Chapter 25

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Chapter 25 – A Barista with 10 years of Experience

The sculpture was not immediately finished. Although I had the overall shape, it still took a long time to refine and complete it in detail.

But I wasn’t in a hurry.

Just as sentences in a story get better the more they are refined, the more the sculpture gets refined, the better it is.

‘Let’s take our time slowly.’

It was around the time when everything was about 91.7% complete.

The seeds that had been sown began to bear fruit.

“What do you think? I worked hard on it.”

The first things that arrived were the tables and chairs. When I held them with both hands and shook them, they were firm.

“They’re sturdy.”

At my words, the senior of the Architecture Department shrugged and said, “Of course they’re sturdy. If they shook even a little, my jaw would shake to the professor.”

[TL/N: Saying that they would absolutely be berated harshly by their professor if their works were not up to standards]

“······.”

I don’t know if it’s a joke or not.

Anyway, the quality of the work was impeccable.

‘Great. At this rate, I’ll be able to spend less than half of my budget.’

Next were the decorations that Hanseol brought.

“Why are there so many?”

It wasn’t just a few. More than 20 pieces of wood the size of an adult’s fist were carved into wooden animals or violin pieces.

Hanseol brought them in a plastic bag as if she had bought them at a market and said,

“You don’t like it?”

“No. It’s perfect.”

It’s just a pity that almost all my money is going to the cafe.

I shed tears and let go.

‘I need to get a few cabinets from somewhere.’

The lighting engineer also visited yesterday. As mentioned before, the lights were now moderately bright and not dazzling.

Smack!

Turn it on and it was just perfect.

‘Good. There’s nothing like light to fill the room up in a hurry. It’s thrilling.’

This time, I turned to the counter. There was a menu that Kim Dae-won was in charge of making.

[Heaven’s Door Special: Arabica blend based on Colombian coffee beans. A floral scent added to the oak barrel body. After the bitterness of chocolate, the lingering taste of vanilla is sugary sweet.]

“Well.”

I nodded my head solemnly.

‘I have no idea what that’s saying at all.’

I don’t have a clue even though they were sentences that I wrote down.

If it’s bitter, it’s bitter. Chocolate is definitely something else.

Still, there weren’t any major problems.

‘If I don’t know anything, then the other students won’t know either.’

Fortunately, the coffee in this store did not taste like herbal medicine. According to the owner, he was buying and using good coffee beans.

The taste of the coffee makes up half of the store’s atmosphere in the first place. As long as it isn’t at the level of spitting out, the students will think of it well on their own.

‘If you do this, then you’ve done the basics.’

I turned my head, looked at the owner and asked, “What do you think?”

“What do you mean?” He smiled brightly and said. “It’s clearly much better than when I was the only one who decorated this place. It’s a shame that I couldn’t meet you sooner.”

He also looked very different from before. He trimmed his messy hairstyle at the salon and wore a uniform made by Park Kyu-tae.

The combination was awesome.

‘Who would think that he was a new owner in his first year when they saw this?’

He could probably even pass off as a barista with at least 10 years of experience.

The coffee this person brews must be delicious.

Or maybe not….

I am way too optimistic.

It was around the time when preparations for the opening of the cafe were slowly coming to an end.

Ring-ing.

The doorbell rang.

Looking back, Kim Dae-won was holding a signboard.

“What do you think?”

“It looks good.”

On the signboard, the words [Heaven’s Door] was written in fresh handwriting.

Now there’s only one moment left before the opening.

*

To be honest, it was brilliant from the start.

“Oh, have you ever noticed this place here?”

Since the very first day of opening after the remodeling, there have been many customers.

“The architecture kids boasted about it every day. They told me to come and see it because they made the interior.”

“Are those sculptures made by the Architecture Department?”

“The name of the person who made it is written at the bottom.”

“Hanseol? Isn’t she the one in the Sculpture Department?”

“Did they make it all together?”

Customers kept coming.

Since my acquaintances were the ones who decorated the interior, there were many customers who came here to take a look, and there were also many other types of customers.

“There’s a store like this here?”

They were customers who didn’t even know that there was a cafe.

‘Wow. I’ve heard that 17 times already.’

I looked around with a pleased expression.

The 15-pyeong store was full.

[TL/N: The pyong is a traditional Korean unit of area equal to about 3.306 square meters or 3.954 square yards]

The owner couldn’t believe the scene, and he couldn’t hide his joyous expression as he was bewildered.

He never promoted the cafe separately, so how come there are so many customers from the first day?

The reason was simple.

“There are a lot of people,” Ju Ji-hoon, who finished his work, muttered in a surprised voice as he entered the store.

“Brother, you’re here.”

“Yeah, but why is this place so popular now? I think it was empty when I first came a few days ago.”

“It’s the power of publicity.”

“Publicity? What kind of publicity?”

When Ju Ji-hoon asked, I smiled and said, “It’s a business secret.”

The business secret was right in front of me.

Ju Ji-hoon.

He was the reason why business was going so well here.

‘It’s enough to attract just one person with strong connections to promote a local store.’

There are many ways to promote your store.

There are countless things such as blog marketing, SNS marketing, and CM.

However, many of these methods aren’t available yet.

The reason is that, CM is expensive, and blogs and SNS marketing weren’t available at this time. Instead, there was only one method that could be used during this era.

‘It’s a world where words contain power.’

It was word of mouth.

It’s a local business after all.

There was nothing like word of mouth.

‘The loyalty of customers who come by word of mouth is different from others.’

And…

It was Ju Ji-hoon who I thought of as a medium to spread word.

‘The rumor spread just because Ji-hoon mentioned it here and there.’

Using him as a stepping stone, he attracted a lot of his architecture colleagues, and soon they also became good publicity outlets.

