-Next on "Start Up"... We head to Wilmington, North Carolina, to meet up with Amy and Ben Wright, the founders of Bitty & Beau's Coffee, a business that employs people with disabilities, providing the community not only with great coffee, but also a meaningful experience.

All of this and more is next on "Start Up."

♪♪ ♪♪ -Vistaprint, a proud sponsor of "Start Up" and small businesses everywhere.

-Spectrum Business partners with small businesses across the country to help them achieve their goals.

With high-speed Internet, phone, TV, and mobile services, Spectrum Business provides the tools to keep you connected with your customers.

Spectrum Business.

No nonsense, just business.

♪♪ ♪♪ -My name is Gary Bredow.

I'm a documentary filmmaker and an entrepreneur.

As the country focuses on recovery, small-business owners everywhere are still fighting to keep their dream alive.

So we set out to talk to a wide range of diverse business owners to better understand how they've learned to adapt, innovate, and even completely reinvent themselves in this ever-changing world.

♪♪ This is "Start Up."

♪♪ According to Ottoman history, the world's first coffee house was located in Damascus in the early 15th century.

The first coffee house in Europe appeared in Venice in 1640.

Soon, the concept spread throughout Europe, with over 3,000 coffee houses in England by 1675 and, eventually, to the United States, where coffee is now ingrained into our everyday lives.

Whether it's an iced latte on the run or a meeting over mochas, coffee has become a staple for consumers of all ages.

Today, I'm heading to Wilmington, North Carolina, to meet up with Amy and Ben Wright, the founders of Bitty & Beau's Coffee, a coffeehouse that mainly employs people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

From what I know, Bitty & Beau's is creating quite a name for themselves and expanding quickly across the country.

I can't wait to learn more.

♪♪ Bitty & Beau's -- where did the name come from?

-So we have four children and our two youngest are Bitty and Beau.

Beau is almost 17, Bitty's almost 12, and they both have Down syndrome.

-Are the older ones like, "Why didn't you use our names at all?"

-[ Laughing ] Yeah.

We actually did, though, name a coffee after our oldest daughter, Lillie, who works here at the coffee shop.

She's autistic and this place has been life-changing for her, too.

We just, when we first started the coffee shop, didn't even know she had autism, so it's been an interesting journey.

-Tell me about your family.

-Oh, my gosh.

I have the best family ever.

Four beautiful children, three of whom have disabilities.

Our lives are largely about that, you know?

But my family is led by their mother, my wife, Amy.

She's the brains and the beauty of the organization, as I like to say.

I just try to kind of follow her around and she's what I call a human nuclear reactor.

I just sort of run around and pick up the spent fuel rods and try to find a good, safe place to put them, you know?

I just try to support her and try to support the kids as best I can.

But, if I could change one thing about it, it would be absolutely nothing, except just to try to wring out a few more minutes in each day.

-Did the concept start by saying, "We are going to primarily hire folks with disabilities?"

-100%.

-Okay.

-You know, our children having Down syndrome and then, our oldest with autism, you know, there is a staggering statistic that 80% of people with disabilities are unemployed and we really feel like that is a cultural problem.

-It is.

-And it's because people, maybe, have never spent time with people with disabilities, so they don't know their value.

They don't know their potential.

-Yeah.

-And we thought, you know, the coffee shop is a perfect vehicle for showing that, for demonstrating that.

-So that was really the impetus for the whole thing?

-Yeah, I mean, it's crazy because it wasn't on my mind.

It wasn't something I was searching for.

I just was taking a shower one day and it popped into my head and my heart and I said to my husband, "I think we need to start a coffee shop."

He thought I was crazy, but I knew like, if we could create a space where people could come together, that we could have some great impact on changing culture.

-What year was that?

-So that was the fall of 2015 the idea hit me.

We opened our shop two months later, January 2016.

-Two months later?

-Yes.

[ Laughs ] -That has to be the quickest turnaround from concept to business I've ever heard of.

-It was crazy.

-How?

-I don't know.

You know when your heart is pulling you in a certain way?

-Yeah.

