(gentle music) - [Narrator] Funding for "Working Capital" is provided by The Friends of KTWU and Go Topeka.

- Oh, hey.

Sorry I didn't see you there, but welcome to the show.

You are here for season nine of "Working Capital", and as always, this studio is a work in progress.

With so many shows going on, like "Inspire", "IGI" and of course "Working Capital", there's always something new and different going on.

Which also we're gonna have something new and different going on with the show this season.

So stick around.

We hope you'll enjoy the ride.

(upbeat music) (upbeat music) Welcome back to "Working Capital" Season nine.

Today we're gonna talk about businesses that as they try to open up, maybe experience a few hiccups, a few speed bumps, but I think all of us entrepreneurs and new businesses and old businesses alike, all face these kind of obstacles.

So really what does it take to face those head on and figure out a way around it?

Today we have Chris Schultz from Cosmos Court joining us, which is a new business getting ready to open up, but an old entrepreneur to Topeka, an old space that you keep reinventing.

So Chris, thanks for being here today and let's talk a little bit about Cosmos Court.

- Well, thank you so much for having me on the show, and I'm excited to be able to share Cosmos Court with the Topeka community with Kansas really.

It is such a great opportunity to be able to showcase what we have in Topeka off to everybody who comes and visits the Capitol.

We're right there next to it.

- It does sound like a great concept for downtown, but first off, you've had this space for quite a while.

- Yeah.

- Let's go back to the beginning.

- Yep.

- What drew you to downtown, 'cause really you were there in downtown when the revitalization movement really, really took off.

- Oh, yeah.

When I was trying to open up, I was 22 years old, and it was 2002 is when we opened Field of Greens down there.

And everybody said, "It was very much, if you build it, they will come," was the attitude with it.

And they did, but back then people were saying, "You're gonna shoot your eye out, kid.

Like, that was not the space where you went."

They said you had to be on Wanamaker, you had to be out west, you had to do that if you wanted to be successful.

And I thought, nah.

I mean, this is the hub.

This is where Topeka started.

This is where our history is, and this is where all the people work.

You just have to create something that is useful, that fits with what's needed.

And that's what we did back then.

And we constantly evolved ourselves along the line to become what we are today.

I opened the Break Room in 2006, bought the building in 2008, and the rest is history.

- Well, speaking of Field of Greens, I know that the whole big plan is getting it to where people wanna come down at night.

That has been the whole process.

But Field of Greens, you were really filling a niche there for the state office workers, Evergy.

I mean, I used to work downtown and there's a couple favorite spots we used to have, but they dried up.

But Field of Greens, even now, people still remember and they miss it a lot.

So I know COVID had things that dampened it and all.

So tell me some of the obstacles you faced between opening up and really where you have to rebrand it and relaunch, and really you're thinking about the customers and your customer relationship management on a local scale.

So tell me, how'd you have to switch and what caused that?

- Yeah, I'll try to be the perpetual optimist.

I want to make sure that what we're doing is useful.

What's bringing people together and with downtown and where we are, we are so excited to be able to bring something that is, people recognize that Field of Greens name.

They spent so many years going there and being wonderful customers.

The Break Room.

COVID hits.

How can you even look at the bright side of COVID Well, you have to look at the bright side of COVID Things changed.

Now, we're where we are today.

We were told everything that I was doing, I was doing entertainment, I was doing the restaurant business, all that stuff.

There was a day when we were told, nothing you do is essential.

And right now we are essential because we have to rebuild all of that.

So those of us who bring people together, who serve those needs, these are essential needs now.

We've become essential again.

- So COVID hits, you have to rethink everything.

How do you cave up?

As an entrepreneur, how do you start planning that next move?

What are you looking at for research wise of what you really want to bring back into that space?

- Well, we knew what people loved.

It was all sitting right there.

It was a matter of taking all the pieces that were left, that COVID left us with putting the puzzle back together.

I've been playing Tetris, Jenga, whatever you might call it, with stuff at the building so that when you come in there, if you ever went to the Break Room, if you ever went to Field of Greens, you're gonna see so many bits and pieces of those businesses that are gonna bring back all the memories that you've had with them.

We're bringing things back to life.

COVID wiped it out, but it doesn't mean that they're not here, and they're coming back to life.

