Common Desk is getting into the coffee business with its purchase of local shop Method Coffee.
The Dallas coworking company announced the acquisition Tuesday. Financial terms were not disclosed, but as part of the deal Common Desk will take control of the coffee shops, but not the Method brand.
With Common Desk growing rapidly, adding two new locations in Plano and Fort Worth this year, founder Nick Clark knew he had to stand out from the competition in some way. That’s when he decided that coffee would be his newest venture.
“We wanted to add a full-service coffee shop,” said Megan Kaye Donahoe, marketing coordinator for Common Desk. “When Nick was thinking about adding it he knew that it was either create a whole new brand or acquire one.”
“When Nick was thinking about adding it he knew that it was either create a whole new brand or acquire one.”
Megan Kaye Donahoe
Clark set his eye on Method Coffee, which Tamid Ben Yehoshua opened in Old East Dallas in 2014 vowing to create an accessible atmosphere for everyone “from your average Joe to the coffee connoisseur,” according to its website.
It was no surprise when Ben Yehoshua got a call from Clark asking what buying Method would look like. The two had been college pals and Clark had already claimed Method as one of his favorites in Dallas.
“Nick and I were roommates seven years ago. I had actually just been getting into coffee at my job at Pearl Cup off Henderson,” Ben Yehoshua said.”I had some friends who were farmers in El Salvador and I had been using and carrying their coffee for four years and I either wanted to take Method into the wholesale market or move on to my next venture. I liked Common Desk because they were a local brand and they want to continue to grow across the country.”
Everything seemed to just fall into place for both parties. Common Desk was looking to differentiate its brand by adding in something fresh and Method had just been listed on the market. Within a month, Common Desk had completed the deal, Donahoe said.
The coffee side will be operated as a separate entity, Donahoe said.
Common Desk will take over management of the original shop on Hall Street and the satellite location at the St. Paul Place building in downtown Dallas.
While Common Desk is keeping on Method baristas as employees, that is about the only thing that is going to stay the same.
Common Desk will launch a full rebrand of the coffee shops Jan. 1.
“We’ll use the new brand to install full-service coffee shops at our new locations and a few of our existing ones,” Clark said in a statement to Dallas Innovates.
On Wednesday, Method will close early to transform its Hall Street location into a Christmas pop-up shop. [Photo: Jewels Clark]
METHOD COFFEE BRAND WILL SEE MAJOR CHANGES IN DALLAS
You can already see changes in furniture and decor at the Hall Street location. The old vintage thrift store furniture has been replaced with sleek, clean, minimalistic designs.
“We want to bring new life and some fresh air into the brand,” Donahoe said. “January 1 is when we are going to flip the switch, everything will go away, all the way down to a new Instagram. It will be a total rebrand.”
“We want to bring new life and some fresh air into the brand.”
Megan Kaye Donahoe
On Wednesday, Method will close early to transform into a Christmas pop-up shop, Donahoe said.
It will debut the holiday makeover with a full-day event Thursday including a new Christmas mural and holiday inspired drinks. Select media and influencers will be invited to see the restoration. The coffee shop will be open for regular business hours and is inviting regular guests to come and view the remodeled location.
As for the Method brand, Ben Yehoshua is planning to take his coffee into the wholesale market and is exploring opportunities to open new shops outside Dallas.
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