Published in the Worcester Business Journal
How a long-time dream came true
For Elvis Dyer, the new owner of Sturbridge Coffee Roasters in Southbridge, the education began before he bought the business in July. Dyer, a coffee connoisseur, had dreamed of owning a business since childhood. He offered to buy the coffee shop a few times over the last two years and even persuaded the owner to show him how to roast the coffee before he agreed to sell the business.
But that's where the former owner's influence ended. Dyer opted to revamp the shop, closing it during August before reopening under the same name. After rebranding and an interior makeover, Dyer thinks he probably would have spent about the same amount of money and time if he had started the business from scratch. What he thought would take a couple of weeks ended up taking a month, with Dyer putting in 15-hour days and spending about $25,000.
Despite this realization, Dyer is unfazed. He thinks he got a good deal, and the best part is that he doesn't have to answer to a boss as he did when he worked in the automotive and financial sectors.
“There wasn't complete happiness for me and usually it was because there was a boss dictating what I was to do,” Dyer said.