One of the more popular, storied coffee shops in the metro area is closing after a 22-year run. The Coffee Cartel, located at Maryland and Euclid Avenue (arguably the prime corner in the CWE), is closing on Tuesday, October 16, the first time the doors to the 24-hour shop have ever closed. The announcement was made via Facebook early Monday morning. Free scoops of ice cream will be offered between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. as a “customer appreciation farewell.”
Dennis Gorg (pronounced George), who’s owned the shop since 1996, tells SLM that the business recently experienced a “dramatic” drop in sales—11 percent in 2017 and 24 percent to date this year—and that such decreases were untenable.
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Coffee Cartel was three businesses in one: part coffee shop, sandwich shop, and ice cream shop. Over the years, Gorg says, the percentage contributions to sales remained the same (at 33 percent each), but the overall sales level dropped, from $1 million two years ago to $650,000 today.
Gorg cites increased crime, more aggressive panhandling, and even the weather as possible reasons for the decline in sales. “When the weather improves, people want to sit outside,” he says, referencing the shop’s popular patio. “This year, we skipped spring, and apparently we’re skipping fall, too. This whiplash weather is hard on places with patios.”
Looking back, Gorg notes that the business evolved into a 24-hour neighborhood community center, welcoming neighbors, students, the homeless, first responders, the LGBTQ community, and many other patrons. “It’s been a refuge for anyone in trouble or someone just needing to get out of the house,” Gorg says. “On 9/11, the place was packed.”
Over the years, the business also supported more than 50 sports teams and supported hundreds of charities every year.
Regarding the future of the corner, Gorg says another 24-hour establishment is unlikely: “When the Cartel started, the CWE was all boutique shops, with people jumping from one business to another, window-shopping. Twenty years ago, the businesses thrived and survived because of one another. Then storefronts were combined, creating bigger destination restaurants,” which he says may be the fate of the Cartel space. “It’s still a good idea, just different.”
