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Denver coffee shop, made famous for paying baristas $50,000 salaries, is closing

Amethyst Coffee has been open on Broadway since 2015

“Breezy and I are feeling like Amethyst has run its course,” said Elle Taylor, co-owner of Amethyst Coffee.
BusinessDen file
“Breezy and I are feeling like Amethyst has run its course,” said Elle Taylor, co-owner of Amethyst Coffee.
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Two years after Amethyst Coffee raised prices by 50% to help its baristas earn a living wage, the Denver java shop has announced its final day of service.

Amethyst, at 1111 Broadway, will pour its last cup of coffee on October 31, according to a social media posting. Owners Elle Taylor and Breezy Sanchez did not respond to a request for comment.

“Well, everyone, the time has come,” . “Our last day of service is 10.31.22. There’s certainly more to say, but we’ll have to save that for another time.”

In 2020, the duo in order to pay their staff of six a “living wage” of $50,000 annually. A cup of black coffee to go went from $3.25 to $4.50, for instance, while the price of a latte rose from $4.50 to $6.75.

Amethyst first opened on Broadway in 2015. The shop also had a space in the Edgewater Public Market, along with one in Lakeside, which the owners closed in August last year, and a location inside Realm, a photography and event space in the Clayton neighborhood. The Broadway store was the last one open.

Taylor and Sanchez previously told BusinessDen that they were burnt out and ready to sell their business last year.

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