Everyday is different with respect to my tasks and my workflow. We joke that I am both the Director of Facilities for the four locations (which means coordinating any building + equipment repairs + furniture and aesthetic updates and designs within each of the four walls) and I’m the Marketing Department  — we don’t actually have one, but I’m the one in charge of our PR, social media posts, community engagement, as well as our merchandise + apparel with our awesome partners at BrandAid. But I absolutely gather input and collaborate with our leadership team.

How or why did you begin your company/brand partnership?

Publik began as an adaptive reuse building project of a 1940/1960’s warehouse that I had purchased. The intention was to house Pubilk Coffee + Publik Space which were part of a new business partnership, and then a very quick dissolution of that partnership within the first year. In the second year, Publik Coffee launched me into opening an additional coffeehouse in the Avenues and our restaurant on 9th/9th, both housed in two other SLC properties that I own. Then along came Publik Ed’s (in the space near the U that was formerly “Big Ed’s”). The synthesis of the four locations has been pretty quick and wonderful.

How have you worked to redefine your industry?

I think the simple fact of coffee (+ breweries, distilleries) in Utah is growing is the redefinition and it’s about all of the trail blazers in our city! There are so many good coffee companies in SLC and we’re all very friendly. In fact, the Utah Coffee Collective was created last year to bring the industry together. I serve on that board and we are establishing some collaborative relationships within the industry.

What future collaborations and plans are we going to be seeing?

We’re about to open in the new Industry SLC building, which is 300,000 sq ft of amazing office spaces of various sizes from 100 to 60,000 sq feet. One of the tenant amenities is an auditorium and we’ll be doing catering + coffee for that as well as the whole building. “Publik Works”, the cafe + coffee bar, opens this summer.

What are the characteristics of your brand?

Quality over quantity, community over corporate, planet over profit

What guiding words do you have for other woman beginning their own business?

Set your intention. Surround yourself with people who are smarter than you are and who have entirely different or complementary skill sets. Trust the process.

Why does what you do matter?

Perhaps the biggest impact that our company makes, and one of the most important things for me, is in providing a safe and inclusive environment for our employees to learn a craft + develop skills, and to do those things in a place that accepts them for who they are. We’re also proud to serve quality coffee + good food in spaces that help elevate the customer experience.

What things influence your company?

We try to walk the talk of “planet over profit in every way. We are the only coffee roastery in Utah that is 100% solar powered that also has an oxidizer, which filters out 96% of the particulates created during the roasting process. We don’t want to contribute to the air quality issues that SLC suffers from. We use local products wherever we can, like Amour Jam, Red Bicycle Breadworks (City Cakes for our gluten free) and Rosehill Dairy. We have sustainable + recycling practices built into our daily processes at all four locations. We compost all of our coffee grounds + the accompanying filters and we dispose of our restaurant’s food waste using the food digester at Wasatch Resource Recovery in North SL.

How can customers help you during this time?

While we all navigate the current COVID-19 situation and the indefinite + extended closure of many small businesses, Publik would love your support in the form of gift card purchases for use when their doors reopen – Gift cards can be used at all four Publik locations : Publik Coffee (downtown + Avenues), Publik Kitchen + Publik Ed’s.