Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in food and beverage but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Alayne Dubord, Store Owner of Pause Coffee Shop, located in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada.

What's your business, and who are your customers?

Pause Coffee is a multi-roaster coffee delivery service based in Regina, SK. It gets us so pumped up to get to help people explore the wide range of tastes that are possible with coffee. We are committed to sourcing from roasters who are equity-focused. We help customers to explore coffee by providing coffee for sale by the bag, through subscriptions, and through our annual advent calendar, along with our curated collection of manual brewing equipment.

Tell us about yourself

We are a two-person team, wife, and husband, who stumbled into the world of coffee because of our love for people. We had a strong desire to be a part of effective change in our world and to invest in our community. Coffee seemed like the right avenue to achieve those goals. Once we began to delve deeper, we realized there was SO much more to coffee than what we’d had yet to experience. Our commitment and wonder grew tenfold. We now see being a part of the coffee industry as an avenue to not only better the community around us but to globally be part of a shift toward mutually beneficial trade practices and more equitable cross-border relationships.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

We started our business in May of 2020, when we thought the global pandemic would wrap up and life would be back to normal by Fall - we were so wrong! With the twists and turns of learning how to become entrepreneurs and ebbing and flowing in and out of pandemic restrictions, one of our biggest accomplishments has been that we’ve managed to grow our business by staying committed to relationship building with our customers and staying invested in our own curiosity for coffee, even when maintaining the status quo would have been easier.

What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?

One of the hardest parts of being a business owner has been adapting our business model to the pandemic. We are far from where we thought we’d be when we first started our business, which has taught us a lot of hard but very valuable lessons about patience and timing.

What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?

  1. Let go of factors outside of your control and be thoughtful instead of reactionary in your response
  2. Be thorough with your business plan. It’ll help to set a firm foundation for decision-making when you’re in the throes of day-to-day business management.
  3. Be intentional about setting boundaries for yourself for rest. There’s no boss to tell you to stop and go take a break - that’s your job now!

Is there anything else you'd like to share?

We’re so grateful for the community of coffee lovers who have embraced us and supported our business. This business wouldn’t exist if the people around us didn’t believe in our vision - we’re forever grateful!

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://pausecoffeeshop.ecwid.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pausecoffeeyqr/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pausecoffeeyqr/

If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solopreneur that you'd like to share, then email community@subkit.com; we'd love to feature your journey on these pages.

Feel inspired to start, run or grow your own subscription business? Check out subkit.com and learn how you can turn "one day" into day one.