Kaitlyn Davis opened Moe’s Espresso in July in downtown Arlington on August 24, 2018. (Kevin Clark / The Herald)

Kaitlyn Davis opened Moe’s Espresso in July in downtown Arlington on August 24, 2018. (Kevin Clark / The Herald)

Before buying her first business at 24, she hit the books

Kaitlyn Davis finished college — then pored over three years’ worth of an espresso stand’s accounts.

ARLINGTON — Kaitlyn Davis wanted to buy her first business, an espresso stand, when she was 19.

“‘I saw it on Craigslist,” said Davis, who had recently graduated from Marysville Pilchuck High School.

But her parents nixed the idea. Davis was bound for Western Washington University in Bellingham, and they wanted her to finish college.

“I’m glad they talked me out of it,” said Davis, 27, taking a break from a harried schedule as the owner of two Arlington businesses, an espresso stand and an espresso cafe. “I wasn’t ready. I still had a lot to learn.”

Instead, she waited until she was 24 and a college graduate to buy her first business.

About a third of business owners are women, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.

From the time Davis graduated from high school until she graduated from Western, she worked at espresso stands.

Balancing a workload that included classes and a part-time job, helped sharpen her deadline, scheduling and management skills.

In 2014, Davis earned a bachelor’s degree and returned to Marysville.

Kiersten Baiamonte, left, and Antonio Baiamonte enjoy coffee Friday morning at Moe’s Espresso in downtown Arlington on August 24, 2018. (Kevin Clark / The Herald)

Kiersten Baiamonte, left, and Antonio Baiamonte enjoy coffee Friday morning at Moe’s Espresso in downtown Arlington on August 24, 2018. (Kevin Clark / The Herald)

The plan was to earn her master’s and become a teacher, like her mother, but she needed a break. She went to work at Espresso Connection in Marysville while she pondered what to do next.

A few months later, she got a call from the owner of Blanchard Mountain Coffee, where she’d worked during her college years.

The owner of Moe’s Espresso, an established drive-thru coffee stand in Arlington, was thinking about selling the business, her former boss told her. Davis didn’t waste any time, she called the owner of Moe’s that day.

She went over the books for the previous three years and drew up a business plan.

The transaction took eight months.

“I saw areas where I could improve the business. I didn’t make an emotional purchase,” she said.

A private loan from a family member helped with the purchase.

“We had a contract drawn up.”

Katie Anderson prepares a coffee order Friday morning at Moe’s Espresso in downtown Arlington on August 24, 2018. (Kevin Clark / The Herald)

Katie Anderson prepares a coffee order Friday morning at Moe’s Espresso in downtown Arlington on August 24, 2018. (Kevin Clark / The Herald)

Nearly 40 percent of startups are financed by lenders who are also family or friends.

Still, no matter how close you are to them, they need the assurance that you’ll repay the loan, experts caution. So draw up a contract and sign it, experts at Debt.org advise.

Davis elected to keep the name Moe’s. “It already had a great reputation,” she said. The logo got a redesign, but she kept one original element— Moe’s mustache.

“I was 24 when I bought the business,” she said.

About 27 million Americans of working age are business owners, according to a Global Entrepreneurship Monitor study. But a mere 5 percent are 25 and younger, the study says.

Davis still gets the occasional customer or distributor who’ll ask her to page the owner.

“That would be me,” she said with a laugh.

This summer she opened a second business, Moe’s on Olympic, at 434 N. Olympic Ave. in downtown Arlington.

A “for lease” sign outside a former ice cream parlor caught her eye last December.

Kaitlyn Davis, owner, helps a customer Friday morning at Moe’s Espresso in downtown Arlington on August 24, 2018. (Kevin Clark / The Herald)

Kaitlyn Davis, owner, helps a customer Friday morning at Moe’s Espresso in downtown Arlington on August 24, 2018. (Kevin Clark / The Herald)

“I’d been thinking about a way to expand, and this was perfect,” she said.

In April, she signed the lease. To capture the summer tourist traffic, she set July Fourth as the opening date.

Davis, her new husband, Craig, and her family scrambled to meet the deadline. Together they scraped off the maroon paint that covered the inside of the windows, ripped up the old flooring and painted.

For start-up ventures on a shoestring, sweat equity is a great way to cut costs and increase value, according to Investopedia.

“We got our health permit at 4:35 p.m. on July 3,” said Davis, who’s been working 12 hour days for the past two months.

Today, Davis employs 14 part-time and full-time workers, up from six. Her employees include her sisters, Emily Webb, 24, and Ivy Enberg, 17, who only works weekends because she’s still in high school.

On a recent weekend, Davis and her husband went camping — the first weekend she’d taken off since April.

