Sixteen months after opening a coffee pod in Cwmbran town centre, the two entrepreneurs behind it are about to open a ‘community hub’ that will sell items from independent food businesses.
On top of moving from their pod to a shop in the town, Denis O’Malley and Michael Davies, will also create six new jobs.
Their business is Coffi Kitoko, the mobile coffee shop that first appeared in Gwent Square in March 2023, but can now be found under a covered roof next door to Claire’s.
A couple of weeks ago, I spotted a poster in the window of an empty unit on The Mall saying ‘Coming in August. Coffi Kitoko’. I like hearing stories and I like coffee so headed to the pod to chat to the pair.
It was busy so I stood by the side of the pod, sipped my drink and waited (and watched and listened). It was a ten-minute lesson on how to do customer service right. The pair chatted to everyone, and I mean everyone.
They heard about a woman who had recently been involved in a show at the Dolman Theatre, one left the pod to give a little cream treat to a child in his pram while the other finished making the mum a drink, they laughed with a local shop worker who told them about his day, and wished all the best to a woman heading off to a wedding party.
Oh, and they saw a couple stood a few metres away looking at their menu and wondering what an ‘affogato‘ was? As the man got his phone out to check Google, they explained that it was an espresso with ice cream before he hit ‘search’. And yes, he ordered one.
I dived in with my first question as soon as I spotted a gap in customers. Why did you choose Cwmbran?
Michael said they needed a shopping centre to have easy access to electricity to power their pod, but more importantly they “heard that Cwmbran was up and coming.”
He added: “I think it was more of the community of Cwmbran which enticed the most. That’s the reason we came to Cwmbran.”
Denis said: “They [the town centre’s management team and customers) welcomed us with open arms and well, we’ve never looked back. It’s grown and grown. We’ve just become a big community ever since.”
The pod is a tight squeeze for two people and limits the number of drinks they can service at busy times so they started to make queries about moving to a shop.
Denis said: “An opportunity came up and we jumped at it with the help of Food4Growth for Torfaen. So we have gotten some grant support and the whole idea of that, is for us to link up with other local foods. So for example, we’re linking up with The Cookes Bake. They are a home retail bakery [based in Cwmbran].
“They do beautiful croissants, sourdough breads and pastries. The guys are going to be cooking for us.
“We’re also teaming up with the Green Kitchen in Newport who do vegan and gluten-free food. And we’re also moving to organic milk once we move into the new premises, that’s with Daisy Bank Farm.
“So Food4Growth is helping us to link up as a little community hub, bringing all the different foods, all the different restaurants together, all the different organisations one and we’re going to have just one big family.”
The doors of their new shop will open on Monday 5 August and their plan is to sell coffees, pastries and cakes from Monday to Wednesday, and also do an all-day brunch from Thursday to Sunday.
But it’s the “community hub” side of the business that really excites them. They’re looking forward to being able to promote and use local suppliers.
They’ve also applied for a premises licence from Torfaen Council. If that’s successful they will hire the venue out on Friday and Saturday evenings for family events, functions, clubs and societies to use.
I asked about their approach to knowing their customers
Denis said: “The one thing myself and Mike always think about is we might meet somebody that might have met nobody else that day and their one or two minutes is so precious.
“I know we can get busy at times but we do our very best to make time for everyone. Our regulars, we really try to get to know their names and know them on a personal level.”
“Myself and Michael, we knew no-one when we came into Cwmbran, now we can’t walk down the street without bumping into people. It’s all about the social interaction, giving people a safe space.”
He said they’ve “assembled a team of fabulous staff” so their “ethos will continue” when they move from a mobile pod to the shop.
If you enjoy Cwmbran Life please think about showing your support to make it easier for me to spend time finding and writing stories. You can do this through a one-off or regular donation on Buy Me A Coffee. Thank you 😀