The Cauldron Cocktails & Coffee
Austin, TX
The Cauldron Cocktails & Coffee is a new coffee shop and bar that opened in West Campus in September 2022. It is located in an important historic building that helps tell the story of one of the first communities of freed slaves in Austin and how it's changed over the years. The specific unit where the Cauldron Cafe sits was once a grocery store founded by Rev. Jacob Fontaine in 1875 and later the first Black-owned newspaper west of the Mississippi river, "The Gold Dollar." Repurposed to create a cozy and inviting atmosphere, the Cauldron offers a variety of coffee drinks, cocktails, snacks, and live music. In a historically preserved structure, with its original architectural integrity, a mix of brick and wood with greenery all around, the Cauldron operates as a coffee shop during the day and transforms into a buzzing bar at night.
The Results Speak for Themselves
The Challenge & Solution
How HeyHire helped The Cauldron Cocktails & Coffee overcome their hiring challenges and achieve remarkable results.
The Challenge
The Cauldron needed to hire multiple staff for three positions: barista, bartender, and waiter. Not only were they particular about the type of staff, they faced several challenges: they had a tight deadline to hire before their grand opening, limited resources and budget to advertise their openings, difficulty finding candidates who had at least 3 years of experience in their respective roles, and had to compete with other coffee shops and bars in the area for talent.
The Solution
They decided to try HeyHire as a solution. They signed up, created their own QR-code-powered job posters and banners, posted them outside of their construction site, on their social media pages, and on the owner's personal networks. From June to September in 2022 before their grand opening, they received over 300 applications from local candidates who were interested in working at the Cauldron.
How HeyHire Transformed Their Hiring Process
A step-by-step look at how The Cauldron Cocktails & Coffee leveraged HeyHire's platform to achieve their hiring goals.
QR Code Job Posters
The Cauldron used QR-code-powered job posters and banners posted outside their construction site, on social media, and through personal networks. This approach generated significant interest from local candidates who were excited about joining their unique coffee shop and bar concept.
💡 Pro Tip: Leverage your brand's social media presence to attract candidates who already love your business.
Organized Candidate Filtering
As applications poured in, the team received instant text notifications and could review candidate profiles, experience levels, and availability all in one organized dashboard.
📊 Result: Over 300 applications received from June to September 2022
"Getting a text that somebody's applied gives you that immediate reminder that you have more work to do, but in a good way. It gets you excited that there are people interested in being part of your team."
Streamlined Interview Process
The platform's built-in communication tools allowed them to schedule interviews, send reminders, and coordinate with candidates without leaving the app. This reduced the time from application to hire to less than one day on average.
⚡ Impact: Approximately 2 days average time from application to hire
"It was a one place consolidation to put their resume, their cover letter. It was just like my own portal that I was able to communicate with everyone instead of having DMs from this person, emails from that person."
Benefits Achieved
The tangible improvements and advantages that The Cauldron Cocktails & Coffee experienced with HeyHire.
Key Advantage
Filtered 300 applicants by experience level, availability, and location preference
Key Advantage
Communicated with applicants via text messages while keeping organized in one place
Streamlined Process
Invited applicants for interviews and managed the entire process without leaving the platform
Consistent Quality
Achieved high-quality hires with 42% baristas, 53% bartenders, and 61% waiters having 3+ years experience
The Numbers Tell the Story
Concrete data showing the impact of HeyHire on The Cauldron Cocktails & Coffee's hiring efficiency and business growth.
The Transformation
Time to Hire
Cost per Hire
No-Show Rate
Hiring Timeline
"HeyHire is an amazing service that helped us find and hire qualified staff for our new coffee shop and bar. It saved us time, money, and hassle. It also made our candidates happy and engaged."
What They're Saying
Real feedback from the The Cauldron Cocktails & Coffee team about their experience with HeyHire.
"HeyHire is an amazing service that helped us find and hire qualified staff for our new coffee shop and bar. It saved us time, money, and hassle. It also made our candidates happy and engaged. We will definitely use HeyHire again for our future hiring needs."
Isaac Quintanilla
Owner
The Cauldron Cocktails & Coffee
Looking Forward
The impact of HeyHire and what the future holds for The Cauldron Cocktails & Coffee.
Conclusion
The Cauldron Cocktails & Coffee's success story demonstrates how HeyHire can transform the hiring process for new businesses. By leveraging our platform's QR-code technology and streamlined communication tools, they were able to build a team of 65 qualified professionals in just three months—a feat that would have been nearly impossible with traditional hiring methods. The 60% cost savings and 2-day hiring timeline proved that quality hiring doesn't have to be expensive or time-consuming. Most importantly, the high retention rates and employee satisfaction scores show that when you hire the right people from the start, you build a foundation for long-term success.
Looking Ahead
Today, The Cauldron has evolved beyond its original coffee shop and bar concept into a premier event space and entertainment venue. The historic building now hosts weddings, corporate events, live music performances, and private parties, requiring an even larger and more diverse team. With their proven success using HeyHire, they're planning to expand their operations and open additional locations across Austin. The platform's ability to quickly scale hiring needs has become even more valuable as they transition into event management and venue operations. The Cauldron's journey from a startup coffee shop to a thriving event space showcases how the right hiring solution can support a business through multiple growth phases and business model evolutions.
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