“Even in this economy, our sales are running 15 percent ahead of a year ago,” she said.
She also thinks that Starbucks doesn’t understand the concept of a neighborhood coffee house.
“This is a culture that comes from the bottom up,” she said. “We know the customers, we use local talent and art that fit the community. I don’t think you can do that from a corporate headquarters.”
A few hundred meters down the street, Courtney Howard, the manager of Cafi Ladro, is not worried about the new competition.
“In today’s economy, everybody’s trying to stay afloat,” Howard said.
“If they’re trying to go back to the neighborhood feel, I say more power to them,” she said.
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