![]() … It just gives you this sense of confidence, even more excitement … to make sure we’re doing it right for our family, for the neighborhood and for the farmers back home.” With the grant, Angelica Acebedo said they’ll be able to finish building out the 1,200-square-foot Milwaukee Avenue storefront. ![]() It’s unclear how much funding the Magnifico Coffee project will receive through the program because the family is still doing paperwork, but the program offers small grants up to $250,000 and large grants up to $5 million. The $33.5 million grant program - funded by the Chicago Recovery Fund and Tax Increment Finance (TIF) dollars - is for entrepreneurs looking to open or upgrade businesses. “This whole idea of sharing a cup of coffee in Colombia and breaking bread - it’s so important for us to share a little bit of our culture.”Īngelica Acebedo said they were “using whatever little money they had and getting loans” to get the business up and running when the city awarded them the community development grant, which propelled the project forward. “If you see Colombia, of course there’s the coffee, but also the drug dealers,” she said. The family signed a lease on the Milwaukee Avenue storefront, not far from where they live in West Town, with the goal of launching a coffee shop that celebrates their Colombian culture, which is often misrepresented, Angelica Acebedo said. We go everywhere together,” Angelica Acebedo said with a laugh.Īngelica Acebedo said her brother harnessed his connections to coffee farms in Colombia, while other family members took on other components of the business such as marketing and design, making the business a “full-blown family affair.” “We didn’t lose our jobs, but I think gave all of us an opportunity to reframe a little bit: Is this it? What else can we do as a family? We are always together as a family. She and her tight-knit family came up with the idea of opening a coffee shop together last year as the pandemic dragged on. Magnifico Coffee is the Acebedo family’s first business.Īngelica Acebedo is a graphic designer who grew up in Bogotá before attending Northern Illinois University and later moving to Chicago. “I want to get permission to throw a big party so we can get a Colombian band.” We cannot wait to open our doors,” Angelica Acebedo said. Magnifico Coffee is expected to open later this summer with coffee from Colombian farms and Colombian snacks, such as almojábanas, or fresh cheese bread, and milhojas, a dessert made with stacks of puff pastry and filled with creme patissiere. The grant will cover the cost of construction and bring the business to life, Angelica Acebedo said. The family was one of 26 recipients of the city’s community development grant, a program designed to boost neighborhood businesses and institutions across Chicago. AVONDALE - A family-owned coffee shop specializing in Colombian coffee and treats is coming to Avondale.Ĭolombia natives Angelica Acebedo and her siblings Ricardo Acebedo-Diaz and Marisol Acebedo Fisher are opening Magnifico Coffee, a coffee shop and roastery, on the ground-floor of a condo building at 3063 N.
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