Today we’d like to introduce you to Flavia Machado
Hi Flavia, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
The idea of owning a Brazilian- inspired cafe started about 10 years ago, in Rio. My now husband travelled with me to Brazil and met my mom. He tried her food and told me I had to bring those flavors to the US. Years went by, I continued my teaching job, but never really forgot the idea. After COVID, and having lost my mom to it, the idea started to be more meaningful to me.
One day my husband told me “I found the perfect place for your cafe” and the rest is history. He found a vacant cake shop in Woodstock, inside a calm mixed community, just the right size I needed to get my feet wet in the food business and entrepreneurship. We spent the nights after school fixing, painting, and organizing the place from February to May of 2023. On June 3 we opened the doors to the public. We had a freshly painted inviting little space with a small menu and delicious food.
Over time, mostly by word of mouth, we grew and completed 1 year old. Since then we have continued to improve our menu, made connections that helped our “hidden gem” grow to a “treasure chest”, met countless of cool people, and established long lasting relationships both at the cafe and out.
We found out that Cafe Bom Dia is built not only on good fresh food made from scratch but the sense of community that still draws people in and makes them feel at home.
When we think about our growth, and the endless amazing foods that we are still going to serve, it’s the sense of “home” that glues us together in the kitchen, and to our customers.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
The struggles are many, as there are for starting small businesses. The biggest one being making sure we could pay our bills and ourselves on the first year, month after month. January through March was especially difficult since our customer base practically disappeared. We were told it’s like that for every retail shop, with the exception of gyms and new “New Years resolutions” and large credit card debts. We lost one of our partners, and came close to shutting doors. Thankfully business picked up again and by July we were in full swing again, with a mew partner, and renewed dreams.
As you know, we’re big fans of Café Bom Dia. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
Our cafe specializes in Brazilian-inspired foods. Most of our items are original Brazilian recipes, gathered from our old mom’s or grandmother’s notebooks, others influenced by flavors we experienced in our childhood in Brazil. What sets us apart from other Brazilian restaurants in the area? We are not a bakery/restaurant/market for industrialized Brazilian foods. We are a small cafe that serves breakfast, lunch, açaí bowls, smoothies, coffee and desserts in a clean, bright, chill atmosphere. We cool our foods from scratch in small batches and give our customers personalized experience. We don’t sell what we don’t eat and love.
What does success mean to you?
Success are return customers and the ability to pay our bills and ourselves an honest salary at the end of every month. We all have dreams of a perfect life. For us is to enjoy what we do everyday, have happy customers, and happy family.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://Www.instagram.com/cafebomdia.ga
- Facebook: www.Facebook.com/cafebomdia.Georgia
