Even in an era when every other street corner seems to sprout an espresso stand, it’s hard to miss a 12-foot-tall, retro-looking coffee pot alongside the road.
That’s the idea behind Hotspot Coffee, a startup franchise owned by Silvana resident Michael Berg.
A Snohomish County native who’s been in the antique business in Snohomish and run restaurants in Everett, Berg came up with the idea of building a large coffee pot more than eight years ago.
It wasn’t hard to find inspiration for the 1950s look of his espresso stand. Berg has a collection of pots and percolators from that era. A 1957 Airstream trailer he owns also influenced the look, he said.
"I got the idea, and did a drawing," Berg said. "I just looked at that drawing a few weeks ago, and it turned out pretty close to what I wanted it to be."
After perfecting his design, Berg got it trademarked, including the details that make his kiosk design unique. He also copyrighted the Hotspot Coffee name.
The pot’s design includes a red neon light trim around the pot’s base, which makes it look like it’s sitting on a hot stove burner. Berg added that the giant spout can house a machine that makes steam waft out the top.
Berg said he had to make the design conform to practical considerations, such as guidelines that would allow it to meet highway requirements so the pot could be towed on a trailer. He also carefully thought out the location of the menu on the pot and the need for rain gutters above the windows and door. The pot is designed to be self-contained, with provisions for everything except its own source of electricity.
Building the aluminum pot took a while and more than 20 local subcontractors, from Superior Systems in Anacortes, which worked with the aluminum spout and other parts, to Wesweld Corp. in Stanwood and Northern Lights Neon in Monroe.
The full-sized prototype, which Berg still is finishing, now sits near the old schoolhouse he owns along Highway 530.
Originally, Berg thought he’d sell coffee out of the one pot with the help of his grown children.
When other entrepreneurs expressed interest in buying stands based on his design, however, Berg developed bigger plans.
He now hopes to sell the giant coffee pots as ready-for-business units, with all the needed equipment and even a supply of Hotspot Coffee’s own blend, to franchisees. He’s formed a partnership with his children, both of whom live in Los Angeles. His daughter Ashley, 26, is handling operations, and his 30-year-old son Gabriel is in charge of the business’ marketing.
"This whole thing has gone from just a little, along-the-road coffee stand to a full-fledged franchise," Berg said.
In the past month, he’s sold two of the kiosks — one to a client in Phoenix, Ariz., and one to a Camano Island woman — and he has others scheduled to look at them in the coming weeks.
The increasing competition between espresso stands and Starbucks’ expansion of its drive-through locations might make one think it’s a bad time to start a new espresso franchise.
Silver Cup Coffee, an Everett supplier of equipment and supplies to the espresso industry, still is seeing expansion in some areas of the business.
"There’s a steady amount coming in," said Greg Robertson, office manager at the firm. "It doesn’t seem to cease even though the economy is down."
Berg said he’s optimistic, especially because his stands can be towed to buyers nearly anywhere.
"There are places all over the United States that are getting their first latte stands in town," the longtime coffee drinker said. "I really think this coffee trend really is just starting to explode."
Reporter Eric Fetters:
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