There’s a new coffee shop planned for Greenville that is inspired by the fundamental truth that each human being is the main character in their own story, and that their life is as graphic and expressive as your own.
Sondr Coffee Club is brewing, and owner Jorge Guerra hopes to have the shop up and running within the next year.
“One year from now, I want to own my coffee shop. Today is day 1,” Guerra said on social media July 22.
Guerra has been documenting the journey on social media including state health department requirements and drink development. The plan is to start as a coffee cart. Guerra already has the cart and is in the process of implementing a push rinser.
Make no mistake: This is a coffee business but it aims to offer a community. Guerra is from Michoacán but grew up mostly in Greenville. Being Latino but specifically being from Mexico, sometimes he felt a disconnect from both communities he called home.
“I’ve reached a point where now I’m trying to use it more to my advantage,” he said. “I think I’ve come to the realization that I don’t necessarily have to stick to a specific group or feel like I need to belong to a very specific group, because I have the power to just create my own community and my own space. I think that’s something that I’m really excited for.”
It took him about a month to taste test his products. In the development process, he endeavored to try every coffee shop in Greenville.
“Ultimately, I didn’t want to – don’t want to – just sell something that you could also get somewhere else I wanted to have my little touch,” he said. He’ll have the classics but his mocha, for example, will incorporate his culture through the use of Mexican-style hot chocolate so it’s not as sweet but complex and tasty.
Sonder will have a light pastry element led by Guerra’s husband, Christian Calderon, who is from Michoacán as well and leads the marketing. Recently, he debuted a banana bread on his TikTok channel.
Given the value of community with a focus on culture, Guerra hopes Sondr will be a place of cultural expression. For now, you can follow Sondr on TikTok or Instagram at tiktok.com/@sondrcoffeeclub or instagram.com/sondrcoffeeclub.
