“The Queen’s Cups have grown:” The Canal District bakery launches a new layout, philosophy by reopening its doors for the first time since its closure due to a coronavirus

What is beyond the pandemic? Mass advance is MassLive’s series examining the journey of Massachusetts businesses through and beyond the coronavirus pandemic.

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Masks couldn’t cover the joy in the Queen’s Cups on Wednesday morning. Carrying bags of cupcakes, three women thanked owner Renee Diaz after a four-month hiatus when the bakery was closed due to COVID-19[feminine.

“Ce sont certains de mes clients les plus anciens, c’est fou, depuis Millbury”, a déclaré Diaz, revenant à la ville natale de l’entreprise.

Quelques minutes plus tard, un autre visage familier avec deux enfants est entré.

“Nous avons de la vanille dans le dos”, a déclaré Diaz à l’un des garçons, connaissant sa saveur préférée de cupcakes.

Les visages, bien que recouverts de masques, étaient un spectacle bienvenu dans les murs rénovés du petit gâteau de Water Street.

Les Queen’s Cups ont fermé il y a quatre mois au milieu de la pandémie de coronavirus et n’offraient que des commandes en ligne. Il a rouvert mardi pour la première fois, mais avec une nouvelle disposition et de nouvelles perspectives.

“Les quatre mois ont été une énorme expérience d’apprentissage”, a déclaré Diaz. « Certains jours étaient super. Certains jours étaient horribles. Mais j’ai l’impression d’avoir définitivement créé une meilleure atmosphère. C’était comme si les Queen’s Cups avaient grandi.

Pour rouvrir, Diaz a abandonné presque tout sur les Queen’s Cups de ses huit années précédentes. Certains changements étaient plus faciles que d’autres, comme la modification des heures d’ouverture. D’autres impliquaient plus de travail comme la refonte de l’aménagement de son espace sur Water Street.

Le comptoir d’accueil qui accueillait les clients avant la pandémie a été déplacé dans la pièce latérale à gauche. L’entrée accueille désormais les invités dans un salon ouvert. La cuisine reste sur la droite.

Alors que les clients franchissent l’ouverture du mur de briques, une vitrine pleine de cupcakes et de pâtisseries les attend.

Un éventail de choix de café se trouve derrière le comptoir. En ouvrant deux heures plus tôt à 8 heures du matin, Diaz prévoit que les ventes de café pourraient augmenter.

« Nous avons vendu comme 40 cafés [Tuesday]”said Diaz.” Before, we weren’t selling 40 coffees in a week.

The Queen’s Cup is now open Tuesday to Friday 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

“I wanted to change the vision,” Diaz said. “For me, it all taught me so much about values ​​and what I want my life to be. I always try to include my employees in this. We were open six days a week and it was always a chore.

The new schedule allows employees to spend more time at home with their families. Some employees of The Queen’s Cups have young children. Diaz wanted to make sure families had enough time to spend with loved ones.

“At the end of the day, if you don’t take care of your employees, your business will never be successful,” Diaz said.

The pandemic has forced Diaz to halve its staff from around 25 to its current size of 12. The majority of full-time staff are back, however.

Prior to receiving loans from the Paycheck Protection Program, Diaz did not receive a salary. Instead, she paid her employees. She and her husband worked Sundays to save on labor costs.

“The PPP loan was so awesome to me,” Diaz said. “The bills will always be paid, but when you’re responsible for people’s livelihoods it’s the most immense type of pressure you can think of. People have families at home. They work on their own goals, they buy a house, they have student loans, that’s when it is [intense]. “

About two and a half months ago, Diaz realized that to better serve the needs of his employees and customers, a redesign of the building on Water Street was needed.

Moving the front counter to the left side of the space allowed customers more space – a key to social distancing – after entering.

The redesign coincided with the implementation of an online ordering system and digital inventory log – things that remain on Diaz’s to-do list that were ultimately completed in the midst of a pandemic. .

“I think this whole Queens Cup experience has been like, I’m just going to do it and find out,” Diaz said. “People always ask me: what do you think it takes to be successful? People will say, “Oh, you have to work hard.” And that’s a given. What I learned through this is that if you want to be successful you have to adapt to change. No one could have imagined that this was how life was going to be. “

Diaz barely slept the week before Tuesday’s reopening. His staff told him they had the same sleepless nights, a sign of the camaraderie shared by the dozen employees.

The doors opened at 8 a.m. Fifteen minutes later, Diaz exhaled and looked at the kitchen staff.

“We did it,” she told them. “We have opened. It’s okay.”

Like riding a bike, the staff got back to their routine. They saw old faces. They welcomed new people who discovered the Queen’s Cups during the pandemic.

In addition to the familiar faces that complimented Diaz on the new Queen’s Cups look, a customer bought their first cupcake on Wednesday.

His voice rose with enthusiasm when he described finding the Queen’s Cups on social media. Coming out of the new route, he had considered another trip.

“If this is our new normal,” Diaz said. “I’m excited about this.”

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