“I’m super excited to see where this goes. It’s really cool to have the stand and the coffee shop. I get to experience both.”

Janice Podsada; jpodsada@heraldnet.com; 425-339-3097; Twitter: JanicePods

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Business

A closing sign hangs above the entrance of the Big Lots at Evergreen and Madison on Monday, July 22, 2024, in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Big Lots announces it will shutter Everett and Lynnwood stores

The Marysville store will remain open for now. The retailer reported declining sales in the first quarter of the year.

George Montemor poses for a photo in front of his office in Lynnwood, Washington on Tuesday, July 30, 2024.  (Annie Barker / The Herald)
Despite high mortgage rates, Snohomish County home market still competitive

Snohomish County homes priced from $550K to $850K are pulling in multiple offers and selling quickly.

Henry M. Jackson High School’s robotic team, Jack in the Bot, shake hands at the 2024 Indiana Robotics Invitational.(Henry M. Jackson High School)
Mill Creek robotics team — Jack in the Bot — wins big

Henry M. Jackson High School students took first place at the Indiana Robotic Invitational for the second year in a row.

The computer science and robotics and artificial intelligence department faculty includes (left to right) faculty department head Allison Obourn; Dean Carey Schroyer; Ishaani Priyadarshini; ROBAI department head Sirine Maalej and Charlene Lugli. PHOTO: Arutyun Sargsyan / Edmonds College.
Edmonds College to offer 2 new four-year degree programs

The college is accepting applications for bachelor programs in computer science as well as robotics and artificial intelligence.

FILE — Boeing 737 MAX8 airplanes on the assembly line at the Boeing plant in Renton, Wash., on March 27, 2019. Boeing said on Wednesday, Feb. 21, 2024, that it was shaking up the leadership in its commercial airplanes unit after a harrowing incident last month during which a piece fell off a 737 Max 9 jet in flight. (Ruth Fremson/The New York Times)
Federal judge rejects Boeing’s guilty plea related to 737 Max crashes

The plea agreement included a fine of up to $487 million and three years of probation.

Neetha Hsu practices a command with Marley, left, and Andie Holsten practices with Oshie, right, during a puppy training class at The Everett Zoom Room in Everett, Washington on Wednesday, July 3, 2024. (Annie Barker / The Herald)
Tricks of the trade: New Everett dog training gym is a people-pleaser

Everett Zoom Room offers training for puppies, dogs and their owners: “We don’t train dogs, we train the people who love them.”

Andy Bronson/ The Herald 

Everett mayor Ray Stephenson looks over the city on Tuesday, Jan. 5, 2015 in Everett, Wa. Stephanson sees  Utah’s “housing first” model – dealing with homelessness first before tackling related issues – is one Everett and Snohomish County should adopt.

Local:issuesStephanson

Shot on: 1/5/16
Economic Alliance taps former Everett mayor as CEO

Ray Stephanson will serve as the interim leader of the Snohomish County group.

Molbak's Garden + Home in Woodinville, Washington will close on Jan. 28. (Photo courtesy of Molbak's)
After tumultuous year, Molbak’s is being demolished in Woodinville

The beloved garden store closed in January. And a fundraising initiative to revitalize the space fell short.

Everett Mayor Cassie Franklin, Advanced Manufacturing Skills Center executive director Larry Cluphf, Boeing Director of manufacturing and safety Cameron Myers, Edmonds College President Amit Singh, U.S. Rep. Rick Larsen, and Snohomish County Executive Dave Somers participate in a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Tuesday, July 2 celebrating the opening of a new fuselage training lab at Paine Field. Credit: Arutyun Sargsyan / Edmonds College
‘Magic happens’: Paine Field aerospace center dedicates new hands-on lab

Last month, Edmonds College officials cut the ribbon on a new training lab — a section of a 12-ton Boeing 767 tanker.

Gov. Jay Inslee presents CEO Fredrik Hellstrom with the Swedish flag during a grand opening ceremony for Sweden-based Echandia on Tuesday, July 30, 2024, in Marysville, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Swedish battery maker opens first U.S. facility in Marysville

Echandia’s marine battery systems power everything from tug boats to passenger and car ferries.

Helion Energy CEO and co-founder David Kirtley talks to Governor Jay Inslee about Trenta, Helion’s 6th fusion prototype, during a tour of their facility on Tuesday, July 9, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
State grants Everett-based Helion a fusion energy license

The permit allows Helion to use radioactive materials to operate the company’s fusion generator.

People walk past the new J.sweets storefront in Alderwood Mall on Thursday, July 25, 2024, in Lynnwood, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
New Japanese-style sweets shop to open in Lynnwood

J. Sweets, offering traditional Japanese and western style treats opens, could open by early August at the Alderwood mall.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.