Sweet Mimi’s Cafe is my life. What began as a simple sketch and a dream 30 years ago is now my daily routine. It is my fourth child. It represents so many sides of me, the best and the worst on any given day. It is the place where my children spent their early teen years and worked their first job. It is our second home, the place we gather as a family and open our doors to welcome our community. It is a source of pride and a place of joy.
COVID-19 has put my love for my cafe to the ultimate test. March 16, 2020, is a historic day that will be remembered. This is the day we were shuttered to align with the state of New York’s response to the pandemic. Fear, confusion and concern, all swirled about creating a strangely calm chaos. Ultimately for Sweet Mimi’s and more broadly, this was an untimely pause of an industry that barely survives on low profit margins and heavy payroll expenses. Many cafes, restaurants, and bakeries would shutter for good; I was determined Sweet Mimi’s Cafe & Bakery would not to be one of them.
Our staff worked tirelessly on that day, as we inspected our coolers and recorded the thousands of dollars in inventory that would be lost— just lost—no insurance claim would be considered. We broke down, reassembled, packed and froze all that we could make sense of, boxed up eggs, cheeses, produce and anything that would resemble a care box for the kitchen crew. We then did the same with what we could safely gift to local outreach programs. They had no idea on that day how deep the need would reach. I went back in for days following, scrubbed walk-in floors, bleached the bathroom, tucked away our Cuisinart and Kitchen Aids, gathered my intellectual property perched in our “books” on the shelf, and went back to sit in the front of the house, alone, to make a “plan.” But a plan for what? The future was and still is completely unknown.
I assessed Sweet Mimi’s financials, after the precursor of days with dwindling sales, and made a commitment to spend the resources I had to help my kitchen staff. I made a promise to key staff members to do the best I could to help them through this if they would return to work when it was time and see me through the next chapter. A spoken promise yet an unsigned contract, which was heartbreaking in the end. There was no such thing as a “PPP” or government support at this time. Just me, my staff, and a promise. Two weeks prior to re-opening in June, my lead Kitchen Manager gave his notice to take another job. Staff turnover is just part of the kitchen culture in restaurants, but we had a promise. Just one of many disappointments I would face.
Fast forward two weeks. At home with my college kids who had returned to their safe haven, I couldn’t quite settle. There must be something I could do to ensure Sweet Mimi’s future. Sleepless nights, restless day-time hours simply reeling in what should I do. My first effort was to come up with a way we could help our community. This was the start of constant “pivoting” to stay in the game. My children were on board. We would return to the cafe kitchen and make breakfast for school children who were going without as school lunch programs were shut down. We connected with SnacPac Program, and later other organizations to help in some very small way with our donations. This got me thinking… maybe I could pivot my business all together and work on a new venture that would support the cafe’s future success.
I began testing new cookie recipes, getting back to creating, which I have little time to do when operating the cafe. This seemed important to carry Sweet Mimi’s into a new world of expectations and business landscape. Mimi, Charlie and I whisked ideas up, tasted for winners, and purchased a home-based photo lab. Enjoying the excitement of the test kitchen was therapeutic and purposeful. The time with Mimi and Charlie was a gift and I cherished it.
This new venture became the next iteration of Sweet Mimi’s during the pandemic. Mimi and Charlie organized and delivered more than 50 cookie orders a week to porches throughout our community. This was just the beginning of re-thinking the business model. How we do business simply had to change. I had to find a way to embrace e-commerce and social media. Never before was IG, FB and the right marketing team to ensure my website presence more important for our success.
None of this was easy, yet it felt necessary for the survival of the cafe. Each time we have closed and re-opened, thousands of dollars were invested. Inventory, payroll, aligning with new health protocols, and inventing a new recipe for success in new iterations was tough. Like a delicate buttercream, I was close to breaking each time. It was a constant struggle for the dream of more, and the reality of less. How hard my children and I worked for little but the promise of a return to re-opening our doors. The smiles and gratitude of our customers was often the light that we needed. My goal during this time was simply staying in the game.
How far we have come in what seems like a Covid lifetime. I’ve had the ability to look at our industry and reconsider it’s foundation. In 1909, the phrase “the customer is always right” was coined, and that is what we as business owners strive for. To make our customers feel at home and to go to almost any measure to ensure their happiness. Covid-19 has changed that. Boundaries had to be set as our staff and customer safety became paramount. Sometimes ensuring our customers’ best experience couldn’t be the priority over the business and the ways in which we had to operate to keep going. There are now rules and protocols to follow, and we will do our very best to make each experience special, but with boundaries. Sweet Mimi’s exudes warmth and kindness and yet we were tested every day.
As the calendar continues to turn, and restrictions are lifting a pinch at a time, we begin to see our survival was not in vain. The lessons learned along the way will shape the future of how we do our jobs. Heartache in every corner of my once happy place, is slowly being replaced with joyful moments again. The regulars who have returned, the business owners who are cheering for me, the friends and neighbors who stop in just to say hello and do their part to help my bottom line with a warm muffin one day, a coffee to-go the next. The long-time friends of the cafe who have come to reconnect with my staff, to check on our safety, to let us know how much we were missed. The new dad who comes to fill a bakery box to thank the maternity nurses, customers seeking their old favorites, or the cookie sleeves we bag up for customers wanting to cheer a friend. To know that for many, Sweet Mimi’s offered warmth, familiarity and sweetness during this dark period. This is the foundation of what I have come to love about my cafe. It is so much more than what I anticipated in 2013 when I opened my doors. We rely entirely on the good of our community and the friends who support us. I am filled with deep gratitude that can not be properly expressed. It takes a village to be in this game.
Sweet Mimis Cafe survived covid-19. It is humbling and I will never forget. My love for my cafe has been tested. It has been quite a journey and it isn’t quite over. We have months of rebuilding ahead. Our challenges will continue to surface day by day, but today, looking back I am grateful that I can look ahead.
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