She Was a Regular at a Struggling Coffee Shop. Then She Bought It, and 4X the Annual Revenue to $1.8 Million. Kristen Haseotes bought a failing location of Bad Ass Coffee of Hawaii, and then slammed the gas on growth. Here's how she became the franchise's top performer.
By Kim Kavin Edited by Frances Dodds
This story appears in the September 2024 issue of Entrepreneur. Subscribe »
Kristen Williams-Haseotes bought a struggling Bad Ass Coffee and made it the brand's top-performing location. Now it's on track to drive at least $1.8 million in revenue in 2024. How? She knew nothing about the coffee business, but she understood the importance of community, and how it gives places meaning.
Haseotes once ran a home for ex-offenders reentering the community, and then worked in community development at a bank. In 2019, while living in Naples, Florida, she was a regular at the local Bad Ass Coffee of Hawaii, because she loved the sense of community there: "It's where everybody came and sat together and had a cup of coffee," she says — from local electricians and landscapers to millionaires and billionaires. But the location was struggling, with revenue of only $430,000 a year. So she bought it. Here's what she did next.
Related: Why You Should Buy a Franchise Instead of Starting Your Own
1. Promote from within.
Haseotes hired some new staffers, but also got to know the existing team members, and looked for outsize potential. One barista in particular, Daniel Guimond, seemed ready for a major promotion — so she made him a manager. "It made all the difference. My advice is to look around and see who does the work and exceeds expectations. That's who deserves a shot."
2. See the bigger opportunity.
Haseotes had a chance to expand into the space next door. This made little financial sense — twice as much rent, but no ability to expand the menu (due to a parking and zoning issue). But to Haseotes, her shop wasn't really about coffee. It was about community — and the new space could host music, lectures, and more.
3. Always foster connections.
Haseotes had to close for the shop's renovation, but during that time she offered free coffee to customers outside. And after a hurricane, she took free coffee to first responders. "We didn't want people to go elsewhere. It's about routine," she says. "I paid the staff. But with the tip cup, we donated that money to charity. When people gave, they gave generously."
Advice from the Franchisor
Don't let big changes distract you from business fundamentals, says Bad Ass Coffee of Hawaii CEO Scott Snyder. For example, the franchise was acquired the same year that Haseotes bought the Naples location — and the new owner launched a total brand redesign soon after. But Haseotes knew she had to iron out the basics before aesthetics.
She was laser-focused on "inventory, having equipment that works, and following the guidelines we were setting," Snyder says. And it worked. "She nearly doubled the store in the first year without making any fundamental changes to the design."
