{"id":20783,"date":"2019-01-15T11:07:07","date_gmt":"2019-01-15T19:07:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/freshcup.com\/?p=20783"},"modified":"2019-01-23T09:33:36","modified_gmt":"2019-01-23T17:33:36","slug":"colectivos-journey-from-small-roaster-to-midwest-cafe-brand","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/freshcup.com\/colectivos-journey-from-small-roaster-to-midwest-cafe-brand\/","title":{"rendered":"Colectivo’s Journey from Small Roaster to Midwest Caf\u00e9 Brand"},"content":{"rendered":"
[C]olectivo Coffee Roasters celebrated its 25th birthday in September 2018. In 1993, founders Lincoln Fowler, Ward Fowler, and Paul Miller started a small roasting business in the basement of a Milwaukee warehouse. From there, the company grew to a second location, and then became a retail brand. Today, the company has 13 caf\u00e9s in Milwaukee, three in Madison, and will soon have five in Chicago.<\/p>\n
Colectivo has only been in Chicago for a little more than a year, but the company has had its eye on the city for much longer.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we went into Madison, we went with the intention of gearing up to go into Chicago,\u201d says Scott Schwebel, vice president of brand marketing and retail at Colectivo. \u201cIn Madison, we learned how to manage our brand offsite and how to maintain culture, quality, and caf\u00e9 experience outside of our home market.\u201d<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s how Colectivo built and continues to expand its brand.<\/p>\nColectivo’s Logan Square location.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
Defining the Colectivo Brand<\/h4>\n
Schwebel is instrumental in bringing the Colectivo brand to life. In his role with the company for eight years, he oversees real estate acquisition and caf\u00e9 design work.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo two caf\u00e9s are alike,\u201d he says. \u201cOur brand is more of a feeling.\u201d<\/p>\n
That feeling is evoked by characteristics like indoor and outdoor space and handcrafted features.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe like building things,\u201d says Schwebel. \u201cWe build the tables, the light fixtures, the cabinets. None of this comes out of the cut-and-paste book.\u201d<\/p>\n
The collaborative design process, led by a husband-and-wife artisan team, aims to reflect each different location and the Colectivo brand. Beyond the feel of each individual caf\u00e9, Colectivo\u2019s flavors play a central role in branding.<\/p>\n
\u201cCoffee is the epicenter of our brand, but we have always believed that there are things that go along with it and create a better, more inclusive experience for our customers,\u201d says Schwebel.<\/p>\n
With that in mind, Colectivo\u2019s caf\u00e9s serve fresh bakery goods made from scratch by its sister brand, Troubadour Bakery.<\/p>\nThe menu at Colectivo includes seasonal pastries.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
Coming to Chicago<\/h4>\n
Colectivo spent more than three years planning its entrance into the Chicago market. During that time, Schwebel made trips to the city building relationships and getting to know the neighborhoods.<\/p>\n
\u201cChicago is a world-class city full of talent,\u201d he says. \u201cWe wanted to come here to be exposed to world-class competition and get better as an organization.\u201d<\/p>\n
When the company was ready, Lincoln Park became the first of its Chicago caf\u00e9s, born from a vacant but historic storefront. A neglected corner near a parking lot in disrepair may not have seemed like much, but Colectivo saw its potential.<\/p>\nLincoln Park’s patio<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\u201cWe saw a way to turn the corner on in a dead space of a Chicago neighborhood,\u201d says Schwebel.<\/p>\n
It took about a year to get the space fully planned and permitted, but the choice paid off. The Lincoln Park location sparked plans for more Chicago locations.<\/p>\n
Next, Colectivo headed to Logan Square, a Chicago neighborhood known and revered for its coffee. The caf\u00e9\u2014a new construction project\u2014is located on Milwaukee Avenue, one of the neighborhood\u2019s major streets, more toward the eastern half of the neighborhood.<\/p>\n
\u201cHere, we intentionally chose a more transitional space between a lot of development that is happening in the neighborhood,\u201d says Schwebel. \u201cThere\u2019s a ton of gentrification happening to the east of us and the area west of us is much more established.\u201d<\/p>\n
Colectivo\u2019s Andersonville location opened in September 2018. The caf\u00e9, located in a brown brick building, is designed to have a cozy, neighborhood aesthetic.<\/p>\n
\u201cAndersonville is hyper-local and fiercely independent,\u201d says Schwebel. \u201cIt gave us a chance to build a truly neighborhood caf\u00e9.\u201d<\/p>\nPastries at the Andersonville location.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
The company\u2019s fourth Chicago-area location actually leaves the city for the suburbs. Evanston, just a few miles north of the city, is home to another Colectivo caf\u00e9 on the corner. This time, the company renovated and reimagined a space originally used as a soda fountain building. The project embraces the height of the building\u2019s original fa\u00e7ade, while adding its own touches of glass and warm wood.<\/p>\nEvanston location fa\u00e7ade<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
Wicker Park is Colectivo\u2019s most recent foray into the Chicago market. This caf\u00e9, set to open in early spring of 2019, will also be home to the company\u2019s Chicago training facility.<\/p>\n
\u201cGetting to this point really allows us to operate like a local business,\u201d says Schwebel.<\/p>\n
Like its other locations, the Wicker Park space will embrace Colectivo\u2019s branding with a unique twist. In this case, the caf\u00e9 has an \u201calley-style\u201d entryway.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe caf\u00e9 will offer our familiar experiences of blurring the line between inside and out, letting our business and customers engage with the sidewalk,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
Other features of the space will include \u201can urban garden with a transition room between the sidewalk and inside of caf\u00e9, a second level overlooking both the training and community rooms, a fireplace, and communal table all next to an alley,\u201d according to Schwebel.<\/p>\n
The Coffee<\/h4>\n
All of Colectivo\u2019s coffee is roasted right at its River West location in Milwaukee and delivered fresh to its other caf\u00e9 locations each night. The River West roasting space, custom designed by founders Lincoln and Ward, uses vintage Probat equipment. The coffee roasted there is sourced from all over the world, thanks to Colectivo\u2019s carefully curated, direct relationships with growers.<\/p>\n
Colectivo has come a long way from its Milwaukee roots, but its branding has evolved and endured to find a home in Chicago\u2019s passionate coffee scene.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Started in a Milwaukee basement 25 years ago, Colectivo has since grown to more than 20 locations\u2014five in Chicago the past year alone. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1137,"featured_media":20784,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"limit_modified_date":"","last_modified_date":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}},"beyondwords_generate_audio":"","beyondwords_project_id":"","beyondwords_content_id":"","beyondwords_player_style":"","beyondwords_language_id":"","beyondwords_title_voice_id":"","beyondwords_body_voice_id":"","beyondwords_summary_voice_id":"","beyondwords_error_message":"","beyondwords_disabled":"","beyondwords_podcast_id":"","beyondwords_hash":"","publish_post_to_speechkit":"","speechkit_hash":"","speechkit_generate_audio":"","speechkit_project_id":"","speechkit_podcast_id":"","speechkit_error_message":"","speechkit_disabled":"","speechkit_access_key":"","speechkit_error":"","speechkit_info":"","speechkit_response":"","speechkit_retries":"","speechkit_updated_at":"","_speechkit_link":"","_speechkit_text":""},"categories":[24,17],"tags":[202,10198],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n
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The Coffee<\/h4>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/freshcup.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Roastery_1015.jpg\")
Colectivo has come a long way from its Milwaukee roots, but its branding has evolved and endured to find a home in Chicago\u2019s passionate coffee scene.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"