-The day that I had this idea, I was out shopping for a place to put it.

There was this tiny, little, 500-square-foot spot that I thought, you know, "It's $600 a month."

I thought, "If it's a total bust, that's okay.

We'll give it a shot and see what happens."

Had no idea that, two months later, we would be busting at the seams.

People would be, you know, coming from all over the country and, eventually, the world to see what was going on here.

-Two months, it's just unheard of, from concept to opening the doors, especially not being seasoned coffee shop owners.

-I'm telling you, the only thing we knew about coffee is that we like to drink it.

That was it.

That's all we knew.

We didn't know retail.

We didn't know anything about it.

But I tell you, when you are thrust into that world, you very quickly see what the timeline's going to look like, what life is going to look like, and what was just glaringly evident is that, once high school is finished, it's lights out, it's crickets.

There's really not anything for anybody to do, especially with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

The main impetus behind opening Bitty & Beau's Coffee, originally, was, "We have got to create a place for our children to work when they age into it."

But it was very evident, as each day went on, that the true power of the coffee shop was not so much the jobs that it created for people with disabilities.

It was for the experience, the visceral, transformative, psychological reconditioning that was happening to the guests as they came in and experienced it.

-Yes.

-And then, we realized, "Oh, we've got to lean into that because here's what's happening.

People are having this 'Aha!'

moment."

They're seeing something that they can't then unsee and they're feeling something they can't unfeel.

They're going back out into their own lives and they're looking around and going -- -It's changing them.

-It's changing them.

And I think it takes that, right?

Because people with disabilities aren't unemployed because it's categorically an unemployment problem for them.

It's a social problem.

It's a cultural problem.

-Yep.

-And you've got to solve that piece and then, the employment piece follows in naturally behind that because people go.

"Why shouldn't we innovate around people with disabilities in the workplace?"

-For sure.

-That's why we exist.

♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ -Start by telling us your name and what do you do here at Bitty & Beau's?

-My name is Matthew Dean and I run register at Bitty & Beau's and my official job title here is director of first impressions.

-Awesome!

So what does the director of first impressions do?

-Basically make sure the customers are smiling, making sure they are well-serviced, and make sure everyone has a good time.

-Well, you have an awesome smile.

It makes me want to smile, so I think you're in the right role, for sure.

Prior to working here at this coffee shop, did you have other jobs before?

-Yes, sir.

I did work previously with Port City Java and Walgreens.

And then, around that time, I basically did not have that much customer experience.

I basically did not have people around my age.

Here, at Bitty & Beau's, I have people my age that can relate to, I now have new friend, and I have that better customer interaction that I now have.

-Awesome.

And, for anyone who has never been to Bitty & Beau's, what do you say to them?

-Come on down to Bitty & Beau's.

It's a different of coffee experience.

We hire people with disabilities.

You'll get a new -- how should I say?

-- perspective.

You'll get a new perspective on the place and stuff you'll see, that's run by people with disabilities and that our motto here is "Changing the way people see other people with disabilities."

-That's beautiful.

♪♪ Are there any companies out there, prior to Bitty & Beau's, that were advocates, champions, for hiring folks with disabilities?

-I think you see what I'll say are maybe some token hires, a little bit, and I don't want to use that word.

-I gotcha.

-It's kind of a negative word.

Where people say, "Well, I've hired somebody to clear trays," check that box, right?

We're trying to say something a little bit different than that.

If business is about anything, it's about innovation.

What is the reason why businesses don't innovate their systems around people with disabilities?

It goes back to the old ramp theory, right?

Almost everybody can walk up a ramp.

Everybody can't use the stairs, right?

If you make your system such that everybody can use them, even people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, to a degree, people who don't have those can use those systems.

-So it's about developing the system around the capabilities.

-That's it.

-So you found the space was already built out with like a commercial kitchen area?

-No.

No, no, no.

-This includes build-out?

-So, yeah.

I mean, it was really tiny.

-Yeah.

-My office doubled as the storage room, doubled as access to the restroom.

I sat on boxes with my laptop.

I don't know.

It was crazy.

