THE STORY
Coffee and Tails cat café is determined to become a safe haven for coffee addicts and animal lovers alike. A rustic café offering the chance to relax and de-stress with locally sourced products, the best coffee beans, a good book and a cute cat. Coffee and Tails will offer its customers a tranquil environment to relax with the best quality coffee, food and literature around, all whilst in the company of the 10-15 resident cats.
After working for a large coffee chain for over 14 years between us, myself and my fiance Iain have decided to make our dream of owning our own coffee shop a reality - I knew I had to incorperate our love of animals in there some how, and so along came our cat cafe! This isn't just a coffee shop, this is our life, which we would like to share with all of you.
WHAT WE DO
Coffee and Tails aims to become a must-visit cafe in Exeter, a sanctuary of relaxation for cats and customers alike. Our extensive menu will offer a variety of hot and cold drinks, from espresso based drinks, to fruit teas, and soft drinks. Incorporating locally sourced products, we want to provide a service which can benefit all - we understand standard coffee isn't for everyone, this is why we will offer a variety of milk (soya, almond etc.) and decaffinated teas and coffee. Whilst our food menu is still in the planning stage, we can confirm that a variety of sandwiches, paninis and salads will be available, alongside our freshly made cakes and biscuits. We can also guarantee that we will offer vegeterian, vegan and gluten-free options within our menu!
At Coffee and Tails, we love to give back! We would love to use our business to make a difference in our community. This is why we aim to create a variety of programmes to help people from all walks of life, through apprenticeship and volunteer programmes, day courses, classes and talks by professionals and as many different activities as we can organise. Whether you're a student, employed, unemployed, retired, suffer from a disability, illness, mental illness, suffering from homelessness, or addiction - whatever your situation, we will offer activities to cater to your needs, and you are ALWAYS welcome at Coffee and Tails.
BUT HOW WILL THE CATS FIT IN?
As cats are commonly associated with relaxation (I mean, who doesn't forget all life's stresses when cuddling a cute kitten?!), they will have free rein across our cafe, with an exception to the back of house kitchen which will be stricly no kitties! Here at Coffee and Tails, we are avid cat lovers, owning 3 cats and 1 puppy ourselves. Cat welfare and happiness is extremely important to us, therefore we do not want to exploit our kitties! We have specific rules in place to protect our cats - such as, do not disturb when sleeping, do not pick up, do not scare them etc.. Our cafe will be filled with cat towers, ceiling platforms, rope climbers, tunnels, hideaways, toys and soft/cosy places for our cats to either get involved or watch from afar. They will also have a private bedroom which will be solely theirs - no public access. Whilst we know you all love cats, like you do, our cats need some time to rest and restore their energy in a quiet space. Please please please be aware that we would never do anything to put our cats at risk, therefore we will have somebody specifically monitoring the cats welfare, combined with regular vet check ups and hope to have a qualified animal behaviourist with us too!
WE NEED YOUR HELP!
We would love to open as soon as possible, to rehome 10-15 cats into our homely, relaxing cafe. However, we can't do this without the help of you guys! As crowdfunding is all about the community coming together and helping small businesses get off the ground, we NEED your help to get our project up and running! You guys are so important to us here at Coffee and Tails, therefore all those involved in Crowdfunding will become partners to us - entitling you to a range of discounts and special events!
SO... WHERE WILL YOUR MONEY GO?
1. To ensure our kitties are as at home as possible, first we need to secure the perfect space! This will include a large cafe area, a coffee bar, a back of house kitchen, a private room for the cats and hopefully a backyard area to create an outdoor sanctuary. A lot of time, effort and (unfortunately) money will go into creating this zen-like environment, making it the best space possible to host university groups, book clubs, yoga classes, theatre groups, movie nights and the list goes on!
2. To help us purchase our incredible espresso equipment! Working in the coffee environment for soooo long really made us appreciate a good espresso - i'm sure you guys know how special the perfect coffee is! From sourcing the perfect coffee beans, to the best teas and flavours around - we really cannot serve you the drinks you deserve without this equipment.
3. Other costs - e.g. licences, soliciter fees, cutlery, crockery, marketing, staff training and all the other little bits which all help to create a home away from home for our community!
REWARDS
As a thank you for helping us get started, we have a come up with a range of offers for our lovely partners. From invitations to secret activities before the official opening, to "become a barista" classes and lifetime memberships! Check out all our rewards at the side of this page.
Thank you so much for taking the time to read about Coffee and Tails. We hope you can see the benefit of helping to fund our project, not only for the incredible rewards but also for all we plan to offer! We truly believe we can provide a service beneficial for every single member of the community, we just hope you can believe in us too!
Please feel free to drop us an email if you would like further information:- [email protected]
With purrs and whiskers,
Amy & Iain
The Coffee and Tails Team
Thank you for starting this journey with us - we could not do it without you!