That's what I think is gonna be very exciting for a lot of people to see the things that they love actually coming back when they thought they lost them.

- What is the first thing that came outta your mind to bring back?

- Oh boy.

- Like when you walk in, even as you're building it now, when you walk in, what is that thing that you're like, "That was it."

What was the catalyst?

- There's food everywhere and you gotta do food great.

But the thing that I think is missing the most, and what we did really well over at the Break Room and Field of Greens was bringing people together.

And that is the thing that we need to talk to so many different people, so many different niche groups of people bringing them together and getting them off of their electronic devices.

We want to have things that are so great that you wanna put your screens down to look around and be in the moment and have the experience.

And we want to have little things that bring groups of people together and get them talking again and get them to celebrate again.

And we wanna be that community center in downtown.

It's where you can count on cool stuff happening that you're gonna remember.

- So it's not just food and fun.

We talked a little bit ahead of time.

You're also planning some entertainment again.

- [Chris] Yeah.

- And we'll get into that later in a later segment and all.

But I mean, you're thinking, 'cause I know the Break Room, "The Drunkard" used to to be there.

You have vaudeville shows, you'd have comedy nights.

I mean, it was kind of a hub for downtown entertainment.

A lot of people who wanted their start, might've been first on that stage.

So is that kind of some plans too down the road of- - Yeah, yeah.

- Having that space again.

- Absolutely.

We're bringing standup comedy back.

And it never went away.

There are things that, before we really started, the folks that started Top City Comedy, it was the first opportunity for them to be able to get standup comedy and give them a workshop space.

And they say, "Oh, you're like the father of this."

Like, they walk in, they treat me like royalty every time I go to one of their shows.

And I'm like, "You know what?

The thing with this is that all I did was say yes."

More people need to say yes to things, take a chance on things that may be outside the box.

Because I'll tell you right now, looking back, that started a whole movement that I think everybody involved can be so totally proud with.

Wasn't me.

All I did was say yes and gave 'em an opportunity and showed up for them and offered as much support as I could.

- You've been a blessing for this community.

- Thank you very much.

- And you do magic, hope magic comes back.

- We're bringing it back.

Everything that has been a part of my life, this whole thing, Cosmos Court really is my life put into experiences that I can share with other people.

- Well, I know it's not open yet, but I really feel like we should have been down there and seen this space firsthand.

So I really... Chris?

- [ Chris] Maybe we can - Chris.

Chris?

Chris?

Well join us after the break.

We'll see if we can find Chris.

- [Narrator] This is KTWU, local public television.

(upbeat music) (upbeat music) All right.

So we've made it down here.

Thank you, Chris.

- So good to have you here.

- Thanks for inviting us down here.

I'm glad we actually got outta the studio.

So this is Cosmos Court.

- This is what we're looking at.

Yeah.

- Take us through it.

How did we get here?

I know it's kind of a big speed bump, like a lot of people from COVID so you saw some opportunities there.

Just walk us through this grand vision, then we'll get a little specific.

- I don't know if I ever saw it as an opportunity at the beginning.

- Yeah.

- 'Cause COVID really messed things up, especially when literally everything that you do in a career, you were basically told you were non-essential.

And so now, all the essential people did their work back then.

Now they get to take a break and somebody needs to entertain them.

And I feel like that is where we come back to being essential, to bringing people back together and getting them back out in their community.

Getting them to a place where they can afford different things on their own schedule.

A maker space for food, where you're the maker.

Anything you want that is in your imagination, right there.

- I mean, as soon as I walked in the door, I know you're almost ready to open, you're kind of waiting for some sort of front construction.

- Yep.

- But you can't help but smile.

I mean, it kind of takes me back to when a little kid, whether it was walking into show biz or going into an old soda parlor or anything.

It's just fun.

I mean, you can't help but brighten your day coming in here.

- Absolutely.

That came from my experience of going to Branson and working with them and then also going on tour with an illusionist all over the place.

And the coolest part about that illusionist, Rick Thomas, if you're in Branson, definitely check him out.

Great show.

But seriously traveling around the world.

I lived in casinos for months at a time.

And what do you have?

You get outta your room, you go on the elevator, you get down, you go to the Starbucks or the whatever's around there, and you have all the stuff that you need is right there.

