A Letter from André: To Build A Home.

It's 2025.

Wow. What a journey so far.

I'm so glad we took a couple of weeks off over the holidays. I really needed it. I think a lot of people did. I really appreciated the time to deeply rest, switch off, and renew.

It's really incredible to think back to where we were 12 months ago. To see how far we've come.

A year ago this place was still a shell. A whisper of an idea. And from that, together, we have sprouted, nurtured and grown something special. Something unique.

We've served 20,000 cups of coffee. We've had film screenings, poetry-readings, mosaic making, micro-concerts, and learned how to host dinner parties for 50. We've hosted knit clubs, artist meet-ups, singing groups, christenings, birthdays, and Salsa Sundays.

And alongside all of that, we've been building a home. A home for ourselves and our community.

The hug is now a standard way of greeting. People who visit are now used to sitting at our large communal tables. Conversation flows easily, even between strangers who sit side by side. On entering through the front doors you are often greeted with waves, smiles and hugs. There are people busy reading out all the dog names on the dog photo wall.

It's a place where you'll regularly run into friends and people you know. You come by just to see who is there today.

Our team care for our customers, and in return our customers really care for our team. New friendships and bonds have been forged. Loneliness and isolation can be left at the door.

Families come. Large groups of friends meet. Dogs, children and toys all over the floor in one glorious mess. It's noisy. People sit and read with their coffee. Someone is learning to knit next to someone else on a conference call. Children are drawing. Designers are sketching. I've learned to love the clatter as the giant Connect 4 is reset.

Work, play, life.

All happening at the same time.

Upstairs, people are in a yoga class. You can hear the thumps and giggles through the ceiling. Movement has become a regular routine. A way of life. Embodiment and presence are our medicines. Later in the day we'll hold time for stillness or some breath work. Or maybe a sound bath.

And at the core of this is the amazing team that we've built. It's us and our wholeness, our human-ness, that makes this place what it is.

Together we hold conversation, laughter and buckets of tears within these four walls. Together we create a space for all of it.

We've grown together. Learned new things. Had successes and failures. We've had our arguments. We've made up again. We've gone through many cycles of rupture and repair.

I think this is what community is. All these bonds of connection and belonging. Continuously growing, thickening, deepening.

I know that I've never experienced this before. It fills me, and nourishes me, and for that I want to say to all of you - thank you. I can't wait to see what 2025 brings.