Stephanie McKenzie

  
Stephanie McKenzie

February 18,2020

Stephanie McKenzie is the CEO of Metro Coffee at University of  Washington, Tacoma. Stephanie is one of the youngest entrepreneur guest speakers visited this quarter. She  started her career at a very young age, where she had confidence that she could handle a business and in case if she messed up, she could start again. She

Started working at Metro coffee when she  was 21 years old. Her boss was a really nice person but he was going through some health issues, so he couldn't work much at the coffee shop. He was diagnosed with the illness, so he had to give up on the illness and he wanted her to buy the business. She learned everything about the store and at the age of 24, so she owned the business from his boss. Her mother helped her to own the business financially. Then, she shared how she chooses vendors  for their business. They do go to different retailers and sample their products and choose what will be best for their coffee company. She also shared some experiences of customer service, where they had to handle different situations and have to find the right solution. She also shared the times when she had very hard times, and the campus wanted to close down the Metro coffee, but after a few discussions, they decided to keep it. She told us some of the ideas about what she wants to do  and what some of the changes in the coffee that she wants and she needs to expand more. She also does catering at some events. She also told us about how her husband doesn't have a job and he worked in a Metro and helped her. She said she loves it and enjoys being an entrepreneur.