And they have it in a very confined area, but everything that you need is there.

And that's what I wanted to bring to the area.

I felt like we needed more options for people to have things that are affordable for lunch, experiences that they want to come down and experience fun with their family after on the weekends, however that... We wanted to, whatever this was to fit any occasion, any budget, any need.

- Yeah.

You're kind of filling a lot of little gaps that maybe downtown's missing.

So if you do come downtown, you can get these new, I mean, create your own pizza.

There's some place that have little bits and pieces, but I mean, let's go down here.

Let's just walk through it.

- So, well the first one here, you start off well, right, the front one.

This is "Build a Bev", right here.

- [Host] Okay.

- [Chris] So "Build a Bev" was an idea that I was sitting around with a friend of mine and we were talking about how kids have "Build a Bear", why don't adults have "Build a Bev"?

It's a good question, right?

And I think it'd be a fun thing.

So I said, "You know what, if buildabev.com is available, I'm gonna build this thing."

And, I don't know, I spent so much time learning wiring and all the things that it took to do this.

I taught myself how to do this so that we could create "Build a Bev", which is this really cool way of you to be able to be your own bartender.

- So not just creating the atmosphere and thinking, "I need these," you are creating the tech.

- [Chris] Machines.

- [Host] The machines behind the experiences at this point.

- Yeah, we've created this measured pouring system, we've created dispensers for mixers.

So really, the whole family can have fun with this.

We're gonna have so many different options for beverages around here that you can make your own beverage in this place and it's gonna be awesome.

You can spike it with whatever, the kids can come and make their Shirley Temples, they can do whatever they want here and make it the way they want it.

That's "Build a Bev".

Also, this guy right over here is a robot that since we're at Cosmos Court, at the push of a button makes the perfect Cosmopolitan.

- You gotta be kidding.

- Had plenty of time.

I had plenty of time during the pandemic.

- So how long do you create an invention like this?

- Once it comes, it just goes.

Yeah, I don't stop until it's done.

- So, like any good entrepreneur, or any business owner, you always have to adapt.

You always have to keep learning.

What all did you have to teach yourself?

I mean, did you know wiring?

What all did you teach yourself to do?

- So I came from a techie family.

- Okay.

- But it's always been a techie family that's done the techie for me.

And I've always been the little kid who hands them the pliers and all this stuff.

- Yeah.

- So I learned from that.

But just going out and saying, "If I want to do this, how would I do it?

How would I do it?"

It's the same thing.

You wanna figure out how an illusionist does a magic trick.

If you just look at it and say, "If I had to go up on that stage and make that thing happen, how would I do it?"

- So take me through one of your brainstorming sessions.

You must be doing this brainstorming on your own, almost like some people would do it with the creative team or anything else.

- Yeah.

- But I heard you say measured pour.

I mean, you're thinking through every little bit.

So, how do you decide what your measured pour is for your "Build a Bev"?

- So that's the system I designed.

So back here we sell you liquor by the ounce.

So, basically in the back we have all of the different liquors.

Our staff member pushes the button.

It gives you the perfect pour per ounce every time you push the button.

So we have the ability, you don't even have to pick up a bottle, you just push the button.

- Also does help with accounting purposes.

- Absolutely.

- Because, it even not meaning to, you know, one of the biggest expenses in this kind of businesses is liquor.

You do a slight over-pour each time 'cause someone's just- - That's right.

- It's very costly.

So this, I mean, you're accounting wise... - I've been doing this exactly for a long time.

- Just constantly perfecting it.

- You look at things that you've done for a long time like this and you say, "Okay, if I'm gonna do this again, how am I not gonna do it again?"

And I'm gonna do it some other different way.

- Learn from your losses.

- Absolutely.

All the time.

- Probably like most people say, you probably learned more from the bad times than the good times.

Good times, it rolls too easy.

You're just there.

But you have to adapt.

It's like downtown here, we talked with Nick (indistinct) last season and COVID for him where COVID for you was like, oh, people aren't coming in.

His business took off because everyone wanted to online order.

And all of a sudden they're like, "Well, we better do this to stay alive."

And then all of a sudden, bam, here's this swarm.

- Yeah.

- So when you do open those doors, are you ready for a swarm?

I mean, what are you... - We are going to serve people the best we can as well as we can for as long as we can.

