Today we’d like to introduce you to Landon Forgette.
Hi Landon, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I’ve worked on and off in coffee for the past 15+ years. I’ve always wanted to open my own shop but never really took the chance to do so. My brother and I grew up in not-so-good surroundings and we never had any money growing up. We were homeless for some time, but I managed to get a job that helped my brother and myself move on with our lives. My brother ended up serving six years in the Air Force. When he got out, he started his own business and it did well, so he called me up one day and asked if I was still wanting to start my own coffee shop. I had just transferred back to Texas from Portland, or with my previous job, so it worked out well in conception.
We opened on March first of 2020 after spending several months getting the space ready, and we ended up shutting down for a few months due to Covid-19 a little over a week later. The community is great where we are, so we’ve been able to stick it out through the ups and downs, even though we were unable to procure any PPP loans. We are super grateful for every customer that comes in, and I think that is part of the reason why we have been able to stick around over the year. I would also like to add that there is no way that I could have done this without the help and support of my girlfriend Katelyn, without the encouragement of my son Noah and family, without my wonderful employees, or without the support of my customers. These people make what I do worth it when I go to sleep at night.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
No, not at all. However, I love what we do here and I wouldn’t trade it for anything at this point. We started a week before the state shut down for Covid-19 and that wasn’t easy. I questioned whether or not I could have foreseen what happened and if I made a mistake by opening when I did, but when it comes down to it, I don’t think anyone could have been ready. I had a great concept, great products, great staff, and a small but amazing customer base. The way that I like to look at it, I was able to learn as much as possible about what went wrong, what I did wrong as an owner, and how to correct my mistakes and improve on what we got right. One thing that stood out to me when everything started is what a customer had mentioned to me. They had started their business a day before 9/11. It was rough for them for a year or so, but they just kept pushing forward and they were still around when many others had failed. I know it’s rough for everyone and each business owner has their own circumstances that lead them to a decision on whether they should keep going or not. Hopefully, I’ll never have to make the decision to close our doors, but if I do, I’ll know that I stuck it through to the end and did everything I could to keep my employees on and my community happy.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
We are a community-based coffee shop in Lewisville, TX. We are known for having great coffee, but specifically, we make our own syrups and specialty drinks. We also make our own CBD syrup, which we can add into any drink. We are working on selling our syrups in-store and at other stores, but we also sell a small but high-quality selection of other CBD products. We also sell baked goods that have CBD baked in. We take pride in only using local small vendors, bakers, and artists in almost all that we do. Our baked goods are from local bakers, Demeter’s Kitchen & Mo’s Munchies, and we bake them daily here in the shop. We feature a local artist on our wall each month and donate to local schools when we can. The employees do small art projects that are offered for auction from time to time. Last December, we auctioned off hand-painted octopuses and split the sales between the employees and charity. Mostly we want to be known as a company that has a calm atmosphere where people can come and work or hang out without having to worry about what is going on for the rest of their lives. We almost always have chill-hop playing and customers love to come in just to talk with us for a while.
Do you have any advice for those looking to network or find a mentor?
I am currently working with a vendor I met at the store as a regular customer. He is helping me set up the bottling process. I found out that we could help each other by simply asking what he did for a living and now we have a business relationship. My advice for networking would be to simply talk to everyone. More importantly, ask questions to everyone you meet. I love talking with people, but I love learning about them as people even more. The more I know about others, the better I know myself and, more importantly, the more I can help them as a business owners and as a fellow human being. Speaking and listening to others is, in my opinion, one of the most important skills anyone can have in life, whether they are a business owner or not. If you don’t know how or have a hard time with speaking and listening to others but want to get better at it, find someone who is good at that skillset. If they already know how to make personal connections with others easily, they probably get joy out of helping others learn as well. I know that I do.
Contact Info:
- Email: info@coralreefcoffeeco.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/coralreefcoffeeco/?hl=en
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/coralreefcoffeeco/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/coralreefcoffee?lang=en
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSgCXMtwgahO7ojRsm7CenA
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/coral-reef-coffee-lewisville
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