After years of working in hospitality for other people, Tete Raerino and Wendy Mason have taken the plunge into business.

The pair took over All the Sands cafe in Commerce Street last month, renaming it Bean Around Kawhe and Kai.

Between them, Raerino and Mason have about 50 years’ hospitality experience, having first worked together at Columbus Coffee when it opened in Whakatāne.

They went their separate ways before later working together again at Moxi Café in Ōhope.

They had long talked about owning their own business with their original plan being to start with a coffee cart.

“But then this opportunity came up, so we jumped on it as fast as we could,” Raerino said.

The opportunity came at the right time, with the café popping up for sale on Facebook while the pair were discussing plans for a coffee cart.

Taking over an established café means inheriting customers, which Raerino and Mason have stayed conscious of.

“There is already a loyal customer base. We didn’t want to upset them too much by changing too many things here.” Raerino said. “People are used to what they’re used to.”

One thing they have retained is the café’s existing coffee blend, which customers are familiar with and enjoy.

They each have their own area of expertise.

Mason takes care of the food, including much of the cabinet food made on site, while Raerino focuses on coffee and other drinks.

The breakfast croissant is among the popular cabinet options, with paua pies expected to join the menu soon.

They have a new loyalty scheme, which is proving popular, using playing cards as loyalty cards and offering every 10th coffee free. They have already handed out more than three decks’ worth of cards.

Mason said they wanted the café to be a homely place where people could meet friends over a coffee.

Regular groups have already made the café their meeting place, including Kawhe Kōrero, a group that meets there at 7am on Thursdays to kōrero Māori.

The café’s location near the Whakatāne War Memorial Hall also brings customers across during events.

Since taking over, they have started a ‘Teachers Shout’, providing coffee for Te Kura o Te Pāroa teachers every second Friday for the rest of the year.

Raerino said they were approached by one of the teachers with the idea and agreed to take part in return for the café’s logo appearing in the kura pānui.

The connection has personal significance for Raerino, whose mother attended the kura as a child.

“It was a way of paying homage to her as well,” he said.

The café has also been approached by Te Puna Ora o Mataatua’s rangatahi programme to provide students with hospitality training and work experience.

Raerino previously worked with the organisation, running its coffee cart for a time.

“We are huge about sharing skills that will help people in the long run so to be trusted with young minds to mould into decent workers is more a privilege than it is a working relationship.”

For Raerino, one of the most enjoyable things about their new venture is having the freedom to run the business their way.

“Just the fact of being our own boss; you don’t have to answer to anybody. We do things our way and we figure out procedures how we like.”

The pair plan to continue making gradual changes as they settle into the business and learn what their customers want.

Bean Around Kawhe and Kai is open Monday to Friday from 6.30am to 2pm and Saturday from 7am to noon.