Los Gatos Weekly-Times

Photograph by George Sakkestad

Terri Vellios tried to win her shop back when it was the Giraffe Coffee Co. She ended up buying it and now is offering her Boulevard Coffee as a writing contest prize.

Coffeehouse offered as prize

By Clarence Cromwell

Those who long to be recognized for scribbling verse and those who long to own a business--a little espresso bar, maybe--are among the largest fraternities on the planet.

Terri Vellios is calling out to all of them with a writing contest for which first prize is her little java and sandwich shop: Boulevard Coffee.

For a $150 entry fee and a page of writing, anyone older than 21 can win the whole store. Vellios hopes for 300 to 500 entries. (The last day to enter is July 7.)

The 825-square-foot shop, near the Wherehouse on Los Gatos Boulevard, currently offers coffee, beans, pastries, sandwiches and fruit drinks. Its cozy interior contains four tiny tables and three sofas.

The shop also comes with a staff.

"I have wonderful employees," Vellios said. "They're doing a great job."

Vellios estimates that the business is worth about $35,000, and whoever wins the contest gets to keep the business and its equipment, with no debts except sticking to the shop's $1,800-a-month lease for three years.

Vellios said she wants to sell the business and spend more time at home with her family. The $75,000 in entry fees would repay the investments of Vellios and her silent partner and leave a small balance in the company checking account for the new owner.

Vellios got the idea from a contest in which she tried to win the very restaurant she now owns, back when it was known as the Giraffe Coffee Co. That contest wasn't completed because the owners failed to draw the 1,000 entries they'd hoped for. After that, Vellios got a loan and bought the coffee shop outright.

Vellios says she and her staff will whittle the entries down to 20, which she'll then turn over to four business people to make the final selection.

To enter the contest, send a self-addressed, stamped envelope to:

Boulevard Coffee (contest)
15466 Los Gatos Blvd. #112
Los Gatos, 95032

Or drop by the shop to pick up an entry form and the contest rules.

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