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New businesses forced to adapt as they struggle for survival |
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Zanetta Wingfield never aspired to serve hot dogs at her East Liberty coffee house. But if gourmet-style wieners served on toasted, panini-style buns keep the customers coming back, they'll remain on the menu at KoKo Latte's Coffee, Tea & Eatery. |
"It's one of our bestsellers," said Ms. Wingfield, who originally envisioned her urban cafe offering only specialty coffee and tea drinks, hot chocolate mixed from scratch, and pastries.
But after she opened KoKo Latte's in November 2007, the regular clientele -- mostly office workers from the building where it is located -- requested heartier fare like soup and sandwiches along with the drinks and baked goods. So Ms. Wingfield diversified.
With the economy sputtering, she figures it's more sensible to serve what customers want -- even hot dogs.
"Everyone's in the penny-pinching mode," she said.
Like many entrepreneurs who own fledgling ventures, Ms. Wingfield is nervously weighing KoKo Latte's chances for survival. She wants to expand from daytime hours to evenings and weekends and possibly add concerts at the venue, but isn't sure her location, just off East Liberty's Penn Circle, can sustain enough business to operate seven days a week. There's also the pressure of rising costs for her food and drink supplies. But she hesitates to increase her retail prices because customers might go elsewhere.
External Source - For the complete article click here
Source - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
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