Remember the 80’s show Cheers? Where everyone knows your name? Wouldn’t you love a place like that? A place you could go to where you instantly felt at home and welcome? Where people ask how you are and genuinely care about your answer? Wouldn’t that be a nice feeling?
There is a place like that. Probably a few, but the one I know and love is a café in the little village of Pointe-Claire.
I don’t know if it’s because it’s close to the water, or just 25 minutes from the city, but everyone at this place is sooo nice. My feeling is that it’s actually the story behind the café that influences the whole “ambiance”.
Let me tell you about my last visit.
This kid with big blue eyes and cute red hair walks in with his dad. He wants to do a world puzzle and orders a hot chocolate (it was -17 outside… brrr!) He is invited to choose his own mug. It’s a tough choice between the Superman mug, the fox or the pink piggy. He chooses the piggy because, as he says, he likes bacon! (LOL)
Nobel, a gorgeous and friendly golden retriever, walks in with his master. He settles in with what I swear is a smile on his face, truly enjoying his stay.
Two men are talking at a nearby table, easily switching from French to English, exchanging stories about the village. Two ladies in front are having a business meeting.
Paintings on the walls are being admired just like in an art gallery.
And then there’s the coffee. Oh, the coffee. Yum!
But it’s their story that I love best.
The café is called Victor Rose Espresso Bar. The owners are a mother and daughter. Victor Rose was their grandfather and great grandfather, respectively.
The café is only 2 years old, but I was told that if Victor himself were alive today, this is the café he would have opened. He loved people, coffee and painting, and that is why the place was named in his honor. Victor Rose Espresso Bar has a great vibe, so it is easy to imagine what Victor himself must have been like.
The owner once told me that she chose to open the shop because she loves being able to put a smile on peoples faces, first thing in the morning, when they come in for their coffee. She likes to encourage and support the community she grew up in.
With your coffee (or hot chocolate) you can savor a nice dessert, buy a handmade bracelet or a birthday card, all made locally. Continuing the community mindset, Victor Rose only buys fair trade coffee in order to support the global community by helping hard working, small scale, marginalized farmers.
Community is their “why”; their magic word. In the café, everybody is talking to everybody. It does not matter if you have never met. I just talked to my table neighbor, an electrical engineer, as Delilah, a friendly black lab, listened on. We didn’t know each other before, but now we do. Now we are part of the Victor Rose community.
Victor Rose’s purpose is to make us smile, and they deliver way beyond that. It is like a home away from home, just like in Cheers, where everyone knows your name (or at least wants to).
Their why is why I keep going back, why so many others go back again and again, and why they encourage friends, family and neighbours to go as well. Their why is what fuels their business.
What’s your purpose, your why? What’s your story? Do you customers feel your why? Do they connect with your story?
If you need help finding your why or getting it into the spotlight, book a consultation with me. Let’s work together so that everyone knows YOUR name!