I mean, we opened our doors.

We had a line out the door every day.

The parking lot was full.

People were coming for an experience.

They were getting great coffee at the same time, but it was really about the experience that they had in the shop.

-This has obviously been well-received by the community, right?

Are there any particular instances or stories that you can tell me, of people that have stepped up to help sort of advance the cause?

-Yeah, I think there's no better story than the Rippy family.

They owned this building that we are in here, our headquarters now, and while we were operating in our little, 500-square-foot spot, Allen Rippy became one of our best customers and just really bonded with our employees and noticed that we needed more room to grow.

And so he said, "You know, I've got this building sitting here, it's unoccupied, and I want you all to use this to grow and to reach more people."

And that was six months after we were open, so -- -Wow!

-Yep, we relocated and the rest is history.

I mean, now, people can pour in here, we can welcome field trips.

And people do make the trip from all over the world, now, and it's nice to really have space to hang out and to visit.

-Why was this concept so quickly embraced and so lovingly embraced?

-You know, I don't know how to best answer your question, other than to say my instinct is to say that, you know, it's kind of like when you know that something can be fixed... -But don't know how.

-...but don't know how.

-Yeah.

-And somebody goes, "Just turn it like that and put it in."

And you go... -[Both] "Ah!"

-"Oh!"

You know, and you rush towards it, right?

You want to see it.

You want to feel it.

And you want to bring other people to see it and feel it.

-"You've given me an opportunity to be involved... -That's right.

-...to help, to do something."

-That's right.

♪♪ -Tell me about that first year.

-We were just a few days old and, through the power of social media, Rachael Ray found out about us.

She did a feature on us and, from there, the media coverage has been amazing.

We just have been very blessed with organic things that have happened, so that we haven't had to spend any money on advertising.

It's all been word of mouth.

It's all been the power of social media.

-And people just wanting to share your story because it's awesome, what you're doing.

-Well, yeah, I think it's, you know, for forever, probably, there are a lot of people out there that have not known how to connect with people with disabilities, show their support.

The coffee shop is a safe space to do that and it's, we really feel, a human rights movement that people can get behind.

And so, when they come in here and they buy their cup of coffee and they walk out with the "radically inclusive" hat, they're joining this human rights movement, they're showing their support for people with disabilities.

-And how many people do you employ right now?

-So, right now, we have six shops that span between Wilmington, down south to Charleston and Savannah, up north to Annapolis, and, across those six shops, we employ 120 people with disabilities.

-Wow.

-But we're just getting started.

We're growing.

We have franchises that will open and we will be doubling, maybe tripling, that workforce by the end of next year.

♪♪ -What's your favorite part about being here in this environment?

-Probably the people.

I've met some really good customers here.

All the staff and I are friends.

I spend my Tuesdays and Thursdays here from 10:00 to 5:00 because I just love being here so much.

Just the sense of community, probably, that I found.

-Is it kind of weird, working with family, like with Mom and Dad?

-I actually really like it.

-That's good.

-Yeah, my family is very understanding of my autism and the things that I need and they know how to work around it and make the coffee shop an accessible place for me.

-What do you say to somebody who's never been to Bitty & Beau's before?

-Please come visit us.

We'd love to have you.

Don't be nervous.

We're just like any other coffee shop.

We just look a little bit different.

But you'll have a great time and our coffee's really good.

♪♪ -Let's talk about, in the early days, creating sort of your digital footprint and social media, because a lot of it expanded through that, right?

-Fortunately, my second daughter, Emma Grace, is very savvy that way and she has helped me along with our social media presence.

But we have found that, by just sharing stories, by giving people a glimpse into the shops and the lives of the people that work here, that that's what draws people in.

And so we've used the power of social media to tell those stories and to give people who don't have the opportunity to come to our shop a little glimpse into what goes on here.

And it's been remarkable.

I mean, the organic things that have happened through the media and through social media have really helped put us on the map.

♪♪ ♪♪ -I'm Emma Grace.

I am one of the Wright children and I am the creative director behind social media and behind all of our announcement posts.

-Wow.

