For Populace Coffee in downtown Bay City, it’s not just a clever name. The coffee shop has established itself as a center of community. Its latest promotion demonstrates just that.
As Populace co-owner Justis Heppner listened to customers this summer, she heard a number of the regulars who happened to be teachers bemoaning the fact that they wouldn’t be able to frequent the coffee shop as much as they have been. The school year is about to start up and they wouldn’t have time to stop in before going into school.
That’s when Heppner got an idea: Teacher Appreciation Week.
During the first week of school, Monday, Aug. 26 through Friday, Aug. 30, Populace will extend its hours, opening an hour earlier. The coffee shop will open its doors at 6 a.m. rather than 7 a.m.
What’s more, customers that show their teaching badges will receive 10 percent off of their orders.
"I thought that we needed to do something for them. The work teachers put in is so important. It’s a very serious job," Heppner says.
"I thought it would be cool to open an hour early for them."
That’s not all Populace has planned. The coffee shop had five special labels designed for their house blend coffee, each displaying the names and logos of local high schools: All Saints High School, Bay City Central High School, Bay City Western High School, Garber High School, and John Glenn High School in Bangor Township.
Two contests have been created to reward the teachers of those schools.
The public is encouraged to go to the Populace Facebook page and tag the names of high school teachers. The teacher with the most tags from each school will receive a bag of coffee. One teacher will be selected at random with their school receiving 10 bags of coffee for their teachers’ lounge.
"As a mom, I need coffee daily to function. And I have two kids. These teachers have 20 to 30 students per class. Coffee is proven to stimulate the brain," Hepner says.
"We wanted to do this for them to start their mornings right. It’s a very important week and we wanted to set the tone and start the year on a good note."
Populace Coffee is located at 810 Saginaw St. in Bay City.
Got a development news story to share? Email MJ Galbraith here or send him a tweet @mikegalbraith.
Enjoy this story?
Sign up for free solutions-based reporting in your inbox each week.