But now I live in New York, and March is definitely still winter. Except when it’s not. We are currently in “false spring”—sometimes also referred to as Spring of Deception—where maybe once a week, we’ll get a day of sunshine and thaw until the cold returns. It was 73F a week ago; yesterday it was 29F. On top of that, you’ve got the whole “spring forward” thing. Greenland solved the Daylight saving time debate last year, why can’t we?!
Now I don’t know what clothes to wear. I don’t know what time it is. I have a 14-month-old baby girl, I don’t even know what time is. I am starting to get why Shakespeare, 400 years ago, wrote: Beware the vibes of March.
You know who’s got good vibes, though? Espresso geeks.
Everybody knows one guy (probably a guy) who spent a relative fortune on a machine and a grinder and maybe a self-leveling tamper, and now he orders beans from somewhere like Turkmenistan. It sounds a little ridiculous, spending three and four and maybe 10 grand to make your own little cup of doo-doo-colored heaven every morning.
At least, that’s what I thought. And when writer Robb Mandelbaum got some numbers that showed the market for super-high-end espresso machines had doubled during the pandemic—and hasn’t let up, with an average spend of more than $1,500 totaling more than $420 million last year—it seemed like another case of people with too much money and not enough places to spend it. We sent him off to find out what the deal was.
What he discovered is that espresso fans are built differently. Talk to any real enthusiast long enough, and eventually the conversation turns serious. They’ll tell you about their “God shot.” The drink that hooked them. The one where they took a sip and their insides got all tingly, their pores opened up and they titled their head back and murmured softly. It’s the drink that made them true believers.
It’s easy to roll your eyes. I know I did, another winter-tired curmudgeon trying to survive the vibes of March.
But there’s an earnest quality to the hobby that I ended up finding rather endearing. I started looking forward to hearing these fans talk about the joy their obsession gives them, nerding out on the machines that they’ve bought because it’s got a dual boiler this or a burr grinder that or a push-button doohickey where they can “dial in the grind” or follow real-time charts to see their “workflow.”
After all, what’s wrong with looking forward to waking up every morning to nurse exquisite flavors out of coffee beans? It feels like self-care.
Robb tested out several different machines and grinders and spent weeks trying to perfect his own process. He called it “a black hole of time and attention.” But he got his “God shot” in the end, and you know what? Now he wants his own setup, too.
It’s almost wholesome, the idea that each morning you could have an experience that one person called “at least great and sometimes incredible.” Hey, whatever it takes to get you through March.
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Skip this if you’re scared of getting shook
You know who else has been giving off good vibes? The entrepreneurs who constitute our monthly Industry Shakers series. I’ve always loved underdogs—I might even have picked Staten Island’s own Wagner College to topple mighty North Carolina in the NCAA tournament this week. (They did not.)
Which means I love stories about people who use their imagination and smarts and skill sets and networks to beat the odds.
This week, Eileen Gbagbo in London caught up with Foday Dumbuya, the fashion designer behind hit fashion brand Labrum. He was born in Freetown, Sierra Leone, and emigrated to the UK when he was 12. He’s self-taught and learned nearly everything he knows about making clothes on YouTube.
Last year he was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Award for British Design. His mix of classic British tailoring with West African textiles has won him fans like Idris Elba and Daniel Kaluuya.
But what I thought was the coolest thing is that he’s also become the go-to designer for soccer uniforms, or “kits.” (Yes, I know, it’s called football everywhere else outside the US.) And in the process, he’s turning the stereotype of a jersey-wearing meathead on its, well, head.
If you think being into fashion means you can’t be a jock, you’re in for a surprise when you give the profile a read.
Dumbuya is a huge sports fan—he’s an avid marathoner, enlists rugby players to walk in his fashion shows and even started a charitable running club in his native Freetown to give shoes to kids who can’t afford them. And he’s shaking up the British fashion industry.
If you don’t enjoy being inspired, then you should definitely skip these others in the series:
This Starbucks VP Turned Caribbean Rum Distiller Is the Anti-Captain Morgan
Marc-Kwesi Farrell’s Ten To One brand is about changing consumers’ perceptions of rum and telling authentic Caribbean stories.
Meet the Woman Revitalizing the World’s Only Touring Black Rodeo
Valeria Howard-Cunningham took over the Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo 10 years ago. Now its cowboys can be found walking down Louis Vuitton runways.
A Black-Owned Golf Apparel Brand Finds an Audience With the NBA
Olajuwon Ajanaku and Earl Cooper are introducing a different kind of style to the greens—and appealing to basketball stars like Stephen Curry, too.
An Alternative to the Girl Scouts Is Gaining Fans in US Cities
Radical Monarchs, an organization for Black and Brown youth, celebrates the positive.
The Skin-Care Guru Creating Hit Beauty Products for Black Celebrities
Dermatologist Naana Boakye has created new lines for John Legend, Naomi Osaka, and Dwyane Wade and Gabrielle Union. Now she’s making one for herself.
It Takes an Iron Will to Create a Fitness Empire Out of Kettlebells
Chad Price of Kettlebell Kings enters a new chapter.
It’s March … So it must be spring cleaning time
These best-in-class products may cost a premium, but they get the job done.
What else I’ve been reading and watching
And if you listen to just one thing …
It doesn’t matter if you have barely a passing interest in the automotive industry, car columnist extraordinaire Hannah Elliott has been killing it on the podcasts lately. Her new venture with our bud Matt Miller is called Hot Pursuit! This week they talk to writer, director, producer and actress Lake Bell, who gets real about what it’s like growing up in a car-crazy family.
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