After falling in love with the cat breeding process, Cal Poly alumnus Jaime Pierce decides to open a cat cafe in San Luis Obispo: The Caffeinated Cat Cafe.
Pierce has fostered cats with organizations such as the Cal Poly Cat Program and the Feline Network of the Central Coast in recent years.
“I love making a difference in cats’ lives and helping people find a cat. The whole experience is so much fun,” she said. “I really wanted to do this on a much larger scale.”
Currently, Pierce’s biggest challenge is finding a space to open the Cat Café. A resident of Arroyo Grande, she is also interested in locations in Grover Beach and Pismo Beach, but believes San Luis Obispo would be a great area.
“It’s weird, a lot of landlords just say no right away,” she said. “They don’t even want to hear about it. Whereas the community and everyone who hears the concept is very excited.”
Pierce plans to open this cafe within six to eight weeks of signing the lease. Their goal is to open this summer or fall before students return to school.
“It will depend on the conditions of the space and how much work we need to do… But I hope for faster participation, I am very prepared,” she said.
Pierce’s current partners are the Cal Poly Cat Program and the Central Coast Feline Network to house the adoptable cats.
According to Central Coast Feline Network President Debra Holt, the ability to have cats at a cat cafe will allow more cats to be adopted and her team to rescue more cats, as the Feline Network does not have a permanent shelter.
“The more exposure our adoptable cats can get, the more likely we are to find forever homes… especially for some of our older cats who may just not latch onto people right away,” Holt said.
Cal Poly Cat Program President Natalie Siler is excited about the opportunity to showcase the cats and help them get adopted.
“We have a lot of cats here that are at the shelter, but they are super friendly and I think they do really well just having them in a comfortable place for them to be where people can see them in their natural environments, — Siler said.
According to Abby Brown, shelter manager for the Cal Poly Cat program, having your cats at a cat cafe will help them get more visiting hours during the day.
“Because we are a full-time student-run program, we do not have regular operating hours,” Brown said. “So that’s one of the biggest barriers to adopting cats, because people can’t just come in and see them whatever they want.”
Surprised by her growing social media presence on Instagram, @thecaffeinatedcatcafe_ca, Pierce is thrilled with the positive feedback coming from local community members.
“For me, this is a success, as well as reminding me that the community really wants this and that it will be an experience that we simply don’t have here,” she said.
When Pierce was in college, she was a barista, where she learned her interest in the “coffee experience.” Once open, she initially plans to have a smaller-scale coffee cart instead of a coffee shop.
“I like a good cup of coffee and I care about where it is roasted and how it is made.” Pierce said. “And so, yeah, honestly, I don’t run a cafe myself, but I’ve been doing a lot of research to prepare myself on how to do that.”
Understanding the challenges of keeping up with a busy life, Pierce hopes people can come, gather with others and relax with the cats.
“It’s not just a coffee shop. It’s a place where you get your coffee and then sit down and have a cat purring on your lap,” she said. “It’s a truly unique experience and I’m excited to let the community experience it.”