Okay, so explain everything that sort of goes into that.

Where do you get your inspiration?

Your T-shirts are amazing, by the way.

-Thank you.

It's all very collaborative.

I work with my parents very closely.

We're coming up with ideas all the time and my job is basically to help conceptualize those and create products and help create videos and social media posts to help get the word out and to help contribute to the movement.

-Tell me about what it was like growing up in your family.

Every family has its differences, but mine was definitely very atypical.

I love it that way.

I feel like it's developed my character well and has taught me what's important in life.

And I love my siblings, which is very lucky to say.

You know, siblings have their rivalries.

We still have those, but, at the end of the day, there's a lot of love.

-What's your ultimate vision and goal for this?

-I'd love to see a Bitty & Beau's in all the major cities in the country, even all across the world.

But, eventually, I hope we don't have to exist one day and that all businesses will be so inclusive that it just is something normal.

-What about your website, when you first started that?

-I don't even think we had any merchandise on the website.

It was really just a website to tell our story and, now, it's a place where we, you know, take orders and to fill them and send our coffee and our merchandise all over the country and it's a big part of our business.

I mean, for those who can't come visit the shop, they can go online and they can join this human rights movement by purchasing a hat or a pound of coffee.

And the coolest part is that our employees are very involved in that process.

They write personal notes -Awesome.

-that are included with every shipment, so you feel like you've visited the shop, even if you can't get here.

-Let's start by telling us your name and what do you do here?

-My name is Stephanie Cynthia Glatt.

I'm a barista here and I'm also a cashier.

-What is your, I guess, your day-to-day job?

What do you do when you come in?

-I make the specialty drinks.

-Okay.

-Like the frappés and stuff.

-Where are we standing right here?

Is this like the retail?

-This is where we do our beans and shipment.

We ship out a lot of merchandise to people around the United States.

-Wow.

So people place an online order -Mm-hmm.

-and then, do you package it?

-Yep.

-Awesome.

-I help package and ship it out.

-I heard that there's something a little bit special that you do with packages as well.

-I write thank-you notes.

-You handwrite thank-you notes to everybody that gets it?

-Yes, we do.

-Wow.

What would you say to people that have never been to Bitty & Beau's Coffee?

-Come out and check us out and see what we're all about.

♪♪ -Franchising.

Let's talk about that a little bit.

-Once we opened, we just started to get email after email of "Open in our town," right?

And we thought, "Oh, my gosh.

You know, we've got -- we have an opportunity here," right?

So we quickly, you know, went to our legal team and said, "Draft it up," you know, and they said, "It costs a lot of money."

We said, "Doesn't matter.

It needs to be done."

And we did, and we started to review people's applications and Amy and I looked at each other and we said, "Do we really know what we're doing, yet?"

-[ Laughs ] There was no uniform system in place, yet.

-No!

We're making it up as we go, you know?

We were building the airplane as we flew it.

-Yeah.

-And so we we pumped the brakes on that.

We said, "We can't do this, yet.

It just is not right to do that yet."

-We tried to do that on our own backs for a number of years.

We opened in Charleston two years after we originally opened.

Then, we opened in Savannah a year later, then, Annapolis, and we just couldn't do it fast enough.

And we thought, "How do we keep this momentum going?"

And we felt like our highest and best use was to teach other people how to do this.

-Got it.

-So that's the phase we're in now.

It was August of last year, 2020, that we, you know, revisited all of those franchise documents, updated them, and and began having the conversations with potential franchisees to buy a franchise and here we are -- gosh, it's not even a year later -- and we've sold 14.

-Oh, my gosh!

-Yeah!

♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ -What do you think the impact has been personally on Bitty and Beau?

-Well, they both think they're celebrities, so I'm not sure if that's good or bad.

-They are.

-But they are, yeah.

You know, they're such beautiful kids.

You know, it's a real sense of identity for them, you know.

I think we all struggle, whether you have a disability or not, what is your identity... -Of course.

-...right?

-Daily.

-What are you all about, right?

And so, especially, people with IDD, that's a tough one.