Wherever they are, whatever they’re doing, they will continue to talk to the people surrounding them.

Han Yewon is small.

How long will it take to spread word of this place to everyone?

This wasn’t all.

‘If I take pictures here and submit them as assignments, this store will be promoted again.’

The owner likes the fact that there are still this many people, but even this was just the beginning. However, it’s another problem with those who have come here as regular customers.

So, I also passed on the secret to attracting regulars.

The secret was plainness.

‘Neighborhood cafes don’t have to be too special.’

There is a common misconception among beginners, thinking that one’s own store should have its own strengths.

This is the case when developing special menus or equipping a store with colorful interiors.

‘That could be a success.’

However, in most cases, it isn’t.

‘What consumers need are reasonable prices and service that is better than what they expect, even if only by a little.’

The comfort of being able to visit easily whenever you think of it, and basic equipment such as sturdy chairs and tables.

This was enough for a cafe.

Moreover, this store is located near a university.

‘The position of the store itself is strong. This is great.’

The basic business district already supports it, so is there any need to overdo it? However, that doesn’t mean we haven’t tried at all.

“Huh? If you pack your coffee here, it’s less than half the price.”

“I should stop by every morning.”

“Boss, can we have 8 cups of coffee to go?”

The owner replied with a bright smile, “I’ll stamp 8 coupons for you.”

Takeout and coupons worked well.

This alone could greatly increase accessibility.

Perhaps if they buy coffee and go to their classrooms, the people who see it will spread word again and again.

‘I wish I could make a cup with a dedicated store logo on it…. but that’s going to be a bit difficult right now.’

There is a limit to what an undergraduate student can touch.

This is enough for the show-off.

I’m human Lee Jaeha.

I know humility.

‘There is no need to step up.’

When he tastes the sales, the owner will come find me on his own.

“Come again!” The owner shouted in a happy voice.

He was busy making coffee, serving, greeting, and about to die from working so hard.

‘You’ll have to hire a part-timer soon.’

A smile naturally formed on my lips.

The success of this store will be directly linked to my career.

‘It’s time to work slowly.’

I was looking forward to this vacation.

*

“Hello, did you have a good lunch?”

Environment and design class.

Professor Bae Tae-hwan exclaimed in a bright voice, “Did you do well on your assignments? I believe you’ve all done a great job. Let’s come out in the order of presentation.”

There are three groups in charge of today’s presentation.

The first of the three walked forward.

Our group is next.

We were in the middle.

‘Shall we take a look?’

The speaker of the current group spoke, “Hello, our group has re-decorated a club room.”

A picture popped up on the screen.

The interior is so messy that you can’t even tell whether it’s a place where people live or a pig cage.

It was like a hangout for college students.

‘It’s a wise choice.’

I realized it the moment I saw the picture.

‘You were trying to enjoy the contrast effect.’

Considering that the closer the existing environment is, the greater the room for improvement. The club room was a perfect choice.

“In the existing club room, I felt like my lungs were going to grow mold just by breathing. Students often met outside because the club room was so dirty. So, we changed the club room like this.”

The student who was presenting flipped the screen.

There, an ideal club room that would only appear in a drama appeared.

“Starting with cleaning, we partially repaired the old sofa and desks. Magazines and comic books were added to the bookshelf to create a cozy atmosphere.”

“Good.”

Professor Bae Tae-hwan smiled kindly and asked, “Then what are the design elements of this work?”

“We actively used plants.”

Come to think of it, there were flowerpots everywhere.

This alone completely turned the mood upside down.

“Hmm. It’s definitely fresh. That’s right. The environment and plants are inseparable. When creating an urban environment, we don’t plant a lot of street trees for no reason.”

It was an arrangement well-suited for the theme of environment.

Students applauded from all sides.

The presentation of the first group was successful.

‘It wasn’t terribly good, but it was an exemplary presentation.’

Okay.

This was their mistake.

You shouldn’t be exemplary.

Our group is incredibly good beyond exemplary levels.

“Hello.”

Instead of the chirpy Park Kyu-tae and the stiff Kim Dae-won, I, who was in charge of the presentation, stepped forward and said:

“Before the full-scale presentation, I will ask one thing to my classmates. Recently, a cafe has opened in the alley near the back-gate of the campus. Has anyone been there? Please raise your hand if so.”

Hands came up one after another from all over the classroom.

I smiled and said, “The person wearing the black hoodie over there, let me ask you something.”

“Yes.”

“How was the store?”

“Good. I stopped by with my friend, and I think I’ll go there often.”

“I see. What did you like so much about it?”

After thinking for a while, the student in the hood said, “The lighting is moderately bright, so it’s good to work with, and above all, the height of the desk was perfect.”

“It would be nice to study there.”

“I think it’s better than a library? Well, it’s a little expensive for one.”

“Thank you for the answer.”

The expected answer came.

Next, I called on another person.

“Then… the woman wearing a brown cardigan over there. What did you like about this cafe?”

“Hmm.”

She thought a little more and said, “The owner was cool.”

Laughter burst out from all sides.

Even though she was the one who said it, she laughed and said that it was funny.

“Should I say that he’s very professional? Just looking at the uniform, the suit and apron are as cool as the barista in the dramas, and the way they make the coffee was also cool.”

“That’s right. I also think that that’s the charm of cafes.”

The students nodded in agreement.

However, there was a question on their faces.

‘So, what does that cafe have to do with your presentation?’

I don’t know, maybe this is just a feeling, because we didn’t tell you what kind of assignment we did, and we’re just chatting.

As if that part was also strange to him, Professor Bae Tae-hwan asked, “Does that cafe have anything to do with the students’ presentation?”

“Yes.”

I nodded and said,

“That cafe, we designed it.”

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