New home, same brew

St. Vital

Wolseley

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 04/10/2023 (947 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Sam’s got a new place.

Sam’s Place, a not-for-profit coffee shop owned and operated by MCC (Mennonite Central Committee) Manitoba, has moved to a brand-new location in the east Exchange District.

Now at 140 Bannatyne Ave., the café — newly designed by Number TEN Architectural Group, with Gen Z in mind — is blossoming in the heart of one of Winnipeg’s most walkable areas.

The change came with the move of MCC’s main office to the same building, which is a floor above the café, said Alison Greenslade, Sam’s Place operational manager — and, in just the first week since moving, the coffee shop has seen as much traffic as the old location would have normally seen in a month.

“It works really well for us,” Greenslade said. “Now we’re in this perfect corner, with heavy pedestrian and vehicle traffic.”

The old location — on Henderson Highway — was on a commuter route, she added, for many people who were generally on their way to work downtown.

Sam’s Place’s slogan is “coffee for a cause,” said program co-ordinator Rebecca Engel. All profits made from the shop’s items — which include a variety of specialty coffees, pastries, and tea, as well as merchandise, beans and other take-home treats — go to MCC’s youth program.

The program, aimed at young people aged 14 to 24 who face barriers to getting employment, is what Sam’s Place operates upon. Everyone behind the till, aside from management and those doing the training, are in the process of practising essential work and life skills such as service, food handling and hospitality, but also workplace wellness, social skills, and professional development.

“(Engel has) done a lot of work in building a curriculum that’s really holistic,” Greenslade said. “First-job responsibilities, hygiene, and ‘what are your worker rights?’ Because young workers don’t know, and don’t know where to find this information. So when they move onto paid employment, they’re in a safe workspace and protecting their well-being.”

The new location has already improved operations, Greenslade said. The Henderson location was much slower, so worker in a faster-paced environment will hopefully make the transition to work-life less stressful for the program’s participants.

“Huge wins are sometimes eye contact with the customer or answering the phone,” Engel said. “That’s a big source of anxiety for people … so (we) talk about it. There are cheat sheets everywhere, there are games about practising social skills … it’s uncomfortable if you don’t know about any of that.”

Engel has rewritten the curriculum to reflect the move, as well, splitting it into two: core curriculum, which covers the general skills needed to work in any type of service environment; and an additional barista curriculum, which participants can continue with if they feel that specific path interests them.

The youth program currently has three intakes a year, and each intake accepts 10 new participants.

“We’re beginning with quality over quantity,” said Engel, explaining that a new curriculum means room for mistakes and evaluation.

“We’d love to take in every applicant we get … we could fill multiple Sam’s Places and we’d still have a wait-list,” Greenslade said.

“We know that the need is always more than we can handle … We’ve seen it in other places we’re inspired by,” Engel said — such as Wildfire, in Minnesota, and the more local L’Arche Tove Cafe, which currently has a wait-list that’s years long, according to Greenslade.

“The post-COVID (issues are) very apparent. The lack of socializing … the amount of folks with depression and anxiety is huge,” Engel added.

However, the youth program has so far been successful with providing help to those who need it, with around 50 program completions a year.

In keeping with the theme of exposure, the new location also has a room for volunteers in MCC’s material resources program. Coffee drinkers can catch a glimpse of volunteers — of all ages — preparing orders behind a large, windowed wall on the side of the lounge.

Sam’s Place is open from 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Monday to Friday, and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturdays.

For more information, visit www.samsplacecoffee.com or donate.mcccanada.ca