THE CHALLENGE

IMPROVING A DIFFICULT RELATIONSHIP

The relationship between coffee shops and laptop-based remote workers has always been tense. Coffee shops rely on high turnover, while remote workers often occupy space for hours with minimal spending. On the other hand, millions of remote professionals struggle to find welcoming, reliable places to work.

Before the pandemic, 38 million people in the US worked from home daily, with close to 3 million using coffee shops as their primary workspace. Another 26 million used them as their secondary work location. Despite the scale, the market had no structured solution.

Cuppasa aimed to bridge this gap by giving both sides what they need without forcing either group to compromise.

RESEARCH

UNDERSTANDING THE MARKET

Since we were designing for two distinct audiences, I focused heavily on early validation. I combined online research with qualitative interviews across both segments, coffee shop owners and remote professionals, to understand their needs, constraints, and motivations.

To validate the problem at its source, my cofounder and I traveled to New York before building anything, meeting coffee shop owners door-to-door and running early discovery sessions. Those conversations shaped the core opportunity and business model.

“Three hours for five dollars’ worth of coffee is not a model that works”

APPROACH

CREATING A WIN-WIN SITUATION

The strategy centered around designing a system where both sides naturally benefit:

For coffee shops:

• Optimize their seating and increase revenue
• Control when and where laptop workers occupy space
• Maintain their brand and atmosphere without friction

For remote workers:

• Easily find the right place to work based on needs and mood
• Reduce the daily uncertainty of “will I be welcome here?”
• Feel connected during an increasingly isolating work culture

This meant balancing economics, space management, behavioral psychology, and UX - essentially designing a two-sided marketplace that actually works in the physical world.

BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT

TURNING A HYPOTHESIS INTO A REAL OPPORTUNITY

As a founder, I balanced product discovery with business development, team building, and early investor conversations.
During the concept phase:

• I built and sustained relationships with potential investors, eventually receiving a seed offer (which I declined because it was too early).
• I recruited additional team members who joined for equity only.
• I established strong contacts in the coffee shop industry.
• In New York, I also pushed business development beyond product work, cold-calling small chains, meeting owners in person, and speaking with investors. One high-profile investor introduced us to key industry players, accelerating early traction.

BRANDING

WELCOMING AND NON INTRUSIVE

The brand needed to reassure remote workers while respecting the identity of coffee shops. To avoid overpowering our partners’ interior aesthetic and branding, I created a minimal black-and-white system that blended into any environment and signaled trust and professionalism.

THE RESULT

A NEW MARKETPLACE

We designed, built, and launched two mobile apps and deployed our pilot in Hoboken, New Jersey. Originally planning for Brooklyn, I pivoted quickly when it became clear that breaking through without proof was too ambitious. We re-established relationships in Hoboken, signed four coffee shop partners, and launched the pilot.

Within two weeks, we saw over 130 downloads, validating early interest from both sides.

COVID-19 forced us to freeze operations, but we built a lightweight, remote-worker-focused version to sustain engagement. Multiple lockdowns made meaningful rollout impossible.

THE REMOTE WORKER APP

The app matched users to coffee shops based on location, mood, specific needs, and opportunities to meet other professionals. Users could check seat availability before leaving home, reducing friction and uncertainty.

THE COFFEE SHOP APP

Coffee shops controlled when laptop workers were welcome, which tables were available, and what offers or menu items they wanted to promote. Analytics gave them insight into behavior patterns and demand.

REAL LIFE MEETS VIRTUAL

COMPLETING THE EXPERIENCE

Because the product required interaction in real spaces, I designed physical elements - signage, branded table markers, onboarding materials - to complete the experience. These items connected the digital journey with the physical environment and reinforced trust for both users and partners.