Jim’s Java Repair Drives Growth

That chance conversation a few years ago reportedly set Bernecki on a new career path. Today, at 26, he owns Jim’s Java Repair, a business based in the town of Tonawanda that services coffee and espresso machines throughout the state. He employs five people and is looking to expand his business.

For aspiring entrepreneurs considering starting their own business, Bernecki’s story contains lessons to learn:

Seize the moment. The technician with whom Bernecki struck up a conversation suggested he join Overdrive, his employer. That day, Bernecki was working an extra day and had refused the opportunity to leave work early.

“That’s when I really felt like the stars aligned for me,” he said.

Bernecki accepted the offer and the company flew him to Ohio for a few weeks of training. The company assigned him to New York State to manage its territory in Western New York.

See bigger. Bernecki decided to leave after a few years. He felt like he had learned a set of skills within the company, but the company only worked on one type of machine.

He returned to Starbucks to work as a manager, while beginning to build his own repair business.

“It’s always been in the back of my mind, and Starbucks has always been one of the places where they encourage doing your own thing from time to time, and sometimes using it as a springboard,” Bernecki said.

Hiring assistance. For about the first year in business, Bernecki did everything himself, traveling all over the state to work for clients. “I worked on it for about a year,” he said. Eventually, after repeated trips across the state, he realized he could use some help. Fortunately, he knew other technicians who were eager to join him in the company.

Find customers. “It was all through word of mouth and cold calling,” Bernecki said. “I took this one from Mark Cuban’s book: Put on your boots, start calling people.” It wasn’t always easy, but he gradually built up a clientele.

“I think the most important thing is to prepare for an opportunity that we don’t yet know exists,” he said.

Jim’s Java Repair customers include chain stores, as well as mom-and-pop stores. “I also wanted to branch out and start helping all these local shops, because it’s incredibly difficult to find good technicians,” he said.

Managing growth. The company serves customers throughout New York State. Bernecki plans to expand its geographic reach.

“That’s the next real step of a service business, that’s market expansion,” he said. Bernecki plans to hire another technician to support these growth plans.

“The opportunities are endless in this industry,” Bernecki said. “We have so many ideas for how we want to help local customers and commercial customers in the future.”

Power of specialization. “People are very excited because we are all about coffee and espresso,” Bernecki said.

Some other coffee machine repair companies also handle repairs to equipment such as ovens and fryers. Bernecki believes there is value in specializing.

“We found it best to just focus on coffee, and I think that shows in the coffee shops,” he said. “They can trust us to diagnose and resolve the deeper issues you face with these machines.”

Mentoring. Bernecki gets advice from Kevin Schmidle of Chase Bank. As a senior business consultant, Schmidle offers Chase’s free “Coaching for Impact” program to area small businesses.

Schmidle said Jim’s Java Repair “fits perfectly with our Coaching for Impact program – he’s growing up, in our community and beyond, and looking for advice on how to grow his business.” »

Schmidle credits Bernecki with starting a business focused on filling a need, based on an idea born from working in a particular industry. “These types of businesses that are ‘behind the scenes’ are essential to the growth of our community and our economy,” he said.

Bernecki said it’s helpful for him to have someone like Schmidle to share his ideas as he looks to expand.

“This is really the beginning of what we’re doing,” Bernecki said.

Want to know more? Three stories to catch you up:

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Buffalo officials are seeking a $2 million Restore NY grant to repair downtown inn buildings

A Buffalo Housing Court judge lose patience with the owner of the Buffalo Grand Hotel and the Wonder Bread building.

Sumitomo Rubber United States reached an agreement with its former union workers on severance pay.

A place Clarence is get a new look this will add apartments and townhouses, as well as more commercial space.

Ingram Micro cuts 850 jobs across operationsbut does not specify the impact on its workforce in Western New York.

Federal regulators have lifted the consent order under which the Lake Shore Savings Bank operated for nearly two years.

Work begins this week People Inc.’s latest housing project in Western New York.

Hundreds of former Sumitomo Rubber workers gathered Tuesday at the Lincoln Park Athletic Center in the city of Tonawanda for a job fair.

The City of Niagara Falls is looking to purchase a group of Main Street properties to keep them out of the reach of foreign investors.

Developer Doug Jemal is refine the design of its project on Elmwood and Bidwell avenues.

Snow put a shock absorber in holiday shopping in the Southtowns.

With fewer customers heading to stores to do their holiday shopping, hiring has fallen sharply for seasonal jobs in retail.

It’s not like the good old days, but brave souls were in the dark to begin their Black Friday Shopping.

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Developers are fighting for Tonawanda Island Site but sewer capacity can hamper projects.

What went wrong at Sumitomo Tonawanda Tire Plant? And why has Sumitomo’s parent company, based in Japan, decided to pull the plug now?

Work has begun on a venture capital studio built to fill the void Buffalo’s entrepreneurial space.

Craftsmen report that up to 50% of their annual revenue comes from the holiday shopping season.

Five reads from Buffalo Next:

1. Buffalo Niagara Partnership considers the new home a “hub.” Group of businesses preparing to relocate to the Cobblestone District.

2. The report notes that the gender wage gap has significant economic effects in New York. The WNY Women’s Foundation says the gap impacts women well into retirement.

3. Sumitomo and the union reach a separation agreement. The agreement covers about 1,200 Steelworkers who lost their jobs when the plant closed.

4. Lake Shore Bank has been released from an order that found “dangerous and unsound business practices.” Federal regulators announced the consent order nearly two years ago.

5. Ingram Micro does not specify cuts in Western New York. The technology company has 1,250 employees in Amherst.

The Buffalo Next team gives you insight into the region’s economic revitalization. Email tips to [email protected] or contact Buffalo Next editor David Robinson at 716-849-4435.