The Founders of Bitty & Beau’s Coffee on Building a Business Around Employees with Disabilities

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80% of people with disabilities in the United States are unemployed. The founders of Bitty & Beau's Coffee were determined their kids wouldn't become part of that statistic.

It might sound like a cliché, but the idea for Bitty & Beau’s Coffee really did come to Amy in the shower. At that time, in 2015, our youngest two children, both of whom have Down syndrome, were six and 11, and we’d been talking about what their future as teens and then adults would look like.

When Beau was born with Down syndrome, in 2004, we felt a mix of emotions: fear of the unknown, because neither of us had had any experience with disability; worry about what our newborn son would need and how we could help him navigate the world; and, candidly, grief over the loss of the child we’d expected to have. Thankfully, we both quickly transitioned to a more positive mindset—embracing Beau as he is and feeling very blessed to have him.

Our doors opened in January 2016 to great local fanfare, and it was exactly as we’d imagined. People were coming in; slowing down; receiving friendly, efficient service; drinking great coffee; and, most important, having meaningful personal exchanges with our team members. And our customers weren’t just from the neighborhood. Some saw the employee stories we shared on social media and drove from all over the country to visit the shop; others planned vacations to come see us.

Our headquarters staff has grown in tandem: We now have franchise liaison teams, creative services, and a much larger roasting operation and fulfillment group that sends our coffee beans around the country. We may eventually add more corporate-owned shops, but that takes time; meanwhile, franchising helps us capitalize on the momentum we’ve created. Indeed, international expansion may also be on the horizon.

 

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