{"id":5084385,"date":"2019-08-22T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2019-08-22T04:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ctlatinonews.com\/latino-owned-coffee-shop-unites-community-one-cafecito-at-a-time\/"},"modified":"2019-08-22T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2019-08-22T04:00:00","slug":"latino-owned-coffee-shop-unites-community-one-cafecito-at-a-time","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/ctln\/2019\/08\/22\/latino-owned-coffee-shop-unites-community-one-cafecito-at-a-time\/","title":{"rendered":"Latino-Owned Coffee Shop Unites Community One Cafecito At A Time"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>By <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/annikadarling\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Annika Darling<\/a>,&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/ctln.local\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">CTLatinoNews.com<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It was the smell of coffee that started it all. <\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In 2006, Jos\u00e9 Ren\u00e9 Mart\u00ednez was shopping for wallpaper with a friend when a wonderful scent got his attention. Following his nose, Mart\u00ednez stumbled upon a gentleman roasting coffee in his own little shop within the large industrial building. Instantly, they struck up a conversation. \u201cI don\u2019t know what possessed me,\u201d admits Mart\u00ednez, \u201cbut two weeks later I offered to buy his business.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Two months later they sealed the deal and Mart\u00ednez has been exploring his love and passion for coffee ever since.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\"\/>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-youtube wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Award Winning Latino Coffee Shop Owner Unites Community One Cafecito At A Time\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/v6_qRa0O_0k?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><figcaption>Jos\u00e9 Ren\u00e9 Mart\u00ednez shares his  \u2764\ufe0f of \u2615\ufe0f and culture<br \/>(video by Claudia Hilario, CTLN)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\"\/>\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"> <strong>From Passion to Success<\/strong> <\/h3>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">By following his passion, Mart\u00ednez has not only opened the door to a life he never could have imagined but has garnered recognition as a successful minority business owner. In fact, U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal recently visited Mart\u00ednez\u2019s coffee shop, J.Ren\u00e9 Coffee Roasters in West Hartford to present him with the Connecticut Small Business Association (SBA) Minority-Owned Business of the Year Award (presented in March).&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Of the award, Mart\u00ednez says, \u201cWe were fortunate to be recognized for the work that we have been doing throughout the year.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Mart\u00ednez\u2019s work doesn\u2019t end at roasting coffee either. Mart\u00ednez owns two brands: J.Ren\u00e9 Coffee Roasters and VICTUS Coffee. The latter is used to support nonprofit organizations that promote wellness and social advocacy through endurance sports.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Using his business to make a positive impact on the community is a priority to Mart\u00ednez and he finds a variety of ways to do this: from using the proceeds of VICTUS to support nonprofits to hiring a minority high school student and becoming his mentor to encouraging connection through coffee in a culturally saturated environment.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"> <strong>Supporting a Diverse Community&nbsp;<\/strong> <\/h3>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On supporting a diverse community, Mart\u00ednez says, \u201cI think the first thing that you do is you take affirmative steps to ensure your staff is diverse. To generate a diverse community, it starts in-house. You have to take steps to ensure a diverse community exists within your own store, and you give people who may, often times, are not given an opportunity &#8230; you give them a chance. And not just give them a chance but you also mentor them. As several kids that have been working for me started out of high school through a program that was geared to help inner city kids learn skills that will help them grow as young professionals in the future. It wasn\u2019t easy but you work on everything, you work on their education skills, you work on their study habits, you work on their work ethic and you teach them the importance of excellence in all their endeavors.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"> <strong>A Cultural Experience<\/strong> <\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Not only does Mart\u00ednez create a culturally diverse back-of-the-house, but the ethos behind the coffee shop is to bring people together over coffee, which means understanding each other and accepting each other.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">One patron, Edward Wilson, drives from out of town to visit J.Ren\u00e9 Coffee Roasters on the weekends because the vibe is so comfortable, informative and unique. \u201c[Mart\u00ednez] walks around and he will stop and talk to you about the coffee and talk to you about the origin of coffee, he is excited to share his passion,\u201d explains Wilson. \u201cThe guy travels all the time\u2014in my opinion, he is the Anthony Bourdain of coffee. If you go to his shop there are pictures of places he has gone all over the world. They are subtle shots but they are shots of him with beans, of him with people picking the beans, it\u2019s got like a whole cultural experience going on that is more than just his culture, it\u2019s other people\u2019s culture that you\u2019re learning about just by looking at these pictures \u2026 at these flashes of moments.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">These \u201cflashes of moments\u201d capture Mart\u00ednez in places like East Africa, Indonesia, and Central South America. \u201cCoffee is the second most commodity second only to oil,\u201d informs Mart\u00ednez, \u201cand it affects so many different lives in so many different industries. So for me, it has been an incredible experience because through coffee I\u2019ve learned, I\u2019ve traveled all over the world to visit different coffee ranches \u2026 and from a business aspect, you\u2019re learning about commodity as it relates to coffee, the science of coffee and the art involved in coffee, the artistic approach and the humility in preparing a shot where often times you spend more time cleaning and everything else than you do preparing a shot. There is just a lot of work that goes into it; it\u2019s a celebration of labor. So when I think of all those things they all resonated with me, with my culture, with my work ethics and the things I thought were important to me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"> <strong>The Value of Small Business<\/strong> <\/h3>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Because J.Ren\u00e9\u2019s is a small local business it gives Mart\u00ednez control over every component in a way that he can be true to his passion and not compromise his vision, though, admittedly, it does have its challenges.