HIGH POINT, N.C. — Walking into Joy Bar Coffee Co, you’re greeted with the traditional sights and sounds of a coffee shop, yet something else sings out louder than the machinery,
“Welcome to Joy Bar Coffee!” proclaims the first employee to patrons who walk in.
“If the very first person that creates you would be walking the door is a person with a disability, we've immediately overcome that stigma," said owner Tiffany McDowell.
Joy Bar Coffee Co. aims to employ people with disabilities and ensure they have a hand in everything at the shop.
“We want them delivering your drink, telling you thank you for coming in, the curbside orders are all delivered by experienced facilitators, and many of them have a disability, so we want to create an opportunity for the public to interact with someone that, in your day-to-day life, you don't really get to interact with someone who has a disability," McDowell said.
For McDowell, though, this place isn’t just a job; it’s a promise.
“A lot of people would be surprised to hear that there are businesses that have people working there with a disability that don't actually get paid. And so, as a sibling caregiver, someone who loves and supports a person with a disability, I wanted to change the employment landscape," said McDowell.
Her younger sister, Mallory, was diagnosed with Down syndrome, and when she became her primary caregiver in 2009, it sparked something within her.
“It was my first foray into caregiving for an adult, and it was clear to me that there are not many places that employ people with disabilities, and if they do, the opportunities for growth within those companies are minimal," McDowell said.
But here at Joy Bar Coffee Co, the opportunities are endless. And for Mallory, she is part of that mission: to ensure that everyone, be they with disabilities or otherwise, feels seen, heard, and loved.
“It's kind of our proof that people with disabilities have a place in the community and that your customers will support your decisions to employ them, so really that's what I want other business watching what Joy Bar is doing, that's the secret sauce," said McDowell.
Or, in this case, a secret, special coffee better left shared with all who enter.