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We are Mike & Tabi. For years we had a dream of owning a local coffee shop. Mike began working as a barista & Tabi as a stylist in film. After drinking too many mediocre (at best) cups of coffee on set we saw the need to bring these two worlds together.
We are on a journey to bring great coffee & community to the catered world.
We've purchased & started renovations on a 1974 Scotty Serro vintage camper (see pics of renovations below). We currently have a beverage cart with a pour over station that can be hired for smaller events and shoots where the camper won't fit. The goal with this crowdfunding is to purchase the rest of the machinery and supplies needed to fully convert the camper into a working mobile coffee shop.
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We believe a quality cup of coffee is determined by the sourcing of it's ingredients. All of KIN's products aim to support the local community & environment. Instead of just making a smaller imprint we want to make a positive addition to the world we live in.
As a company our heart is to be transparent in every area. Here is a list of the areas of KIN right now:
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The camper came to us mostly gutted, with plywood flooring but it needed to be insulated for all-weather and some of the wood needed replacing. We replaced the rotten wood that was currently in the flooring and walls, lined every window, door, & crack with Tescon sealing tape, insulated all the walls using recycled denim & ReWall(recycled paper plastics turned into drywall) & painted using second hand Benjamin Moore Natura Paint. We insulated the roof, replaced the bendable plywood with untreated wood. Then wired in reclaimed lighting from BIG, & put in a tin roof style ceiling made out of recycled paintable wallpaper.
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We found a lightweight herringbone pattern flooring at BIG secondhand and cut it to fit in the space. After that we needed to cover the wheel wells to make it weather proof in the winter & it was the perfect place to create storage for supplies. We insulated the wheels using the same recycled denim and built cabinets on top using cabinet pieces we found on the street.
This was our sketch of the cabinet design mockup and the exterior of the camper.
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This is our sketch of the counter space for once we're able to purchase machinery and install a sink. Currently the space only has a pour over station.
For the exterior of the camper we built a door out of reclaimed lumber from BIG to create a more secure entryway. The metal sheeting has been re-sealed & the brake lights replaced but it still needs many of the vintage lights replaced and we plan to give it a whole new paint job with exterior branding.
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If we exceed our fundraising goal we would love to hire artisan smith to re-fabricate all of our machinery and commission a local ceramics artist to make all of our reusable mugs.
If you want more info on kin just email us! We love sharing this journey with you: kincoffeenyc@gmail.com #welcometothefamilÿ
Risks+ Challenges
Our goal is to launch this company by July 2016. We've worked really hard to do as much of the renovations as we can on our own budget so that we could ask for the smallest amount from our supporters. If we don't fully fund this project than that will be limited to our own time and budget, which means we likely won't be launching until 2017 or later.
We anticipate there will be obstacles to acquiring a permit and building clientele after the renovations are complete. We are talking to people who work for New York City about the best option for permits and will continue to pursue getting everything sorted before July as best as we can. To build awareness around the service we plan to reach out to wedding planners, producers, & do pop-ups that will give free samples to the community.