Today we’d like to introduce you to Tammy Devore.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Prior to this adventure, I had been a teacher, public and homeschool, for about 25 years. Our family loved visiting coffee shops on trips and dreaming of owning our own while never really thinking it could happen. One day though, it was as if God said, “It’s time. Go do that big thing!” The doors started opening before us and we tentatively walked through each one, only looking at the path in front of us. In that beginning process, a lot of ideas were thrown around, tossed in the trash, or put to work.
One thing was sure, we wanted a unique location. Not knowing exactly what that meant, we began searching and happened upon a listing for a business space where the tenant was moving out. The moment we stepped inside, we all knew it was perfect! Our building is actually a 90 years old house in a more historic residential section of downtown Apopka. The house was available, the owner loved our concept and believed in us, and the details were perfect.
The search for a roaster was another huge step and the day we stumbled on Ethos Roasters in Lakeland, we hit the jackpot! Their small business was just getting started, like ours. Their passion for people and helping small, local farmers matched our concept as well. Not to mention, their coffee was amazing! It was a perfect match for us and we’ve never regretted the decision to go small.
There was so much fear in taking that next step. That step, we knew, would change our lives, but we couldn’t know exactly how much or in how many ways. There were so many questions – Could we do this? Who did we think we were to try something so big? Would we know how to run a business? Would it cost us more than we were willing to pay? Would people even come to something like this? So much fear in those decisions! But the little voice that had whispered the original dream pressed through and faith overcame all the fear. We continued to walk the next step that lighted on the path in front of us until we reached opening day – June 17, 2019. This was going to be a soft opening, a trial and training, mostly for family and friends. But word spread like wildfire and we quickly found ourselves growing exponentially.
Today, we can’t imagine not knowing all the amazing people we’ve come to call friends, people who stumbled upon our little coffee house in Apopka and hung around.
We like offering the types of drinks you’d normally find in a coffee shop, but our passion is finding fun, unique combinations that grab all of your senses. We also love when a customer says “what if you combined ____ and ____?” (Fill in the blank with anything) Customer creations regularly become house favorites.
Overall, we hope to be a place where people can feel safe, be relaxed, and slow down for a second to breathe while talking to people who really care about them. We think the world needs a little more of that… As well as good coffee!
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
It’s honestly been mostly smooth. If anything, managing the growth and learning how to meet the needs of our customers has been the only challenge
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I’d say I’m known as a people person. Connecting with them, remembering their name, their favorite drink, little things they mention – little things that seem to make people feel valued.
Networking and finding a mentor can have such a positive impact on one’s life and career. Any advice?
We stay connected with our local chamber of commerce and meet up with local business people occasionally.
Contact Info:
- Email: Canoncoffeeapopka@gmail.com
- Website: www.canoncoffeeapopka.com
- Instagram: @canoncoffeeapopka
- Facebook: Canon Coffee Apopka
