas, a café manager, a kitchen manager, a roastery assistant, and a part-time social media assistant. None of those roles existed in the beginning—we developed them based on our evolving needs, and on the strengths of the people we brought on.

One of the most important things we’ve learned is the value of trust and communication. Even when roles weren’t fully defined, we were upfront with our team about wanting them to grow with us. If I could do it all over again, I’d hire sooner—and be more thorough in the process. Over time, I’ve learned how to ask better questions, conduct more insightful interviews, and prioritize team culture just as much as experience. Building a great team has been one of the most challenging and rewarding parts of this journey.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

My name is Lauren, and I’m a co-owner of Evermore Coffee Roasters, a specialty coffee company based just outside of Philadelphia. Alongside my husband Ryan, we’ve built Evermore from the ground up, starting with a small home roaster and a shared love of coffee, and growing it into a full-scale roastery and cafe.

My background is in marketing—I earned my Master’s degree while working as a barista, which gave me a unique perspective on both the craft of coffee and the customer experience. Ryan, meanwhile, developed a curiosity for coffee during that same time. He began experimenting with a small roaster at home as a hobby. In 2016, we took the leap and founded Evermore with a mission to create exceptional and unforgettable experiences. In 2017 we opened our first brick-and-mortar coffee shop and roastery.

At Evermore, we roast and serve high-quality, thoughtfully sourced coffees, ranging from classic medium roasts to more adventurous single origins with unique fermentation methods and flavor profiles. We also craft seasonal signature drinks, offer curated non-alcoholic cocktail nights through our After Hours program, and cater to events through our mobile coffee sidecar, Evermoto. Beyond the café, we work with wholesale partners—cafes, offices, restaurants, and retail shops—providing not just coffee but training, equipment support, and custom blend development.

What really sets us apart is our brand ethos and commitment to experience. We’re driven by curiosity and creativity, but we never lose sight of quality. Our tagline is “Roasted for an adventure. Brewed for the journey.” and it reflects our belief that great coffee can fuel something bigger—whether that’s a conversation, a creative idea, or a quiet moment to yourself.

I’m most proud of the community we’ve built, both online and at the cafe. We started with no investors, no big connections, and today, we’ve got a space that feels like home for so many people. Online, we’ve got a community of coffee lovers who regularly engage with us and genuinely care about the same things we do. That’s truly what keeps us going!

If there’s one thing I hope people take away from our brand, it’s that we care deeply about what we do. From the way we source our beans to the way we greet you at the counter, it all comes from a place of intention. Whether you’re stopping into the cafe, opening up your monthly subscription box, or working with us on a wholesale partnership—we want every interaction to feel like part of something bigger.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

One of the most defining tests of resilience for us was navigating the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. Like so many small businesses, we had to adapt overnight. Instead of shutting down, we immediately built an online ordering system and set up curbside pickup to keep serving our community safely. Within weeks, we added a walk-up window to maintain operations without allowing indoor access.

For a while, we operated entirely through online orders and that little window. Eventually, we also launched something called The Offices at Evermore, a co-workspace and creative workaround to the dine-in restrictions. Guests could reserve table space, enjoy discounts on their order, and safely work from our café. It gave freelancers, students, and remote workers a sense of routine and connection at a time when so many were isolated. It also gave us a critical new stream of revenue.

At one point, we were dangerously close to running out of money. Thankfully, we received a grant from the Main Street Organization at a critical moment, and around the same time, we were approved for pandemic relief funds. That support gave us just enough to keep going. That period pushed us to be incredibly resourceful and community-focused.

We’d love to hear about how you met your business partner.

My business partner and cofounder is also my husband! Ryan and I had known each other for about eight years before starting Evermore, and had been married for just six months when we opened our first brick-and-mortar location. Starting a business together so early in our marriage was definitely intense. We were putting in long hours, working side by side all day every day, and doing everything by ourselves… but we’ve always shared a strong sense of purpose and mutual respect for each other, which helped us stay grounded through it all.

We’ve learned to embrace our differences as strengths. I focus on marketing and daily cafe operations, while Ryan leads our roastery and wholesale services and drives the long-term growth of the company. In the early days, we’d sometimes overlap too much or clash in our approaches, but over time we’ve really learned how to step back and let each other lead in our own lanes. We challenge each other, but we also cheer each other on, and that dynamic has been key to both the success of the business and the strength of our relationship.

Working together has its challenges, but it’s also one of the most fulfilling parts of what we do. Building Evermore side by side has brought a deeper layer of meaning to both our marriage and our work.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.EvermoreCoffee.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/evermorecoffeeroasters/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EvermoreCoffeeRoasters/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lauren-vaxmonsky-ab46243a/

Image Credits

The photo of the coffee roaster is from Eclectic Desire Photography