Kelz Koffee

I run a mobile coffee cart called Kelz Koffee. I provide great, consistent coffee and chocolate beverages at various locations around South Taranaki, as well as from our home base where 4GenArts is located. At 4GenArts, we create mixed media art products, including corrugated iron planters, resin creations, canvas art, and many other creative pieces. It is a unique family art project that brings together four generations of our family. Art has become much more than a hobby for us – it has provided creativity, purpose, connection, and support through many of life's challenges and changes. It all started when my husband suggested we needed a drawcard for our art studio, 4GenArts. He thought a coffee cart would be a good idea. I mentioned it to a friend, who told me she had a coffee cart sitting in her backyard that she had never set up. She had paid $10,000 for it brand new two years earlier. I jokingly asked her how much she wanted for her "$1,000 coffee cart." She said she would ask her partner, and to my surprise they sold it to me for $1,000. That was the beginning of where I am today.

I enjoy meeting people, so the public contact aspect is where I'm in my happy place. The stresses of everyday life are left at home. My point of difference is that I try to make every customer feel important and heard. A lot of my returning customers seem to really just want a chat. That is especially true for some of the older customers, although we do offer a Gold Card holder discount as well.

My Deluxe Iced Chocolates and Deluxe Iced Coffees are currently the most popular. They include all the extras – cream, ice cream, and chocolate powder. One of the biggest challenges is working out quantities of milk, coffee beans, and making sure I have enough stock for each event, as well as a backup plan if I need extra supplies. Thankfully, my husband is great at helping with that side of the business.

I was once having a conversation with a customer about children, neurodivergence, and clumsiness. While we were talking, I accidentally knocked her large drink across the counter of the coffee cart. Luckily, it didn't spill all over her, but it did make a huge mess. With a group of people standing around, it probably looked like I had thrown the drink at her.

Try to be unique in the way you present both your stall and yourself. I am usually dressed in a logo shirt with fun pants. I have many different designs, and my regular customers often play guessing games about which pair I'll be wearing that day. You need to sell yourself to sell any product.