Can you tell me about how you started working with coffee and what brought you to Wellington’s cafe scene?

The first time I touched coffee was not actually in Wellington. It was back in Auckland. I had a hospitality job, and there was an espresso machine there, so I got my coffee training at that store. And then when I came to Wellington for university, I needed a job because life was expensive. And so that's how I got my barista job, because everyone needs a barista.

What do you think makes Wellington’s coffee culture unique?

The volume of it. There's just such a saturation of coffee in Wellington, and because there is such a wide range, there are a lot of options for variation inside of that. Because Wellington has a lot of their own coffee roasters, Laffare was born in Wellington as well as Havana. So, as there are a lot of roasteries that started here, it's natural that there's going to be a lot of coffee shops.

How have you seen the coffee industry in Wellington change over the past couple of years?  Have you seen an overall trend of positive or negative growth?

Definitely negative growth. Like, it's just been declining. I work around parliament, so I work with a lot of public servants and over the past few years, job cuts have been insane. There's been a lot of restructuring, so a lot of my customer base is gone, like, it's been halved. And then the people who are still coming can’t afford as much coffee as they used to. I definitely have customers that when they come in, and I go, “I haven't seen you in ages” or like “I don't see you as often”. And they say, “I can't afford to have coffee, so I have to have coffee at home”. So it's definitely declined. I think just because there are too many people and not enough jobs, everyone is overworked and underpaid, and they just can’t afford coffee.

What is your favourite part about working as a barista?

My customers! I am a resident yapper; everyone and their mother knows that I’m a yapper. I literally have customers that I’ll make their coffee in the morning for necessity, and they’ll come back in the afternoon, and I'll be like, “Oh, do you need a coffee?” They were like, “No, I'm just here to talk, and I knew you'd be down for a conversation”. I love the range of people I get to see, because I see hundreds of people, and I'm one part of their life that's not related to family or work. So I like being that small moment, something fun. I definitely love my customers.
But talking technicalities, I fucking love steaming milk. Because once you get your silky milk and you can pour your little latte art, you feel like a god. Like fucking exactly. That's what I've trained to do. So that makes me feel really good.

What are some recent successes you have experienced in your career?

I'm the head barista, so that’s slay. I'm pretty much in charge of everything, and I train all the new girls. [My work] is trying to open a second store, I just don't know when. But I will be managing that second store, and I’ll get a manager pay rise and stuff, which is cool.

What are some challenges you have faced within the coffee industry? 

I would say compensation or responsibility because it is a hospitality job. I feel like baristas get taken advantage of sometimes. I don't know. There aren't really many challenges because I'm good at my job. [...] Mostly, people are happy to see you because you're giving them caffeine. So they're kind of thankful for your existence. I do think my challenges are more behind the scenes. It’s hard to navigate being a barista as a full-time job because it's only ever seen as a part-time job.
We had to raise our prices recently, but that was because a lot of other cafes had to raise their prices earlier in the year, and the price of coffee beans went up. So that was a little hard. Because I had to tell everyone that the prices had gone up, and be like “I’m so sorry”. No one wants to raise their prices. So [my cafe] kind of held off for as long as we could until it wasn't financially stable to do so anymore.

What do you think needs to happen for Wellington’s coffee culture to thrive? How can specifically consumers help? 

The price of coffee is a bit insane, and so it deters people a lot, but also, it's just because no one can afford it. [...] I don't know if there's anything customers can do. Besides supporting local, and trying to buy coffee, because if no one's buying it, we have to raise our prices. But then they can't afford it. So like it's, I don't know. Mostly the economy’s fault.
Also, in some places, coffee becomes very complicated. It's exciting and fun, but it kind of deters older generations who don't know as many flavours. I love a good, cheeky speciality coffee, but I am worried that we're only focusing on speciality coffees instead of doing it as an addition to classic coffee. Just don't lose track of the core of what coffee is.

Other than your cafe, what is your favourite Wellington cafe and why?

Collective Coffee in Te Awe library. Obviously, libraries you usually use for studying or research, I think having a cafe in there is actually a smart idea because you can get fueled up with food and coffee, and then you work. I whipped out two portfolios when I was sitting in that library cafe. I sat there, I ordered a coffee, I ordered an almond croissant, and [...] I sat there for like four hours straight. They close quite late, too. So it was good, I could really get into my deep work, and then because I'm already in the library when the coffee shop closed, I just walked across the hallway, and I didn't have to break my focus.
I also like Annexe Cafe because, again, it's in a bookshop. It's a convenient place, but still has a nice atmosphere. It's good, it’s affordable, and it's actually quite yummy. And it's just fun because it's not often that you have a cafe at a bookstore.

What gives you hope for the future of Wellington’s coffee scene?

I just hope that it survives. I hope that people can get back to affording coffee. Because coffee is obviously such a tool in society, people go for a coffee for a date, people go for a coffee for a work meeting, and they go for a coffee for a little break at work. I feel like going for a coffee, even if you don't drink coffee, even if you get a hot chocolate or something, it's still such a fundamental part of everyday life, and it would be a shame to have to cut back on that. Because I feel like then people really wouldn't have a safe third space they could go to relax and enjoy friends and connections and things. So I just hope that coffee culture survives so that human connection can also survive.