We were lucky to catch up with Saul & Ana Casita Coffee Owners/Founders recently and have shared our conversation below.
Saul & Ana Casita Coffee Owners/Founders, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today If you could go back in time do you wish you had started your business sooner or later
Casita started with 2 little boys who were 2 and a newborn, each with a full time career job at the time we started. We have always commented and wondered where Casita would be at had we started before having children. Given the fact that we have our littles and do our best to not compromise family time with our boys, it has not been easy. Casita has grown so much and has had so much success despite having so many other important areas of our life that require careful time and dedication. Therefore, we wish we would have started this business sooner. We both were at career corporate jobs where we had been at for over 7 years. We truly believe in Casita and that things happen for a reason at the right time. Even though we do wonder how far Casita could have been had we started it sooner, we believe this was the right time.
Saul & Ana Casita Coffee Owners/Founders, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
Our journey began with the simple joy of bonding with our family and community, while sipping on a cup of coffee. There was something so special and unique about each coffee shop experience however, something was missing. We realized that there was a lack of Latin inspired coffee shops in our area, in specifically a Mexican specialty coffee shop. It was then that we decided we wanted to bring our culture, our unity, and our traditions to our community. We started this in the midst of the pandemic, while working full time, raising a toddler, and a newborn. We started this coffee truck with two visions in mind, showcasing our culture in every cup of coffee served, and to be able to spend more time together with our family, while doing something that we love. We decided that we wanted to start a coffee shop that resembles home, our culture, traditions and hard work, so we decided to call it “Casita Coffee.” We have truly enjoyed the community, conversing with our customers, and being part of people’s morning routine while they visit us for their cup of coffee. Additionally, we have truly enjoyed bringing recipes from our culture and seeing how much our customers enjoy the Mexican inspired drinks. What sets Casita apart is the incorporation of modern drinks with a touch of Latin inspired flavors. We constantly work towards bringing new drinks and keeping our customers engaged and amazed by the amazing flavor recipes that our culture offers. We have always learned that hard work pays off and that one who perseveres can accomplish anything one sets their mind to. As our parents always said, “Si Se Puede (Yes, you can!).” & that is exactly the motto we live by. Our dream is to expand and open a store front where people will feel the welcoming, warm and vibrant environment the moment they step into the shop. Mi Casa, Su Casa, or better yet, Mi Casita, su Casita. Welcome to Casita! We believe that kindness, good vibes, and good coffee are essential.
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
We have always learned that hard work pays off and that one who perseveres can accomplish anything one sets their mind to. As our parents always said, “Si Se Puede (Yes, you can!).” & that is exactly the motto we live by. Owning a small business comes with many challenges and along our journey we have encountered many challenges as it has not been easy. However, our resiliency and dream has motivated us to keep going. Being a coffee truck comes with many challenges, such as finding locations to be able to park and vend. We operate in a town that has a lot of rules and regulations when it comes to mobile food vending. Additionally, there have been many times where we either don’t have a place to park or know the place we will park/vend out will not have the best traffic but our dream and loyalty to our customers is what keeps us going as we have learned the importance of consistency and availability to your customers. Starting this business along with raising 2 little boys under 5 has been very difficult but has also motivated us to keep going. As previously stated, our dream of one day opening a store front makes us keep going even when it can get tough. Lastly, our regulars are our biggest motivators and when they say things such as, “I follow you where ever you go!” “You have the best coffee!” “How do you guys come up with such amazing ideas and recipes?”, we realize that there is no giving up despite the challenges. Si se suede!
We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?
We started our page a few months before our grand opening and we constantly started posting pictures of our products (drinks) and engaging our customers/following. Being professional while showing authenticity is very important. It is important to engage your customers, to keep them interested in your products, to keep up with the trends and to create as much content as you can. Consistency is everything and although it comes with challenges, it is what keeps your following interested in still following you.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/casita_coffee?igshid=OGQ5ZDc2ODk2ZA%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/casitacoffeeAZ?mibextid=LQQJ4d
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/casita-coffee-gilbert?utm_campaign=www_business_share_popup&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_source=(direct)
- Other: Casita Coffee on google https://g.co/kgs/W33rRm