Mark Graham, a 40-year-old entrepreneur from the North East, has traded a career managing community facilities for coffee, protein shakes and overnight oats after opening his own wellness-focused café. KULT, on Gosforth High Street, has become a familiar sight to passers-by, combining specialty coffee with a growing range of wellness and fitness-oriented food and drinks.
After years spent managing community facilities and school lettings, Mark decided to pursue a long-held ambition and build a business of his own. “I’d always wanted to do something totally different and follow a passion. I’ve always enjoyed coffee and I love it, but I’ve also got my Level 3 personal training qualification and have always been interested in fitness and nutrition,” he said.
A unique wellness focus in Gosforth
While Gosforth is home to many cafés and coffee shops, KULT stands out for its wellness and fitness focus. “I thought there are a million different coffee places you can go to, but I wanted to create somewhere that fitted with me. I like going for a coffee, but I also like to train and make sure I’m eating properly afterwards. When the opportunity came up in Gosforth with lots of fitness businesses around the area, it just seemed to make sense from a business perspective. I finally took the leap, although quite a few people thought I was mad, especially with the hospitality industry being as challenging as it is,” Mark said.
Despite having no previous barista experience, Mark threw himself into intensive barista training before opening KULT and has spent the café’s first nine months learning and developing the business. Among the wide range on offer, the Biscoff protein overnight oats have become a customer favourite.
Top sellers and surprising trends
“They’re absolutely flying. You get more than 30 grams of protein and they’re like a full meal but they taste like a dessert. People come in and buy three or four at a time,” Mark said. The second biggest seller is the peanut butter and banana protein shake, but the current trend of matcha has also proved a success, which surprised Mark. “I didn’t expect matcha to be as popular as it is. We’re actually selling more iced matchas than cappuccinos, which has surprised us but it’s a huge trend at the moment,” he said.
Although Mark initially expected KULT’s main customers to be fitness enthusiasts, the reality has been very different. The café has attracted customers from a wide range of backgrounds, passions and age groups, something Mark says is central to the business he wanted to create.
Customer service and team building
“We’ve got everything from retired people who come because they’re curious through to people who are really into fitness and nutrition. People might assume Gosforth is just an affluent area, but that’s not the reality everywhere. With the cost of living crisis, we’re seeing people from all different walks of life coming through the doors. For me, customer service is hugely important. I love getting to know people, finding out a little bit about their background and what they do. I wanted KULT to be somewhere where people feel comfortable coming in, whatever their reason for being there,” Mark said.
Mark has built his team around the same emphasis on customer service. He currently employs five part-time members of staff and says he deliberately focused on personality rather than simply looking for previous hospitality experience. “I wanted to hire the person first. It’s very easy to get carried away thinking you need someone with a certain amount of experience, but skills can be taught. The most valuable thing for me is someone who come through the door, is friendly and has a bit of crack with people. That’s what makes the difference and it’s worked well for us,” he said.
The name and future plans
Alongside its bright green exterior, the first thing that stands out about KULT is its name. Mark wanted something short, memorable and capable of becoming more than simply the name of a coffee shop. “It’s definitely a name you either love or hate. My dad absolutely hates it and started saying ‘You’re going to join a cult, you’re starting a cult!’ But I wanted something short and something that could become a brand. I don’t see KULT as just a coffee shop. There are lots of different directions we can take it in, including events and different wellness activities. I wanted something people would see and think ‘What’s that?’ It starts a conversation,” he said.
Nine months into the venture, Mark admits the experience has been a steep learning curve but has no regrets about taking the leap. “It’s all been a bit mad and crazy. Sometimes I feel like my head’s going to explode but it’s going well. For year one, I’m happy with it. Now I just need to keep building on it,” he said. KULT is open Mondays to Fridays from 7:30am until 4pm, Saturdays from 9am until 5pm, and Sundays from 10am until 4pm on Gosforth High Street.
