Dottie's Will be Reopening with a Former Employee
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Dottie's Coffee Lounge is reopening with a familiar face at the counter.
Jessica Rufo closed Dottie's July 6 to spend more time with her family after owning it for almost 20 years.
Loic Adandedjan, a former barista and shift lead at the cafe recently started sublisting the space with Rufo. He hopes to one day buy it.
"After it closed, I was also into digital marketing, creating content on social media, and I had a really huge interest while working here, seeing the vibe, the movement, of how everything was, and I didn't want this to end. I didn't want this chapter to close on me," he said. "I'll be sublisting the coffee shop area, and [Rufo'll] be working with me as a mentorship. Mentor me to open this coffee and upgrade this coffee really as successful as possible. And my goal is maybe one year, or even sooner than that, I'll end up buying Dottie's."
Adandedjan started working there last October, making the reopening on Oct. 1 his one year with the cafe. He was not only a barista but also worked behind the counter, as a server, and recently became shift lead before the closure.
"I had a lot of responsibilities working this place, or I also know exactly, basically how to run it, day in, day out, of like, as a shift lead, managing other people," he said. "So that also gave me the confidence boost in myself. Like I think I can, I can do it. I can do it. I could take the lead in running Dottie's.
"Dottie's has been in the city for the last 17 years. It is deep rooted into the city. And I also saw on social media, online, or even just walking by the street, how people really miss the vibe of Dottie's."
He wants to keep Dottie's vibe but also bring some new energy into the eatery.
Adandedjan is painting the interior and changing the seating. He also said the menu will be reduced a little bit but will keep most of Dottie's popular items. He
"I'm in the process of hiring new people. There'll be some familiar faces that were here before as well," he said. "You'll also be seeing some new faces as well."
The response to the news of Dottie's reopening has been great, Adandedjan said, and he is excited to reopen and reconnect with customers.
"I feel really excited. I've had some of the busiest days here. I also have some of the slowest days here. So I know how to manage when it's busy, and also how to not manage one is really slow. So, I'm not terrified of opening it," he said. "I just want the doors to be open and connect with more people, see how people are happy when they come inside, having a cup of latte, a cup of tea, just sitting here, working on the computer, chatting with some amazing people, because I made a lot of connection here also as well.
"So I'm super grateful for that. I want that community, that Dottie's was creating on a daily basis, on a weekly basis, to come back. Awesome."
Adandedjan said he started doing a series on his social media where he highlights other businesses in the community and learns about what they are doing. He plans to continue the series and collaborate more with other businesses once Dottie's is reopened.
"I started doing this series to kind of promote small businesses around this area, doing food, beauty, food, restaurant reviews. And it brought a lot of attention. And all of that led me to be like, if Dottie's was still open, I would have done one of these as well," he said. "And opening this is not only going to bring more people here, it is also a way for me to collaborate with small businesses around us, sharing what they're doing on social media."
He feels this will bring people to Pittsfield to see how its a beautiful city with a good community.
"A lot of good things happening here as well," he continued.
Adandedjan said through all of this work and connections Dottie's will be even better than before.
"I know this place will come back, will open Oct. 1 and Dottie's is still the same, but the vibe and your energy around here will be much more uplifted, because I know through all the things I'm planning on doing in the future, like social media, connecting with more people, putting more Pittsfield on the map," he said. "This place will come back to life and rise even higher than it was before."
Tags: business changes, coffeeshop,
