WHEN the doors swing open and the aroma of fresh coffee emits for the first time from Crib Cake and Coffee in Waikiki on Saturday morning, it will mark the culmination of a number of years work by owner Jessica Madden to bring a dream to fruition.
Miss Madden started a career in hospitality with a catering company in Hobart, but has spent the past nine years working various jobs in the mining industry.
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READ NOWSick of the repetitiveness of operating mining equipment, she brainstormed ideas to get back into hospitality to realise a long-held dream to run her own business and started putting money aside to make it happen.
“Over time I had just gotten over the repetitiveness of (FIFO) work and began to think of what else I could challenge myself with and achieve,” she said.
“I started my career in hospitality in a city lunch bar and catering group called 4lunch in Hobart and spent four years with them. Then I moved to WA with hopes of getting into mining. My love for cooking and creating with food has remained; I was always cooking for family and friends.
“I starting looking at B&Bs but they didn’t seem right. Then I started to look at established lunch bars and franchises. The lunch bar wasn’t really for me as lunch bar customers generally are after deep fried processed foods, and franchises were very expensive. After looking into it more, I felt like you were basically a hired manager running the franchise.”
She saw an ad on Gumtree for a shop lease at Stargate Shopping Centre and after researching the surrounding area and visiting the shop was sold on it being the perfect place to start her own cafe, selling fresh sandwiches, cake, meals and coffee.
To introduce herself to the local community, Miss Madden will be hosting a cupcake sale on the cafe’s opening day. All proceeds from cupcake sales will be donated to nearby Charthouse Primary School.
“The cupcake charity sale is my way of introducing myself and giving back to the local community,” she said.
“Starting this cafe has been the hardest challenge I’ve ever had. I’ve had some really great mentors along the way. I can’t wait to get started.”
Crib Cake and Coffee opens at 7.30am on Saturday. It is located at Stargate Shopping Centre, 11/78 Charthouse Road in Waikiki.