- Okay, okay.

- That's it.

- "Build a Bev".

- Yeah.

- You're gonna have pizza options downtown, which I know has been a big, huge thing for a lot of people.

They wanna be able to just- - A lot of people have been patiently waiting for pizza downtown.

And what's great about this place is that we're gonna have pizza where you can either build your own pizza, you can build a family style pizza, or you can build a personal pan pizza or you can just walk in here and grab a slice of pizza.

So we wanted it to be really quick, easy and affordable for everyone.

- Yeah, no, that's awesome.

- Yeah.

The Break Room.

- You're bringing back old memories for a lot of people 'cause you guys have supported this community a long time.

So the Break Room, which was next door- - The Break Room was the first place to introduce Nathan's hot dogs to Topeka.

- I did not know that.

Wow.

- Yeah, Sam's Club started selling it.

Their General Manager came in here, tried them, and then they started selling them in their cafe at that point.

And it was super cool, 'cause that helped actually kind of brand the things, so it was really great.

But we were the first ones to bring Nathan's hot dogs to Topeka.

- That's awesome.

- We also did nachos.

And so that was another thing that when we first opened the Break Room, we did loaded nachos and hot dogs.

So that was the things that we wanted to bring here.

So in this whole place, this maker space of food, this is where it starts for you to be able to create your own food.

We have the salad bar back here with all the toppings, the fixings, everything there.

So you can come in, you can get a bowl, a couple sized bowls that you can just load up and have a salad.

Or you can come in here and your lettuce can be a hot dog or your lettuce can be chips.

You can make it however you want.

Build it however you want it.

- That's fantastic.

- A world of your imagination.

- And I know I have a lot of friends who have been waiting for Field of Greens to come back.

So this is great.

So stick around, we'll learn more of the options here at Cosmos Court after the break.

- Coming up on "IGI", legislators are back in Topeka for the 2024 Kansas legislative session.

Our all star panel of experts will analyze the priorities of Republicans and Democrats and on where they might be able to find common ground.

All on the next "IGI".

- Alright, so we're feeling a bit of nostalgia.

We've had the Break Room, Field of Greens, but really the name for this whole place, the Cosmos Court, Cosmos Pizza Club.

The Cosmos kind of comes from your first foray into the service industry and really creating experiences for people.

So how did you first get into this whole industry?

- Well, that's interesting.

'Cause I went to Washburn.

I got a theater degree there.

And I think that's the best competitive advantage that I was given as a business person.

- [Host] Really?

- Because I wasn't brought up on this, like the way that they tell people in business school how to do business.

My sister is an accountant, so I had the business, the money side, taken care of.

- Yeah.

- I got to do the creativity side and that was super cool.

But it gave me an advantage because I wasn't taught how to do business the way everybody else is taught how to do business.

- You didn't have the boundaries in place that it tries to form to... - Yeah, yeah.

My background was stage management, develop direction, scenic design, all of those things.

So it's like creating this show, this image- - [Host] And fixing lots of problems.

- Fixing lots of problems, professional dumpster firefighters, that's what we do.

And I was getting to the end of that and I was thinking like, "What am I gonna do with this career?"

And I was like, most people in theater work in restaurants, so I might as well try owning my own restaurant.

So that's when we opened Field of Greens in 2002 in this particular location.

Yeah.

Then the Break Room came around in 2006, and that was right after that.

So that's what we know.

Cosmos Court, the name for that actually comes from right after we opened Field of Greens, we opened a nightclub in College Hill.

The whole theme of Kansas is to the stars, right?

To Cosmos.

Let's pull it all together and let's take all these themes and put it together.

So our first bar in College Hill was called Cosmos Court.

It was not, no, it was called Club Cosmos.

And that's how we came up with the name for Cosmos Court.

- [Host] Yes.

- Yeah.

So that's what we wanted to do.

We wanted this to be like a place that's like brought back so many different memories from so many people over all of these years and put them all together in this one picture.

So everybody had this almost a community center, you know?

Yeah, I say a for-profit, I hope Community center right here in downtown.

Because this is gonna bring people together with not only the food options here, but with the performance space next door and how this whole place is connected.

There's gonna be limitless amounts of things that we can do here that are gonna bring people together and hopefully, pull Topeka back together.

