Bimble: The First Step
#ComeBimbleWithMe in places I love by Gwendy Davenport
Full disclosure: this time last year I might have stepped into Starbucks, ordered a coffee and continued my day without much thought at all 😳.
Now, though, everything has changed.
Post-pandemic, little businesses and independent cafés will be so much more a part of my life than they used to be. A café that I would have taken for granted before has suddenly turned into the most vital part of my daily routine and a sanctuary of escapism from the stressful goings-on in the world. One in five small businesses said they wouldn’t survive the lockdown. Never have the words ‘eat local’ been so important and that’s why stepping into the world of Bimble has come at just the right time for us all. I can’t imagine if all that was left were the generic Starbucks and McDonalds of the world.
Isn’t it odd that you can’t tell one Costa chain apart from another? Buying a hot chocolate in Costa Coffee you could be in Oxford, London or Prague, one could never know. The menus are exactly the same, even the price of extra cream on top is unchangeable from place to place. On the other hand, stepping into my favourite local café, Tree Artisan, is a completely different experience. I know the name of the barista, I know exactly which Brazilian town the coffee beans were sourced and my iced latte is always accompanied by a warm smile and a pleasant “have a lovely day.” Rather than impersonal and passive it is active and full of love and pride. Even such a miniscule difference in daily interactions can make or break whether you proceed to have a good or bad day.
Appreciation of these smaller places is growing amongst all my friends and post-pandemic we mustn’t start taking them for granted like we used to. For the simple reason that independent cafés, bars, restaurants and shops are more special and make us feel more special, as customers, we need to stay loyal to them and Bimble is the first step.
#ComeBimbleWithMe around the independent places that I have come to love.
