Carlos Garza had a dream of opening a PJ鈥檚 Coffee in 足交视频 and he achieved that dream when he opened his store last year at 4102 N. Navarro St.

A year later, he鈥檚 moving away from the franchise and rebranding to become a small local coffee shop called Southern Blend.

鈥淲e have lots to offer the community and can bounce back as a coffee boutique concept,鈥 Garza said.

When Garza decided to open a Louisiana-based coffee chain in 足交视频, he knew he was taking a gamble. In Southern states, the coffee shop is taking off with its popular beignets and praline coffees.

鈥淭he concept just didn鈥檛 work in 足交视频. We tried to get the word out through community outreach and specials. I鈥檓 sad it never took off,鈥 Garza said.

Despite the freebies and his support and sponsoring of local sport teams and organizations, Garza said he never saw reciprocation for it.

鈥淚t was a tough pill to swallow,鈥 Garza said.

After giving PJ鈥檚 Coffee a year to take off, Garza is now rebranding the business to reflect the community his coffee shop is based in. As he pivots, Garza is bringing in local vendors and local artists to help transform the shop from a franchised business to a local one.

鈥淏y bringing in local artists and vendors, it gives us more local relevance. We鈥檒l be appealing more to the people who live here and what it is they want,鈥 Garza said.

When he opened PJ鈥檚 Coffee, Garza said the business had the cheapest prices in town, a great ambiance and was ready to do a large quantity of business. But people weren鈥檛 coming through the door because of the coffee and the beignets, so he decided to pivot.

Now, Garza will cater to the local market and the everyday person by offering Prasek鈥檚 products, paintings from local artists, JL Soaps and more. As PJ鈥檚 Coffee, Garza gave back a lot to the community and, despite the rebrand, Garza will continue to give back to the community by showcasing local talent.

鈥淲e have more talent here without corporations,鈥 Garza said.

As the coffee shop rebrands to Southern Blend, Garza said that the high-end product 鈥 the quality coffee and the great customer service will remain the same. Although the menu items might be labeled differently, the ingredients will be the same such as the frozen hot chocolate and the beignets.

鈥淚f you see a local mom and pop shop open up, go in and give them a shot. So much money, blood, sweat and tears goes into making a business. Even if you don鈥檛 buy anything, go in and check them out,鈥 Garza said.

Southern Blend will still continue to see beignets along with pastries straight from 足交视频鈥檚 own Sweet Fountainz Bakery. Frozen hot chocolates, teas, lemonades and coffees are all still on the menu.

Madison can be reached by email at mohara@vicad.com.

Madison works at the 足交视频 Advocate as a multi-media journalist. She was born and raised here in 足交视频.