Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Stephanie Reiman. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Stephanie, thanks for joining us today. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?

Nate and I always had a “for fun” dream of opening a coffee shop, but it wasn’t really on the radar. With my design work and his touring schedule we figured if we ever were to open something up, it would be in the distant future. One afternoon, Nate was out at lunch with a couple of close friends, and he was mentioning how cool it would be if Nelson Drum Shop had a small coffee setup in the corner for those of us who liked to go hang there. Though he didn’t mean we wanted to take on this endeavor, his friend thought it would be funny to put us on the spot and texted Bryson Nelson (the owner) that we wanted to start a coffee shop in his drum shop. I thought the bit was funny, but still had no intention of doing anything until Bryson texted Nate the next morning really excited about the idea. Something about his excitement got Nate and I excited, and we just sort of accidentally started building Weak.

Stephanie, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

Nathan has worked in coffee since 2014, and it’s always been his main thing for when he’s not on the road touring. I (Steph) worked at a bakery back in Montana that served coffee, but most of my professional barista experience has been at Weak. All of our equipment arrived right before covid hit, so I ended up having a pretty immersive training experience being stuck in a house with Nate surrounded by all of our pour over gear, espresso machine, grinders etc…

We have never had the intention of being the best shop in town or trying to reach the top of the coffee industry. We have always been sensitive to how pretentious coffee can be which can in-turn make it feel unapproachable, sterile, and take the fun out of ordering and drinking it. We wanted to make a space that did not take things too seriously (hence the name Weak Coffee) while still serving a quality product with something for everyone to enjoy. We truly just love coffee and people and wanted to create a place where someone could feel comfortable, try something new, and make a friend.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

Though I wouldn’t say we have a huge following by any means, we have always tried to keep our socials true to us. We do all our photography and design in house and when we have ideas for a post about a new drink or piece of merch, we make it! As far as advice I would say trust yourself, be yourself, and if it sounds fun to you, go for it!

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

Well we definitely never intended to open a coffee shop in a pandemic, but the slow down of the world from covid also gave us the time to build our cart and work out kinks. Our first opening day was so scary because Nashville had just barely started to open back up and we did not have any idea what to expect for the first weeks and months. Honestly those first months were pretty slow and some days we had no idea if we were making a good choice, but our incredible friend’s showed up every week and people slowly learned about us! Now it’s almost been three years since we first opened which is wild to think about!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://weak-coffee-llc.square.site/
• Instagram: @weakcoffeeco

Image Credits
Michelle Baldwin Tyler Krippaehne