(10/12) “With the money from the crowdfunding campaign we decided to open a café. It ha
(10/12) “With the money from the crowdfunding campaign we decided to open a café. It had always been a dream of ours, to open our own place. But we thought it would be way down the road. Once the Ginjan brand was fully established. But the retail route was too expensive. A national rollout could cost millions, and we were only able to raise $200,000. So we needed another way for customers to find us. We chose a storefront in East Harlem. It’s a tough corner of the city. There’s a big drug crisis in the area. But it was the only place we could afford. After we signed the papers, and paid all our bills, there was hardly any money left. We had to do everything ourselves: the painting, the wallpaper, the carpentry. During the renovations Rahim and I were always together. It was the most time we’d spent together since we left Guinea. The conversations were flying back and forth. Rahim told me stories that I’d never heard before: about his life in prison, and his life in Michigan. For the first time I realized just how much he’d overcome. Rahim had been like my shadow growing up. He followed me everywhere. Sometimes I’d try to sprint away, but he was always behind me, doing all the things I did. Even after we came to America, I was ahead of him for a long time. But somewhere along the way he’d caught up. And he passed me on a lot of things. He became a confidant, a best friend, an equal partner. When I fell down he kept us going. If I’d done this alone, or if I’d had any other partner, the business never would have survived. In 2019 we finally opened the doors of Ginjan Café. By month five we were breaking even. People would come in off the street, take off their headphones, and begin talking to each other. An amazing little community of people began to form. It was working. We were building up our bottom line, little by little. But on March 17th the first COVID case hit the city. And a few days later we were forced to close our doors. We’d been so conditioned for bad things to happen. We were almost expecting it. But this time was different. Because there was nothing new to try. No new path to take. For the first time in my life, there was nothing I could do.” -- source link
Tumblr Blog : www.humansofnewyork.com