By Alesha Capone
A Werribee café is helping to spread cheer in the community through a “pay it forward” coffee initiative.
Cafe B2B – Barrister To Barista began the project last year when the COVID-19 pandemic began.
Aneet Kohli, who owns the café with her husband Harveen Gupta, said patrons could buy a coffee for someone doing it tough or who has lost their job, and write a positive message on a Post-it note.
Anyone wanting to claim a coffee can take a Post-it from the coffee shop’s front window and bring it inside.
Ms Kohli said the initiative has become popular in the community during the past 18 months.
“We offered the first 50 coffees for free and now it’s just flowing,” she said.
Ms Kohli said occasionally, a customer has ordered one coffee, then given them $50 or $100 to put towards coffees for other people.
She said anyone wanting to claim a coffee could do so with “no questions asked”.
“But the majority of them do want to talk and share,” she said.
Ms Kohli said the café got its name because she worked there alongside Harveen, a former executive chef, while studying to further her legal qualifications after working as a barrister overseas.
Six months ago Ms Kohli opened her own law firm on Synnot Street, Kohli & Co Lawyers.
“It’s a dream for us, what we are doing – it’s for the community who have been supporting us and making it successful,” Ms Kohli said.