So, this is a place where you can have that and so, I think that's been good for them.

-You're happy, fulfilled?

-Mm.

This is a thing that, you've done enough interviews, you probably notice like I -- I like get choked up [ Tearfully ] a lot.

-Yeah.

♪♪ -The day that I can do an interview like this, or even just talk to somebody coming in... -Yeah.

-...and I don't get choked up, I'll know that I've zigged when I should've zagged, you know?

I'll know that I've gone in the wrong direction.

I'm not doing this for the right reason anymore.

-Talk about some of the recognition that you've received.

-It has been very humbling to be recognized for what we're doing here because I feel like what we're doing is just the right thing to do.

-Sure.

-And I always try to deflect whatever recognition I get onto our employees because they're the ones who really deserve it.

And I've been very honored to be named the 2017 CNN Hero of the Year and I, you know, I remember -- [ Chuckle-cries ] You're getting me choked up.

But, I mean, I just remember thinking that my kids were at home, watching me that night and that this was for them... -You made them proud.

-...and [ Chuckle ] this was for our employees.

And, when I came home from that whole experience, the shop was full of people, all of our employees, there to celebrate me and I was thinking, "This is not about me."

It's never been about me.

This is about them.

This is about society.

This is about what we're doing.

I want to look back, when my life is over, and say this was the most important thing I did because it's for my kids, it's for others who have never been seen through this lens before, and it's my life's work.

-They're proud of you.

-[ Laughing ] Oh.

-You think?

They must be.

-You know, my littlest, Bitty, loves to watch videos of the shop and she always comes and she wraps her arms around me, "I'm so proud of you, Mommy."

And I just think -Wow, what a feeling.

-it's pretty cool that, you know, they're growing up feeling that way.

-And that, I mean, that's success.

-It's true.

It's what motivates me.

It's why I think the risk was worth taking., way back when, when, you know, we, every step of the way, that's what drives us, is we're doing this for our kids.

-It's stories like this that prove, time and time again, that you can do well and do good.

And a mission-forward approach not only resonates with the public, it also allows businesses to create real social change, like putting a huge dent in the 85% unemployment rate in the disabled community.

Amy and Ben are literally proving to other business owners that the disabled are valuable and productive employees that can have an extremely positive impact on company culture, breaking down barriers of how their customers see and interact with these amazing people.

I see no limits on how far Ben and Amy can take this business, let alone the vast amount of opportunities that will be created for an underutilized population of highly capable individuals.

Maybe Wilmington is the epicenter for social change, or maybe it's just something in the air, but I can feel it.

It's palpable.

People are doing really great things in Wilmington.

Maybe it's the year that we've all had giving us time to reflect and reassess.

Maybe people are searching for a bit more meaning behind the things they do.

Realizing that our time here is finite, not infinite, and, if you're going to devote yourself to something, you might as well make it something worthwhile.

And, at Bitty and Beau's, they're definitely doing something worthwhile.

For more information, visit our website and search episodes for Bitty & Beau's.

♪♪ Next time on "Start Up"... We head to Savannah, Georgia, to meet up with Kay Heritage, the owner of Big Bon Bodega, a pizza and bagel shop on a mission to teach team members business and life skills through a variety of different experiences.

Be sure to join us next time on "Start Up."

♪♪ Would you like to learn more about the show, or maybe nominate a business?

Visit our website, at startup-usa.com, and connect with us on social media.

♪♪ -♪ We got a long road ahead of us ♪ ♪ A long road ahead of us ♪ Got a long road ahead of us ♪ Before we pay our dues ♪ We've got a long road ahead of us ♪ ♪ A long road ahead of us ♪ A long road ahead of us ♪ ♪ Before we pay our ♪ Dues ♪♪ ♪♪ -Spectrum Business partners with small businesses across the country to help them achieve their goals.

With high-speed Internet, phone, TV, and mobile services, Spectrum Business provides the tools to keep you connected with your customers.

Spectrum Business.

No nonsense, just business.

♪♪ ♪♪ -Vistaprint, a proud sponsor of "Start Up" and small businesses everywhere.