- That's fantastic.

- Yeah.

- So you're keeping the nostalgia, keeping the feel, because like I say, people miss the Break Room.

They miss the greens.

- They do.

- But, tell us what's on the horizon for here?

'Cause I know you don't have everything in place yet.

So there's some partnerships or what else is coming to here?

What else can you expect when we walk through that door for your sugar fix or- - You're gonna get everything.

It's everything you want, whenever you want it.

So what we're gonna have over here is a performance fix.

You're gonna come in through here in the evenings, and you're gonna go through this back new area that we have back here, and it's going to- - Okay, so I didn't even realize we're going back through now.

- We're going back through.

So now where it says Tink coming soon.

This area back here has got brand new ADA bathrooms in there.

Imagine that you've just walked through the field, Dorothy's farmland, the tornado comes and hits you, you've been transported to Oz, you're in the food court at Oz.

And in the food court at Oz, there's this place called The Tink, which is a spaceship landing port.

So you step into the spaceship, which takes you from Cosmos 909 to Cosmos 911 next door, which also shares the space with Julie.

So during the day you've got a coffee and breakfast spot, and then in the evening, you've got a nightclub.

So it really is utilizing the space for as many different things as we can.

So it's not sitting there vacant when we have people who want to do certain things in this place.

So it's really trying to build a cohesive package of everything.

- And it's really smart just for thinking of your return per square foot.

There's a lot of places in town who have slowly been adopting this.

There's something during the day.

Their clientele only hits that point in the day, but there's a kitchen, there's other amenities.

So why wouldn't something else use that in the evening if it flows well?

So that is a great use of space and a great use of business sense, really.

- Thank you.

And you know, living in a casino did that to me.

'Cause that's what they do.

It's all maximized.

- [Host] So you're saying more people should live in casinos?

- I don't think so.

I don't think so.

I wasn't a gambler, we just did magic, we went around doing that and it works well with casinos.

But I wasn't a gambler and I observed.

I was there with a business mind and thinking creatively at the same time.

And also having this thing back home, and kind of how would I be influenced by it, really that influenced my perception of how I would redo it.

And then the pandemic gave me a chance to redo it.

- So, speaking of your magic.

And there's gonna be a space at some point in the future, will we see some magic brought back to downtown?

- Absolutely.

- What kind of shows do you envision?

I know you kind of gotta wait for performers to come in, but what do you see for Topeka there?

- Well, first of all, I see a lot of communities coming together and different organizations who need places to do things and being able to have some really easy ways for them to make what they need to make for their budgets to work and their services to exist.

So we want to be a critical part of that with the community.

But also, I've got a lot of connections with Branson and I spent a lot of time there and I wanna bring some of those folks here as well.

And introduce them to the people in Topeka.

I think that would be awesome.

- Topeka used to be huge.

Of course, we're dating Topeka now, but on the Vaudeville tour, everyone had to come to Topeka.

And that was kind of the bar to judge if you were good, if you thought you were good at Topeka.

If you got...

They're not just gonna clap for you 'cause of your name.

- If you think your act is good, try it in Topeka.

(crosstalk) (Chris chuckles) - So you have supported the arts for so long, so that's a great thing.

I will say this is one of the first places back when I did a lot more photography, the first Friday Art Walks, huge supporters, they gave lots of wall space for up and coming artists to show their work.

So it's just beautiful.

So besides this space, really, you've supported this building for so long.

We don't have very much more time right now, but the upstairs, it used to be offices, it's now beautiful woodwork, big transit windows, beautiful space.

But I think you- - [Chris] That's my residence.

- Tenant space residency?

- Yeah, yeah.

My residence is up there.

We've, in the future, just to give you these just little nuggets here.

Magic is gonna be coming back in the form of having an experience here in the building that will take you to a brick and mortar magic shop.

And we're also gonna have a little gallery space as well.

So the engine room of our spaceship is also doubling as a gallery.

- [Host] That's so cool.

- Yeah.

- And for your history buffs too, as you're researching downtown buildings, it's (indistinct), I mean all this lovely smells and food.

It's been here for a long time 'cause directly underneath us is what used to be the chocolate shop.

The Chocolate Shop cafe, I forget.

- Yeah, the Chocolate Shop restaurant.

