Hidden Gems of CLT: Coordinates Coffee

CHARLOTTE, NC — Coordinates Coffee Company is rolling their way around the Queen City bringing authentic flavors to help fuel your day.

WCCB Charlotte’s Alexandra Elich visits the mobile coffee shop in this week’s Hidden Gems of Charlotte.

When it’s a time to pause, have a conversation or maybe even a first date. These moments often had over a cup of coffee.

“It’s an opportunity for someone to sit down and we’re talking to each other, we’re face-to-face and we’re building connections.
But it’s also really easy for two strangers to pass while picking up coffee to form some kind of connection and we’re all part of this community. So it’s a very like easy way for us to come together,” says Jasmine Koch co-founder of Coordinates Coffee.

In fact, coffee is how Jasmine Koch and Joseph Keenan’s story began. The friends met for the first time over a cup.

“We met over coffee and that’s always been the heart of our connection and we both always wanted to get into it, it was always a dream of ours,” say Koch.

In 2018 the pair tried buying a coffee shop in South End. The sale fell through but made their desire to get into coffee even stronger.

“It was a crucial moment where we looked at each other and we’re like we wanna do this. Are we gonna let this break us or are we going to pivot,” says Joseph Keenan, co-founder of Coordinates Coffee.

That summer, Koch found a horse trailer for sale online. She called Keenan and the two picked it up.

“Up until that moment we got her, neither one of us knew how to hitch a trailer,” says Keenan.

They customized the trailer, personalizing every detail and started making coffee with authentic flavors that are fresh and in season. In October 2019 they booked their first event in Tega Cay. With no background in coffee but fueled by passion they both vowed to just figure it out.

“That’s what makes it so special. Everything we touch in here it wasn’t made at a factory or by a company. We did it or her dad did it so we have a very very good connection to it,” says Keenan.

Since then people have taken notice of Coordinates Coffee. Parking at different locations across Charlotte throughout the week. With the Instagramable trailer and the pouches, they were at first used to be fun, but then used as Keenan and Koch’s voice. With pouches that say, “Black lives matter.”

“This is our company, this is our business, this is what we stand for and we’re willing to accept whatever comes along with it.
Because our pouches, that’s our voice and we’re not afraid to let the community and the world know what we stand for,” says Keenan.

In September both Keenan and Koch left their fulltime stable jobs. Keenan in real estate business intelligence and Koch a teacher. They say stepping out of their comfort zone to find true happiness is key.

“For us this is really big and we both have children so it’s also really important for us to be able to show them, we went out and followed a dream and we’re living it. And we chose our happiness over stability,” says Koch.

For now the owners are enjoying their success with plans to open a brick and mortar location in the future.

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