Common Grounds coffee shop in Sycamore to close in June

SYCAMORE – Common Grounds, a Sycamore shop known for its coffee, tea, smoothies and community gathering spaces, will permanently close in June, just shy of seven years of operation, owners Michelle and Jeff Foster announced this week.

The Fosters said they plan to go out with a celebration, however, and expressed that the decision comes with bittersweet feelings as the struggles of running a business have taken their toll.

Common Grounds’ last day open – an outdoor market – will be in front of the shop from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. June 25. Jeff Foster, who owns Common Grounds along with his wife, Michelle, said the outdoor art, music and food market is planned as a way to say thank you to those who’ve patronized their business over the past six years.

“Over the years, we’ve gotten so many warm expression from people about how Common Grounds touched their lives, so I just want to say thank you,” Foster, 51, of DeKalb, said.

[ Jeff Foster is cultivating common ground even during pandemic with coffee shop, arts initiative ]

The Fosters announced their plans Tuesday via a post on the business’s Facebook page.

“Alas, life has been hard on Common Grounds and the Foster family too. We need our friends, encouragement and prayer,” the post reads. “Closing will hurt like heck. There is potential for new ownership to turn things around, but right now we need to set a closing date.”

“We considered this an investment and expected it to be a profitable business at this point, but most of the time we’ve been running it it hasn’t been profitable at all.”

—  Jeff Foster, co-owner of Common Grounds in Sycamore

Foster said his bank account was in dire straights and would take all the help he can get.

“We considered this an investment and expected it to be a profitable business at this point, but most of the time we’ve been running it it hasn’t been profitable at all,” Foster said Wednesday.

The business originally started as a community outreach, organic ministry that focused on combatting the injustices in the coffee, tea and chocolate industries, but the idea quickly morphed into more of a business, Foster said. Foster went from a graphic designer and youth pastor to a business owner, according to the social media post.

“I didn’t expect to be the financial person, I didn’t expect to be the barista, but what started out as an outreach evolved into a business more and more,” Foster said. “I needed to make some decisions that are business only, or business focused, and that’s what’s hard for me. My passion really is more for people than making money.”

The coffee shop opened in 2016 in downtown DeKalb. Foster said the first few years were a nice time, running the business was simple. However, the COVID-19 pandemic threw the Fosters for a loop.

In July 2021, Common Grounds moved into its current location at 2180 Oakland Drive, Suite B, in Sycamore after a falling out with a landlord in DeKalb. Since that move, Common Grounds has struggled to make a profit, and around Christmas 2022 the shop lost money through staffing and inventory issues, Foster said.

Without extra help, Foster works as a one man band – making food and drinks, opening and closing the shop and managing. If someone seeks employment at Common Grounds he can’t afford to hire them.

“I had one person who was a good hire – someone from before who came back – and I can’t even afford to pay her at this point. So that’s heartbreaking for me and I’m trying to help her meet with some people who may have a position,” Foster said. “It’s a tough time, it’s taken a toll on our family life, three teenagers at home, my wife works full time, she needs more of me available.”