Coffee, floral beer and life Keelung youth create local scenes

Keelung is located on the north coast and is famous for its harbour views and Miaokou Night Market. A random search on the Internet shows the introduction of many sea-view cafes. Food and sea views have become a must-see for tourists. However, in Keelung, where there are so many cafes, in addition to accommodating tourists, how to accommodate the needs of local people is even more of a challenge. For the operators of the two cafes, "Yishen" and "Beer Kajiu", in addition to welcoming tourists, they also tried to deepen their business routes into Keelung.

A classic treat next to a flower arrangement movie scene in a cafe

"There are very few composite shops doing flower art and coffee in Keelung. There have been some studios in the past two years, but the shop that can pick up the most physical flowers is currently us." Zeng Chenxun, the person in charge of Yishen, mentioned that he and His wife, Mo, co-founded two brands, "Flow Café" and "Dear All". The store is located on the second and third floors of the old apartment in front of Keelung Station. Flow Café sells all kinds of drinks and desserts, and Dear All is a flower arrangement brand operated by Ah Mo, offering flower arrangement courses, flower material sales and space arrangement.

At the same time, there is a cafe with flower art teaching, and the space planning is also ingenious. Elegant decor, floral work and keeping the layout of the old apartment. The store is located outside the convenience of the station. Looking out from the window on the third floor, you can see the classic scene of the movie "Millennium Mambo", the Zhongshan Land Bridge known as the "Shu Qi Land Bridge". The beauty of the space and the advantages of the store location attract a steady stream of visitors from other places. In fact, for this couple, the original plan was for the locals.

"Our old store is not in the urban area, and the bus has to transfer twice, which is not very convenient for Keelung people who want to take a flower art class." So after the lease of the old store expired, they re-planned a new one in the urban area. The space provides a more intimate and convenient choice for Keelung citizens who love flower art creation.

Coffee, beer and music, a new choice in the old neighborhood of the commission store

Huang Qianfeng, who also has a local business philosophy, opened his own brand of beer and coffee space in the Keelung Entrusted Bank neighborhood. Due to its proximity to Keelung Port, the entrusted block used to be an important distribution center for imported products from northern Taiwan. With the gradual development of international trade and economic development, the original functions of the block have declined. In recent years, more restaurants and restaurants have settled in, and there are also regular market decorations.

Qian Feng, the person in charge of Beer, Coffee, and Brewery, had a joint venture with a friend to open a coffee shop in Taipei in the past. Because of fate, he knew the entrusted store and decided to run his own brand here. Although some new stores have already settled in the block, he looks forward to having more friends who are equally enthusiastic to open stores in the entrusted store together to inject new vitality into the old block.

Beer, coffee and wine with a strong decoration style is a space created by Huang Qianfeng. "The advantage of being a sole proprietorship is that it can be done in the way I expect." The walls are made of green and bright orange paint, but the unique gravel walls of the old house are still preserved , floor tiles, and lots of antique furniture from the landlord. As for the atmosphere in the store, he likes vinyl records to buy a record player and speakers, and he is more enthusiastic about sharing the best and best positions in the sound field. The comfortable store space allows customers to enjoy the owner's taste in art and music while drinking coffee and beer.

No need to go to Taipei, enjoy the local life in Keelung

With the development of transportation in recent years, it has become more and more convenient to travel between Keelung and Taipei. While the number of foreign tourists is increasing, it is also convenient for locals to go to Taipei. But "why can't what you do in Taipei not work in Keelung?" It is expected that Keelung people can enjoy the same quality service as Taipei in the local area.

The two brand stores happened to open stores during the epidemic. Although the initial impact was affected, they also participated in the Keelung City Government's "Youth Entrepreneurship and Public Subsidy Program". brands to overcome operational challenges.

Among them, Flow cafe and Dear all adhere to the original concept of opening a store. As parents with children, "I hope that parents in Keelung don't have to go to Taipei to take parent-child courses." This is Zeng Kenxun and Ah Mo's expectations when the new store was established. Courses such as floral planting, handicrafts, and storytelling in picture books are planned, targeting local families in Keelung.

With the assistance of the city government team, they are even more looking forward to spreading the energy of helping places. Ah Mo once helped middle school students who were exploring their careers to take a flower art class. This kind of art creation class that is not common on campus is difficult for students from economically disadvantaged families to participate. They also plan to incorporate life aesthetic feedback courses into the grant program. Through the matchmaking of the city government, we will help more young students who are interested in flower art to experience the beauty of flower art creation together.

Combined with the cross-border team, it belongs to the catering service limited by Keelung

After Zeng Kenxun and Ah Mo participated in the subsidy program, they got to know many young teams in Keelung. Some of them are also engaged in catering, but more come from different fields. Seeing the workers who also contribute to the local area, they try to connect more local teams to the operation of the entire store. For example, the packaging design planning of floral products in the future will find a local design team. Currently, books are also imported from the independent bookstore "Little Beast Bookstore" and sold in the store, so that the business in the store can be more connected with the local area.

Huang Qianfeng of Beer and Coffee is also planning activities in the store. Although due to the impact of the epidemic, the actual opening time of the store is about half a year, but the interesting style of the store and his strong aura have accumulated many local regular customers. He hopes to invite local music creators to perform in the store in the future, or hold wine tasting and wine tasting parties to create a free life scene belonging to Keelung people.

Whether it is coffee combined with floral arrangements, or wine tasting and music, both brands have stepped out of catering and found their own positioning. Although there are many challenges in the initial stage, customers are unfamiliar with the brand, and before they have established a sense of trust, it is easy to be questioned "why not choose more Taipei at the same price?". But "being on the ground" does not mean that everything is "value for money", but it is possible to participate in meaningful activities in the field of daily life in a reasonable situation with the same "value for money".

Starting a business is not easy, but it is also not allowed to give up the original intention

Now that the epidemic in Taiwan has eased, the two brands have gradually stepped out of their own way. Looking back at the start-up, Zeng Kenxun believes that the most important thing is to find out the positioning of the product, and should not compete on price. He said, "It's like Ah Mo's floral works, because each piece can only be made one, and if the customer misses it, it will be gone, but the non-repetition of the work also creates the uniqueness of the brand." Continuously launching new products not only maintains creative vitality, but also Increase guest repeat rate.

Huang Qianfeng, who has a strong style, insists on starting a business and doing what he likes. He said with a smile: "The music I like must be played in the store before I can start work." He is very hands-on with the staff. His approachable personality also attracts many regular customers. Often, customers designate to sit at the bar just to chat with the boss. Huang Qianfeng's image has long been integrated with the beer, coffee and wine brand.

Under the influence of the global epidemic, the brick-and-mortar catering industry has been greatly affected. In the process of seeking transformation, it is also to examine the relationship between entrepreneurs and brands. The Keelung City Government's plan provides guidance on business policies, and entrepreneurs follow their original intentions and local needs to create a local coffee shop scene in Keelung. They started between the epidemics and will continue after the epidemics.

SyndAvant brings together creative people who are willing to apply their creativity and expertise to transform and advance society. We call them Avantists. This series of interviews will show you how these Avantists manage their professions, use their talents and influence, and then form a positive influence on society.

Editor: Hou Yicheng Photography: Yu Nong, Han Yunqing

Review: Vera