MILWAUKEE — An idea that started brewing during the pandemic led Deshaun Foster to open up his own coffee shop.
Foster, who was an elementary school teacher during the pandemic, said he found himself drinking extra cups of coffee each day during the pandemic. On a daily run to a coffee shop with his daughter JoJo, she asked why he didn't just open his own coffee shop.
"This idea honestly came from my daughter, I have to give her the credit," Foster said.
Blak Coffee started as a pop-up in a local barber shop two days a week. This past weekend, that pop-up turned into its own store in downtown Kenosha serving up brews Tuesday through Saturday.
Foster said Blak Coffee is the first Black-owned coffee shop in Kenosha. Opening up during Black History Month was always his plan.
"To be honest, it was very intentional. I did this because this is the first Black coffee shop in Kenosha's history," He said.
When you walk into Blak Coffee, you step into what Foster calls the "Legends Lounge." Pictures of some of his childhood heroes hang on the wall, from Muhammad Ali to Tupac and his two grandmothers.
And the menu at Blak Coffee reads like a family tree, with drinks named after not only his grandmothers but also his aunts and uncles and even his daughter JoJo.
Foster hopes his daughter sees him as an inspiration for following her own dreams.
"I just want to show her what hard work means and what hard work can get you as well. A lot of these things weren't given to me. Me and my team had to work really hard for this," Foster said.
He also encourages other Black entrepreneurs to take the same leap he did.
"I would pretty much tell any Black entrepreneur that has an idea to explore it and to not give up your dreams," Foster said.
