Today we’d like to introduce you to Rebecca Langlands.
Hi Rebecca, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
We opened Tselia in December of 2024, and all I can say is it has been quite the journey! Our story originally begins in California, where our family first began to experience craft coffee. Matthew (Co-Owner/ Lead Roaster) started working at a local coffee shop in our hometown when he was eighteen; at the time, it was the only third-wave coffee shop in our area, and he was ecstatic to learn more about the industry! Over the years, he went from being one of their first employees to a manager, all the way up to a roaster. After roasting for them for several years, he took the leap to invest in his own roaster and began roasting out of our garage to supply other local coffee shops. Fast forward a few years, and that same roasting machine now resides inside Tselia Coffee in Greenville, SC – 2000+ miles across the country from where it started. During Matthew’s journey of growing as a barista and eventually to commercial roasting, our whole family began to appreciate better quality coffee and learn more about the whole coffee process. Rebecca also began working as a barista at the same original coffee shop in Temecula, CA and managed several of their locations across four years. With two full time baristas in the house, there was always new coffee, experimental brewing methods, or plenty of lattes in the house and so as parents Annie and Sinclair (Co-Owners) developed their own taste for quality coffee. Eventually in 2022, the whole family decided to move from California and make their way to lovely Greenville, SC where the idea of opening a coffee began to grow. After exploring several different locations we settled on our space on N Main. While it’s beautiful now, it took a lot of vision to transform that empty shell into a coffee shop! There were no floors (just a lot of red dirt), no plumbing, one electric outlet, and eighty years of dirt, grime, and plaster on the walls. Matthew had the original vision of creating an immersive space with foliage and innovative layouts, creating something new and exciting for Greenville. After considering the space and budget we landed on the idea of the pink Cherry Blossom trees for their color, style, and whimsical appearance. The architecture and build out process took over a year, of which our family worked alongside the contractors to finish the job. Everything from floors to counter tops to painting was done by us, tallying many long 16+ hour days. Looking back, it was a grueling journey to take the space from a beaten up shell to the beautifully immersive space that it is now but we are so delighted with what we created. Each step has been done as a family with each of us bringing something to the table to make Tselia what it is. In a few weeks we will celebrate one year of being open and there are many amazing memories that we have all created here. Our staff, our regulars, the whole community is just incredible!
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Definitely not! Our build-out took over a year, and we ran into many challenges. There were plumbing issues, measurement errors, and even the major issue of missing a ceiling cover in our kitchen! And since opening it has been a learning curve to understand working with the city and being in the heart of downtown. But every step has grown us and we are grateful to have made it this far.
We’ve been impressed with Tselia Coffee, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Tselia Coffee is a family-run, craft coffee shop in the heart of downtown Greenville, SC. We pride ourselves on having quality in every step and treating every customer like family. All our coffee beans are roasted in-house, and our syrups and pastries are all made in-house as well. Being family-run means that at least one of us is here every day, so we care about the details and we make sure each part of the process is done with care – from cleaning the tables to steaming the milk!
What does success mean to you?
The smile on someone’s face when they get their morning coffee! Our goal is to connect with each person who walks through our door to make them feel seen and make their day just a little bit better. We run our shop family style, and that includes everyone we get to make coffee for.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://Tselia.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tseliacoffee/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61572510999589
