OCTOBER 2025 | 10 min read
Brewing Connection and Growth at Momentum Coffee
When the world slowed down in 2020, Nikki Bravo and her husband Tracy Powell were busy brewing something new—literally. Their vision for Momentum Coffee combined great coffee, a mission-driven heart, and the determination to thrive despite unprecedented challenges. What began as a leap of faith during the pandemic has evolved into a growing community hub and a business with digital momentum on its side.
For Nikki, the drive came from wanting to build something meaningful with Tracy and their daughter Krystal, creating a business that reflected their family values and the kind of impact they wanted to make together.
Momentum Coffee also holds the distinction of being the first Black-owned and operated coffee shop in Millennium Park, a milestone that reflects their commitment to representation and community presence in one of Chicago’s most iconic locations.
A Local Coffee Story by the Numbers
Website Views
4,000
Per month
Google Searches
6,000
Appearances per month
Google Maps
40,000
Appearances
5* Reviews
250
Brewing a Business in Uncertain Times
While May 2020 was a difficult time for much of the world, it was also a time of opportunity for Nikki Bravo and Tracy Powell, who seized the chance to open a new kind of café. Momentum Coffee wasn’t just a place to grab a latte, it was the couple’s first coffee shop and second co-working space, designed to be a true community hub.
The coworking element came naturally. Tracy suggested combining their next café with their second coworking space. Coffee would bring daily traffic, coworking would build community, and together they would create a wonderful common place for people and resources.
Their vision went beyond coffee from the very start: by focusing on opening in under-resourced neighborhoods, they aimed to bring quality coffee, tea, and food to areas often overlooked by similar businesses, while creating spaces for people to gather and connect.
Launching a small business in the early months of the pandemic meant balancing courage with uncertainty. Nikki remembers the sense of stepping into the unknown.
“Starting Momentum Coffee during the pandemic was unlike anything we’d ever done. It was a new venture, and there was so much we didn’t know,” she says. “We wanted to create intentional spaces for our community, even in a time when connecting was difficult.”
— Nikki Bravo, Co-Founder of Momentum Coffee
“Brewing more than coffee: toasting to community in uncertain times.”
‘Rooted in community and powered by coffee’ became not only the tagline of their coffee shop, but also the backbone of their most important project. It reflected the couple’s commitment to more than just caffeine. They wanted to support the local economy, create jobs and provide a welcoming space where people could safely gather. This mission now extends to collaborations with organizations like BUILD Chicago, working together to invest in under-resourced communities, improve food equity, and provide both knowledge and opportunities to help local economies thrive.
The Challenge of Visibility
The idea was becoming a reality; the plan had been laid out. However, as with many small businesses, the first challenge wasn’t the product itself, but getting people to notice it.Between sourcing coffee, hiring staff, and managing day-to-day operations, Nikki and Tracy were quickly confronted with a reality: building a mission-driven café wasn’t enough if customers couldn’t find them. Marketing was proving to be their steepest hill to climb.
“After the first few months, we realized that awareness was the hardest part,” Nikki recalls.
“We didn’t even know what we didn’t know when it came to marketing. We had a website, but my husband was managing it himself, and it was hard to keep up with updates and everything else the business needed.”
“Founders Nikki Bravo and Tracy Powell, expanding their community-focused coffee vision across Chicago.”
The couple knew they needed a better solution, one that wouldn’t eat up the time they needed for roasting, training, and connecting with customers in person. By then, they were also expanding beyond their first café, eventually growing to five Chicago locations, including North Lawndale, Englewood, Garfield Park, and Millennium Park, bringing their community-focused coffee experience to more neighborhoods.
Nikki points to two milestones that confirmed they were on the right track: being invited to partner at Millennium Park and later at the Austin location. These opportunities validated the brand, showing that people weren’t just buying coffee but connecting with their mission.
Finding a Digital Partner in UENI
In a vast sea of social media content, the breakthrough came in the form of an ad. Nikki saw UENI pop up while scrolling online and, intrigued by the message it presented, clicked the link. That click changed the way Momentum Coffee connected with the world.
“UENI made the process of setting up our website so easy, much easier than I thought it would be. They said it could be done in 7 days, and it was, maybe even less,” Nikki says. “Seeing our site live made me feel proud. Your business is like your baby, and you want your baby to be presentable to the world.”
For the couple, the shift wasn’t just about aesthetics. UENI eliminated the technical barriers that were slowing them down. There was no need for coding or long nights of drinking extra coffee just to stay awake and understand web building. Instead, they had a professional, polished site ready for customers to explore.
Nikki remembers that the first wave of online customers felt like true momentum. It wasn’t just people walking past the café anymore, people were searching, finding them, and choosing them, which made it clear they were building something with a broader impact.
“Tracy Powell (left) with UENI founder Christine Telyan. UENI became a "behind-the-scenes teammate" for Momentum Coffee.”
Monthly check-ins became another game-changer. Instead of going it alone, Nikki and Tracy had a dedicated team helping them keep the site fresh, review performance, and add new features as the business evolved. For Momentum Coffee, UENI became like a behind-the-scenes teammate, always ready to help connect and communicate.
“The professional UENI website that made Momentum Coffee feel "proud" and presentable to the world.”
Growth Beyond the Café
Once the website was up and running, Momentum Coffee finally had a digital front door, and people were walking through it. The site also became a platform for community initiatives. In 2024, Momentum Coffee launched a Food Incubator Program, which offers workshops, mentorship, and even grant opportunities to help aspiring food entrepreneurs navigate licensing, permits, and business planning.
They asked UENI if it was possible to add an application form to their site.
“Like most requests we’ve made to UENI, the answer was a yes,”
Nikki says. “Soon, people could go to our website, read about the program, and apply right there.
It made the whole process easier for us and our applicants.”
The incubator is intentionally open to all types of food businesses, not just coffee, offering participants the chance to sell their products at Momentum Coffee locations and test them with a wider audience beyond friends and family.
“Freshly roasted in-store, Momentum's Kinetic Blend highlights women farmers in Tanzania, connecting each cup to a larger mission.”
Meanwhile, the café itself was growing. Momentum Coffee began roasting its own beans in-store, offering fresher brews for customers and creating new training opportunities for staff. Coffee pods, retail beans, and other products started appearing online and in-store, extending the business beyond its original footprint.
Their Kinetic Blend, for example, highlights women farmers in Tanzania through the Usawa Kahawa Project. By sharing the stories behind the beans, customers aren’t just enjoying a cup of coffee; they’re connecting with a mission of equity and empowerment. Popular seasonal drinks, like their caramel apple butter latte, showcase their creativity while partnerships with women- and minority-owned bakeries bring unique pastries to their counters.
Looking Ahead with Confidence
Today, Momentum Coffee is more than a café, it’s a local force for community development and a model of digital empowerment for small businesses. Nikki says the heart of their mission is simple: coffee is the product, but people are the purpose. That philosophy continues to shape every decision, from expanding retail offerings to deepening their role as a community hub.
Nikki and Tracy’s recent live interview on WGN-TV’s Daytime Chicago highlighted the heart of their mission: using coffee as a force for good, investing in food equity, and sharing their knowledge to remove barriers for other entrepreneurs. Looking forward, Nikki and Tracy plan to expand their retail offerings and deepen their community impact. The website they once worried about has become a central part of that plan, enabling them to share their mission, connect with new customers, and support initiatives that go beyond coffee.
“I would absolutely recommend UENI to other small businesses,” Nikki says.
“In those early years, you want to spend your time on your numbers, your staff, your community, not figuring out how to build a website. UENI has been a true partner, supporting us every step of the way.”
Momentum Coffee storefront
