'Something completely different' says 21-year-old behind a new coffeehouse opening in Preston
“It’ll be something that just doesn't exist in Preston yet” says the 21-year-old behind a new coffeehouse opening soon.
A brand new independent coffee shop is coming to Preston and it promises to be different to anything the city has seen before.
Signage for a new coffee shop called ‘FIA Coffeehouse has appeared at 17 Miller Arcade, formerly home to Roni’s Barbers.
The signs reveal that ‘FIA will sell matcha, slow chai, coffee, as well as having a kitchen- which will sell french toast, baguettes and bowls- a bakery and a dessert counter.
Ready to tell us more about the new addition to Preston’s high street is the person behind ‘FIA , 21-year-old Sofia Desai from Blackburn.
The young businesswoman had been running a small business from home called Rūh Café, alongside her sister, but with business continuing to grow, Sofia decided it was time to set off on her own and create her first bricks and mortar store.
Sofia told the Post: “We were operating like a mini cafe setting from home, so we were delivering and people were collecting. We also used to do pop ups for events, like weddings, charity events in Blackburn, Preston, Bolton, and even as far as Manchester.
“When we were doing deliveries, I noticed the gap in Preston, like, although there is a variety of coffee shops, I feel like there's nothing with the sort of idea that I have. So I'm gonna make the seating extra elevated, there’s going to be fancy lighting, wall arches, dining sofas- it’ll be something that just doesn't exist in Preston yet.
“We're also going to have a range of products like, of course, there's a lot of places in Preston that do hot food and cold food, and different places do matcha and stuff, but there's not one place that does everything, if that makes sense. We’re going to have drinks, desserts, hot food, cold food, so like, basically everything, but in a coffee shop setting with very luxurious seating.”
Sofia explained the first floor of the property will be the take out zone, with some seating available, whilst downstairs will be the full dining area with a more “fine dining” feel than any competitor she has visited in the city.
‘FIA is now just over five weeks away from opening but Sofia says she is already feeling welcomed by Preston.
The 21-year-old was “shocked” when her first (and only) post on the FIA Instagram page was seen by over 200,000 people in just a few days.
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Asked how she is feeling ahead of opening in Preston, Sofia said: “Because I'm from Blackburn, first, I was unsure, like, should I just stay within the Blackburn area? But I feel like Preston is a great location because obviously it is a city at the end of the day, there's a lot more students, there's a bigger demographic of people too, whereas Blackburn would be just one or two different niches. And then I’ve made quite a lot of connections and friends here too, the support network is much bigger in Preston than what one is to get in Blackburn.”
Encouraging people to come along, she added: “Obviously we'll have our unique products and then that dining area will be really, really niche. It's going to be more like a fine dining cafe downstairs. I feel like it'll be something completely different. It's an independent cafe too so I feel like local people are more supportive towards that sort of thing anyways and then, obviously, yeah, I’ve put a lot into it.”
You can keep up to date with ‘FIA Coffeehouse’s progress by following its Instagram or TikTok account.