The Great Franchisees: Curtis Grace and Keith Washington, BIGGBY® COFFEE, Milwaukee

When Curtis Grace and Keith Washington met at a job in the airline industry in their early twenties, they had no idea that over a decade later, they would be starting a business. But that’s exactly what fate had in store for the pair. Today, Grace and Washington own Milwaukee’s first BIGGBY® COFFEE shop, a 240-plus-unit brand that focuses on community and love.

We spoke to Grace and Washington to learn about their journey from airline employees to business owners.

1851 Franchise: Tell us your story – what did you do before franchising?

Curtis Grace: I grew up in Milwaukee, Wisconsin with my brother and sister before heading to Marquette University for college. After graduating in 2012, I met Keith while working in the airline industry and stayed in touch after I moved on to work in financial services. I have now been in the financial services industry for approximately 10 years, but Keith and I have been looking for an avenue to break into the franchising world.

Keith Washington: I grew up in Milwaukee County and have stayed in the area working in the real estate industry for the past 13 years. Currently, I am a broker and rehab developer with multiple businesses that reside within the real estate industry. I met Curtis about 10 years ago during a brief stint working in the airline industry, and we have continuously talked about opening a business together. 

1851: How did you initially find out about franchising and what was your perception of franchising before becoming a franchise owner?

Grace: We had been in the market for a year or two looking into different franchise opportunities before we discovered BIGGBY® COFFEE. We were thrilled at the idea of owning our own business without reinventing the wheel, and it was encouraging to know we had corporate support and training available.

1851: How did you decide you wanted to be a franchisee?

Washington: The two of us have talked about going into business together off and on over the last decade or so. We enjoyed the fact that with franchising, we didn’t have all of the responsibilities of starting a new brand, but rather we got to build off of an already existing proven business model. 

1851: How did you perform your research?

Grace: Once we decided we wanted to get into franchising together, the two of us visited a franchise convention, and immediately BIGGBY® COFFEE stood out by having such a friendly team. Upon digging further, we found it was a brand with ease of entry compared to other franchises we looked at. Additionally, the brand was very transparent, and we did not feel like a cog in a corporation that would get lost in the paperwork. Once we visited a location and saw the inviting atmosphere and tasted the product, we were sold. 

1851: Why did you pick BIGGBY® COFFEE? What excited you most about the potential?

Washington: It has the potential to be a nationwide brand, and we feel really lucky to get involved at just the right time. We are so excited to be ground zero in the Milwaukee area and introduce the community to the great-tasting product. Additionally, we feel like we have the opportunity to change lives. We get to create jobs and touch younger generations by providing essential life skills and showing them the value of hard work. 

1851: What are your dreams with the business? What does the future look like?

Grace: Ideally, we would like to open five locations within the next five years, but our main focus at the moment is establishing our flagship location and building brand awareness in the area.

1851: What advice would you have for others looking at buying a franchise?

Washington: It is important to meet with owners and other franchisees and dig for as much information as possible. We have found that most people have been open to sharing knowledge. After speaking with so many people at the company, we truly believe in the BIGGBY® COFFEE business model and the product. If you don’t believe in the product, do not do it. Additionally, the numbers might look frightening at first, but after running the numbers, it will seem much more feasible. 

1851: What do you do in your personal time?

Grace: We both have wives and young children, and our families love adventuring outdoors in the fresh air as much as possible. Both of us are car junkies who love anything that can travel at a high rate of speed. We are definitely looking forward to a cars-and-coffee event. 

About BIGGBY® COFFEE

BIGGBY® COFFEE, based in East Lansing, Mich., was started with a single store on March 15, 1995. One year later, and on the cusp of opening a second location, Bob Fish and Michael McFall, on a handshake and $4,000, decided to franchise the concept. BIGGBY® COFFEE’s cultural values of Make Friends, Have Fun, B Yourself and Share Great Coffee help coffee-lovers and the coffee-curious alike benefit from a less pretentious and fun approach to the standard gourmet cafe paradigm. Besides connoisseur-worthy drinks with names like Teddy Bear® and Caramel Marvel®, BIGGBY® baristas provide a unique experience focused on brightening their customers’ day and supporting them in building a life they love. The “Big ‘B’” on the orange background caught on, and today BIGGBY® COFFEE has more than 250 cafes across many states including Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, North Carolina, South Carolina, Wisconsin, Kentucky and Florida. In 2018 BIGGBY® launched an Area Representative Program and currently has 17 Area Representatives in 8 states.