What does it take to build a thriving café in one of the most competitive cities in the world and then successfully expand it across state lines?
In this episode, I sit down with Justin Giuffrida, founder of Citizens, an Australian-inspired café that began in NYC and has grown into a community-centered, data-driven business.
Justin shares the story of bringing Australian café culture to the US and building a brand rooted in connection - not just coffee.
We also dive into Citizens’ strategic expansion into Texas, including how Justin evaluated new markets, used data to guide decisions, and ensured the brand’s core identity translated beyond New York.
Rather than expanding quickly for the sake of growth, Citizens approached Texas with intentionality - focusing on location selection, community integration, and maintaining brand standards.
In this conversation, we cover:
- Transitioning from finance to entrepreneurship
- The role of data in smart expansion decisions
- Why community is Citizens’ biggest competitive advantage
- How equity crowdfunding allows customers to become investors
- Defining brand pillars to scale sustainably across markets
Whether you’re growing a brick-and-mortar brand, considering multi-state expansion, or building something community-driven from the ground up, this episode is packed with insights.
Learn more: https://citizensallday.com/
Connect with Becks: https://becsea.com