Today we’d like to introduce you to Jennifer Smith.
Mark and Jennifer married in 1991 and have four children all of which work in varying capacities in their family’s business.
Over the years of their marriage they always felt lead to “discover their passion”; the idea being:
If you do what you love, you’ll never work a day in your life.
Making a living out of that is another story, though. Jennifer has worked in some sort of direct customer service her entire career. Mark’s career path was also service oriented as he worked in telecommunications construction. His work ethic always stemming from the desire to best serve whomever he was working for.
Always knowing they wanted to be entrepreneurs and having always had a passion for coffee they set out to see how coffee shops worked. Visiting just about every locally owned coffee shop in metro Atlanta as well as anywhere they’d visit; in 2014, they decided that it was time to take the leap. Thinking at the time that the coffee shop idea wasn’t quite ready, they fell back to an idea they’d encountered while vacationing; an olive oil and vinegar shop. Once the decision was made it seemed doors began to open and Olive Tree & Vine was born. Within a year and a half of the 1st opening, Mark felt as though he was being lead to “check out Cartersville”. Having found a location that was roughly three times the size of their first shop, they knew the coffee shop of their dreams was going to gain life. March of 2016 saw the opening of both Olive Tree & Vine Cartersville, and Southern Muggs Coffee Shop.
A single driving force within them that they have sought to instill in their family is being of service to others. They discovered the best outlet for this passion in striving to create a community within historic downtown Cartersville. Making Southern Muggs Coffee Shop into a casual and comfortable place to enjoy great coffee was the beginning. In July 2016, Mark and Jennifer launched the Cartersville Wine Club and the community began to come together for with wine and camaraderie.
When you visit Olive Tree & Vine and Southern Muggs Coffee Shop you will most certainly meet their family as they each strive day to day to make everyone that comes in to feel welcome and at home.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
The biggest challenge is balancing and discerning what is good advice and what should be changed based on the input of others. Also, knowing where and what is the wisest use of funds.
Olive Tree & Vine – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
We are purveyors of Ultra Premium Olive Oil and Balsamic Vinegar.
I am very proud of the fact that ours is the highest quality as determined through third party testing. I enjoy helping others to find the joy in discovering what high quality tastes like.
Each of our oils and vinegars are available to taste prior to purchase giving the opportunity for full sensory input and exploration.
In our Cartersville locations, we have added a line of wines and conduct weekly wine tasting. In doing this, we hoped to create a community.
What is “success” or “successful” for you?
Success is doing what I enjoy and the ability to support myself and family in doing so.
Contact Info:
- Address: 26 W Main St., Cartersville, Ga 30120
3960 Mary Eliza Trace #800 Marietta, Ga 30066 - Website: www.olivetreeandvine.com
- Phone: 678-719-8518
- Email: jennifer@olivetreeandvine.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/olivetreeandvine
- Facebook: facebook.com/olivetreeandvine.com
Image Credit:
Stretched Rubber Band
Getting in touch: VoyageATL is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
