She’s Behind One of BHAM’s Most Beloved Coffee Shops
From their very first batch of home-roasted coffee, Mel Cosio knew she and her husband had something special. Meet the woman behind BHAM’s beloved Cala Coffee! Image: Cala Coffee
Mel Cosio was in the midst of pursuing a career as a physical therapist when she and her husband, Josh, discovered they had a knack for roasting delicious coffee from their home. Now, Cala Coffee is a thriving roastery and cafe, with plans to open its third Birmingham coffee shop next year. Meet this week’s FACE of Birmingham, Mel Cosio!
First, what led to coffee and Birmingham?
I’m from Davis, California, just outside Sacramento. Josh and I both grew up there, and we met in high school! We started dating the summer before I went to college. We were long-distance during college and would often start our reunions at a coffee shop to gear up for whatever we had planned for our weekends together.
It was during this time that we started dreaming of owning our own coffee shop one day, because we loved the connection we felt when sharing a cup. We wanted to bring that to others.
We moved to Alabama right after college, and we were only supposed to be here for a year. Josh took a year-long internship with UAB athletics, and I was taking a gap year before pursuing my Doctorate of Physical Therapy. When Josh got a job offer six months into our year-long Alabama stint, I got into UAB’s DPT program, and we decided to plant roots in Birmingham.
How did Cala Coffee come to be?
Josh and I always wanted to own our own business. For a while, we weren’t sure if that would be a PT clinic, a gym (we’re both big on working out), or a coffee shop. During COVID, Josh was working at his sporting event management job, and there weren’t many events going on.
He decided to pick up a new hobby — roasting coffee. The plan was just to share it with friends and family, but before we even had one roast under our belts, Josh had already created a name and logo. We created an Instagram profile, shared an order form in our neighborhood’s Facebook group, and sold out almost immediately. That’s when we knew we had something special.
In the Spring of 2022, Josh left his job to take on Cala full-time. I continue to work full-time as a physical therapist, but in a remote/telehealth position, so that I can be involved with Cala. Josh handles all the big-picture Cala stuff, whereas I oversee our employees and cafes.
Tell us about the journey to opening the first cafe.
We wanted to do coffee our way, from start to finish, and we knew that roasting was key to this! We started roasting coffee out of our house (in what is now our son’s room) in February 2021, and within a month, we decided to build the coffee cart. We also started toll roasting on Principio Coffee’s roaster (thank you, Melvin!).
By the fall, we realized we wanted to open a brick-and-mortar and started shopping around for the right spot. We also began setting our sights on picking up more wholesale customers and landed our first big customer (Piggly Wiggly) in January 2022.
That year, we began toll roasting on Seeds Coffee’s roaster. We’re so grateful for how encouraging Seeds was at this time in our growth!
Building the roastery into our Cahaba Heights cafe was integral to our build-out. We wanted people to see the care and time we put into our coffee, while also getting a glimpse into how to roast. We recently moved the roaster to its own warehouse because our production has increased considerably over four years.
While I was a bit sad to see the roaster leave Cahaba Heights, it’s been SO cool to see our roasting team thrive in their new space!
What is one thing you wish coffee lovers understood about coffee production?
I wish more people knew that small family farms supply 70% to 80% of the world’s supply. Most coffee is sold as a commodity, meaning the price is controlled by the stock market — not by farmers. Because of this, when the global price drops (which happens often), farmers earn far less than what it costs them to grow, harvest, and process their coffee. This makes it challenging for people involved in this part of the process to make a living wage.
At Cala, we’re intentional about partnering with organizations that prioritize sustainability to break this cycle. When customers choose roasters/shops like Cala, the extra spend isn’t just about quality; it meaningfully improves the lives of families at origin.
Tell us about the forthcoming location in Mountain Brook!
Josh is the creative go-getter; I’m the calculated analyst. He’s been entertaining a new shop for several months now, and when he showed me this Mountain Brook location, the draw felt undeniable. The vision came easily.
Mountain Brook will have the same culture as our other two shops, but all of our shops have their own vibe. We want this shop to integrate with its community, just as our other two shops have. We’re excited!
What do you like to do when you’re not working?
Hang out with our son! Miles is 2.5 years old, and he is so fun (He was born the same year we opened our Cahaba Heights and Downtown shops — it was a BUSY year). We enjoy traveling and showing Miles new places, but I also love a slow weekend at home playing in the cul-de-sac with our neighbors.
Also, I love working out. You can catch me out at CrossFit Mudtown or out for a run most days of the week!
Who or what is inspiring you right now?
Our team! We’ve grown a lot as an organization this year, and it’s really awesome to see our Leads growing into their roles. It makes me so happy to walk into our shops and see our baristas chatting it up with customers, just like Josh and I always hoped.
I oversee our employees, and it makes me proud to have a crew who loves to work together and who understands our mission. It’s really fun and exciting to be at Cala right now!
What is your best piece of advice?
Remember what you’re working towards and why.
It’s really easy to get caught up in and bogged down by the day-to-day demands and feel stressed out by all that we have to do. Recently, I have been reminding myself what we want out of Cala and why. Reframing my mindset in this way has helped me feel less stressed and more grateful, which has resulted in me feeling more motivated and proud of our work.
Aside from faith, family, and friends, name three things you can’t live without:
Working out, coffee (lol), and the ability to travel. Josh and I have no family in Alabama; our immediate family is spread across five states. Plus, traveling is the best way to switch ourselves out of work mode!
Lightning Round!
Last delicious local meal: Blue Pacific — chicken coconut soup, panang chicken, pad thai, and basil fried rice
Favorite place to vacation: I love going to new places! Our favorite weekend getaway is to Chattanooga. And while I don’t know that this counts as a vacation, I love going home to California.
Your go-to gift to give: Nice workout clothes, a handmade Place of Grace Pottery coffee mug, or gift cards to local restaurants
Book(s) on your bedside table: Rest by Alex Soojung-Kim Pang and Hunt, Gather, Parent by Michaeleen Doucleff
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Birmingham women are doing inspiring work. Meet more of them over at our FACES archives!
Katie Leigh Matthews
A Birmingham native, Katie is a lifelong waterfall chaser and is passionate about the outdoors. She also loves connecting with remarkable women in the Birmingham community and bringing their stories to life. Katie has been writing professionally for over six years; you can find more of her work at Moms.com and Islands.com.