Meet Cindy Wright | Small Business Owner & Barista

We had the good fortune of connecting with Cindy Wright and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Cindy, how has your work-life balance changed over time?
Previous to starting my own business I was working as an engineer and because I was also starting a family I have worked every type of workplace scenario there is such as full-time working in the office, full-time working from home (usually with a new baby) and everything in-between. I had quit my job in anticipation of an out-state-move right as the COVID pandemic and ended up not working for 1.5 years before starting the coffee shop. I had warned my family about the time I was going to need to devote to the new business but I really had no idea how much of my time and energy it was going to take to get ti going. I also think the work/life balance change amplified because I went from not working and being to devote all my time to my family and home during COVID to spending to majority of my time working on or for the coffee shop or trying to get some sleep. It has been alot of work but I recently hired an employee so I am getting back some of my “taking care of business at home time”, but I am still working 7 days a week. I am thankful I love what I am doing, have great customers, and especially have such a great support network of family and friends that have all helped me.

What should our readers know about your business?
I wanted to open a coffee shop that serves specialty coffee and espresso drinks or third wave coffee as some would call it. One of my favorite things is trying out new coffee shops and just enjoying a great drink and I wanted to be able to experience that in my neighborhood and that is why I came up with opening Beeler Perk. Before my husband started working from home during the pandemic his offices were above Little Owl Coffee and he loves their coffee and the shop’s feel and aesthetic. Corey Wall from Little Owl has been so helpful and and wonderful to me during this process and has really helped me. Actually, I am blown away by how helpful and welcoming everyone from Denver’s coffee and food truck communities have been! I also decided very early on that I was going to highlight other local vendors and I would not compromise when it comes to using quality, local, and sustainable ingredients. My drinks were very much going to be quality over quantity. For example I use beans from Little Owl Roasters, milk from Longmont Dairy, and I sell pastries from a neighbor called the Bosnian Baker. One of my biggest challenges was finding a place to put my store. I knew I wanted to stay in my neighborhood but a storefront was not an option so I began looking into a food truck/trailer concept. I designed my trailer to have a feel of a coffee shop and found a place that I could park daily so that I can provide reliably great coffee daily to my regular customers and that other can find me. I have tried working at events but I can say that being in my usual location and seeing my neighbors is pretty great. The only exception is when I go to schools and serve coffee to teachers – I really enjoy being able to give back that way.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I do still love visiting other coffee shops and Dandy Lion Coffee Co. is one of my favorites right now that is also close by. I love basketball and if there was a Nuggets game going on we would be there. If they had kids we would definitely go to the Children’s Museum. Great Divide Brewery would be a stop. Katsu Ramen! We live close to Stanley Market but really any of Denver’s marketplaces – I think they are such a wonderful part of Denver. Sadly though our kids were still too little and too picky right before the pandemic hit so we never really got to go to many “adult fancy” restaurants but we are trying to make up for lost time and have a list of restaurants to try out. One of my favorite things about Denver is all of the little neighborhood shopping centers – where you have a 1-2 block areas with just the best shops and restaurants. Finally, Denver is the best at Ice Cream and Gelato there are some many great, local ice cream and gelato shops around.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My husband and kids are just wonderful and why I want to be successful and make them proud.

Website: www.beelerperk.com

Instagram: @beelerperk

Facebook: @beelerperk