Beyond the coffee: How do these shops differentiate themselves?

Coffee shops in Columbia each have a story to tell.

While they all sell similar items and work to create communities, they each work to set themselves apart. 

Being different is what it’s all about.

Drip Coffee, Indah Coffee and Azalea Coffee are downtown Columbia shops with unique origins and atmospheres. 

Drip Coffee, located at 729 Saluda Ave. in Five Points, uses music to help establish its atmosphere. 

Sean Mcrossin opened the space as a record store, and much of that music aspect exists today under the shop’s new owner, Akera Sellers, said administrative assistant Mel Hammack.

“Music and coffee tend to go together very well,” she said.

Records are still sold today, and the walls are decorated with symbols of classic rock music. 

She described the space as being very chill and authentic. 

Managers allow the employees to dress how they like and to play whatever music they want. That strategy is something that brings a “unique edge” to customers, making the atmosphere feel more comfortable, she said.

“I think it’s hard to find a place that has a real, deep identity,” Hammack said. “And we have that here, and that’s so special for us.”

The shop provides a community of people looking for a place to chill and do work, she said.

Indah Coffee, located at 2238 Sumter St., north of Elmwood Avenue, has a unique background that helps creates a different community.

Owner Nick Hauser named the shop after the Indonesian word for beauty.

“We said from the beginning that we wanted to cultivate beauty in the products we create, and then with people we serve in the community we live” in, Hauser said.

He was inspired by the way of life and how locals produced goods in Southeast Asia when he traveled there with his wife a few years ago, he said.

He learned the craft of roasting coffee and brought the hobby back to United States, where he would do it for his friends and family.

Eventually, he took his love for cafe culture and his new ability to roast coffee and opened Indah Coffee.

His goal of the shop is for it to be somewhere that is approachable and not pretentious. 

“We wanted it to be a place that really would bring people together,” Hauser said.

Azalea Coffee, located at at 2700 Devine St. near Five Points, uses its femininity to stand out in Columbia.

The shop’s owner, Brittany Koester, was working as a paralegal when her mother passed away, said Zoi Moss, a 3-year barista and the shop’s event manager.

Her mother’s passing inspired her to do something with her career that she could be passionate about.

Today, the shop is filled with symbols of Koester’s mother, including a mural of her in the center of the shop. Even the name “Azalea Coffee” is derived from her mother’s favorite flower.

Employees are centered on empowering and supporting women. They pride themselves on working for a shop that is operated by women, a statement from the shop’s website said.

Azalea Coffee aims to be a safe space and community for all minorities, Moss said.

“I had someone who came in. This was their safe space. They couldn’t be themselves around their family and their friends,” Moss said. “They would tell us about their life and like, all this stuff that they couldn’t feel safe to share to the people in their love life.”