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe don\u2019t have the level of sophistication that corporate businesses that have multiple stores have,\u201d admits Mart\u00ednez. \u201cSo we navigate learning one step at a time. I am a lawyer by profession (that\u2019s what I also do) and I am very fortunate to have this opportunity but I realize for so many [small business owners] the risks are great\u2014you just don\u2019t know the answers and you can\u2019t forecast for tomorrow easily. But you do your best at something that you love and do it in a way that you hope consumers will appreciate and support for a long, long time.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery columns-3 is-cropped wp-block-gallery-1 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\"><ul class=\"blocks-gallery-grid\"><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><\/figure><\/li><\/ul><\/figure>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In Wilson\u2019s opinion: \u201cYou get a bit more at J.Ren\u00e9\u2019s [then at larger chain coffee shops]. You get hands-on experience.\u201d Wilson is proud to be a part of the J.Ren\u00e9 community and can certainly say he \u201cknew Mart\u00ednez when\u201d and energetically shares his story:&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWhen I was first exposed to J.Ren\u00e9\u2019s Coffee he was grinding beans and wholesaling out of a small location where he would only open on Saturday and Sunday mornings. [Mart\u00ednez] didn\u2019t sell coffee by the cup but gave it away for free to anyone who showed up. That atmosphere was organic and people stayed there for hours to just talk and marinate in the atmosphere he created. He was frequently bugged to open a shop. To further develop what was happening on those Saturday and Sunday mornings \u2026 he did just that. [Mart\u00ednez\u2019s] passion for coffee and the artisanal environment he has created for his patrons to enjoy it in, has been something special to watch grow and be a part of.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">J.Ren\u00e9 Coffee sells artisanal coffees that Wilson says you can drink black \u2026 no sugar or milk needed. And that is important to Mart\u00ednez: maintaining a high-quality product. But at J.Ren\u00e9\u2019s, what\u2019s as equally important as the product is the social experience. It is this quality that makes his small local coffee shop truly a local gem.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Mart\u00ednez says that: \u201cThe biggest thing that a small business can do is have a good understanding of what the community is all about and modify their approach and their product based on the community they are serving. Also to focus on the interpersonal relationships that you develop with the customers. You get to see this person come in &#8230; and then you get to see this person come in with a girlfriend \u2026 and then you see this person with their wife and have their first child. It\u2019s a real blessing. We really do become an extended part of their family.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It is with this ideation that Mart\u00ednez has created an environment conducive to social exchange, where people can sip artisanal coffee while ideas fall around them and unite them.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\"\/>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>By September Mart\u00ednez expects to have at least one additional J.Ren\u00e9 Coffee Roasters store opened in West Hartford and is currently in discussions to open a VICTUS Coffee shop in August.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;You have to take steps to ensure a diverse community exists within your own store; give people who often times, are not given an opportunity&#8230;you give them a chance&#8221;<br \/>\n-Jos\u00e9 Ren\u00e9 Mart\u00ednez<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","ghostkit_customizer_options":"","ghostkit_custom_css":"","ghostkit_custom_js_head":"","ghostkit_custom_js_foot":"","ghostkit_typography":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[580,998],"tags":[1541],"ppma_author":[481],"class_list":["post-5084385","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-business","category-ct-business","tag-coffeejose-rene-martinezsmall-business-association"],"acf":[],"mb":[],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":false,"thumbnail":false,"medium":false,"medium_large":false,"large":false,"1536x1536":false,"2048x2048":false},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"Jermaine Smith","author_link":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/ctln\/author\/jay\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"\"You have to take steps to ensure a diverse community exists within your own store; give people who often times, are not given an opportunity...you give them a chance\" -Jos\u00e9 Ren\u00e9 Mart\u00ednez","authors":[{"term_id":481,"user_id":0,"is_guest":1,"slug":"hugobalta","display_name":"Hugo Balta","avatar_url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=mm&r=g","0":null,"1":"","2":"","3":"","4":"","5":"","6":"","7":"","8":""}],"mfb_rest_fields":["title","uagb_featured_image_src","uagb_author_info","uagb_comment_info","uagb_excerpt","authors"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/ctln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5084385","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/ctln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/ctln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/ctln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/ctln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5084385"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/ctln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5084385\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/ctln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5084385"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/ctln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5084385"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/ctln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5084385"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/ctln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/ppma_author?post=5084385"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}