- But Alf Landon, if you know that name in Kansas history, that was one of his favorite spots.

So, I mean, this building has been putting a smile on Kansans and even famous Kansans faces.

- Amelia Earhart, there's stories of Amelia Earhart coming to Topeka to visit the Chocolate Shop restaurant.

- Beautiful building, beautiful spot.

You're rebuilding here.

I hope you all come out and check this out.

You will definitely smile when you walk through that door.

We can smell a few of the smells that they've been testing in the back right now.

It's gonna be awesome when they open up.

So be here for that day.

And thank you Chris, especially for getting us down here.

I'm glad you got us out of the studio.

- So we can't wait to be open and having millions of reasons to see you more.

And we'll come back and see you.

- All right.

- Looking forward.

Stick around, we'll be right back.

- We're setting and accomplishing goals on the next "Inspire".

- But first, what is a goal and how do we begin setting goals in our hectic lifestyles?

- And what are the benefits of setting goals in work and in life.

All this coming up on the next "Inspire".

- Well, I can definitely see where this experience is going to go and a lot of people are gonna remember this place for a long time.

So Chris, thanks for getting us out of the studio and actually showing it to us.

I know you're not quite ready for prime time yet, but what an amazing space.

And one thing we didn't talk about too much in those segments is the nighttime entertainment you're getting ready to curate.

So you're really using that space, all the space, it's transforming depending day or night, so it can be used.

So you have Julie's in the space that used to be the Break Room, fantastic establishment.

But then at night when they close up, tell us again how that's gonna transform and become another venue.

- So my experiences of touring around, living in casinos, seeing how they really utilize all the space to the best of their ability, every corner, every nook and cranny has something that serves a purpose.

And that space has got a really great opportunity to bring people together in the evenings, weekends, all the things that we can do in there, it's gonna be amazing from the comedy shows to music events, to we wanna have a dance floor, wanna have all kinds of things that can bring people together with what they wanna do in that space.

- And I think just this idea, I mean, you're not the first one in town to do it, but you're gonna knock this outta the park.

But I think a lot of other businesses have opportunities there that close up early, but they have a kitchen space.

They have just have a big meeting room where someone else can come in and that could be their whole business plan is finding these spots to take over from five to 11.

And so it's fantastic.

- As the world is coming back, that rebirth that we're having right now and trying to figure out what the new normal is and creating, there's so many opportunities there for people to look at what they used to do and to say, "What am I going to do?

Where's the future going?"

And we couldn't have done that before.

It's hard to change.

- And speaking of the future, I mean, you're curating the spot, but you're not just for downtown, but you're not just thinking about your space.

- [Chris] Yep.

- Tell us you have a little bit of a plan for all of downtown to kind of help with the history and stuff that was already put in place.

But yeah, tell us your vision here is very cool.

- That the redevelopment of downtown, we put in some great stuff when we did that.

The pocket parks, the bronze statues, it really tells the story of Topeka and that's what we wanna do next.

We wanna be able to tell the story to the people who come down there and give them something that really helps almost curate them to get around to see those things and to launch them on a tour, walking tour around Kansas Avenue.

So that's in the pipeline coming up soon.

So yeah, pay attention to that.

- Like starting or stomping like you said from the Kansas Star.

- Yeah.

- They're at the front of your shop.

It's just perfect.

It all fits, it's serendipity.

- That's right.

Kansas Stars is in national registry history, you register of places, it's in our listing and that's the central point of the tour.

If you're starting out down at Evergy say, you come down Evergy plaza, you're gonna do an event down there.

We want you to walk around Kansas Avenue, see the history, see all the awesome businesses that we have downtown and come down and have literally everything that you want, whenever you want it down at Cosmos Court.

- We can't wait to enjoy it.

So thank you again, Chris, for being with us on our first episode of Season Nine.

Well that's a wrap for tonight's show.

As Chris has shown us, don't let any roadblocks or speed bumps ruin your entrepreneurial journey.

Just keep your head down, keep grinding, and you'll find a way out.

So thanks for joining us and we hope you see us next time.

You've been watching "Working Capital".

(upbeat music) (upbeat music) - [Narrator] Funding for "Working Capital" is provided by the Friends of KTWU and Go Topeka.

(upbeat music)