Cafe Mosiac owner receives Entrepreneurial Excellence award

Coffee, music and art — these are three of Nathanael Johnson’s favorite things.
Johnson said, “I first thought of opening a cafe in Eunice when I was 15. I liked coffee, music, and art. However, there was no place in Eunice for that. After I graduated and went to college for business I began to think more on it. I wanted to play music for the rest of my life but I guess God seemed to have known that I wasn’t going to be a rock star.”
The 30-year-old might not be touring the country as rock sensation, but he is a star in the eyes of the St. Landry Economic Development. The organization named Johnson its Entrepreneurial Excellence award recipient at a recent St. Landry Chamber of Commerce banquet.
“I was interviewed for the award, and I found out I was one of the nominees,” Johnson said. “I didn’t even know I was in the ring. I was surprised, excited and honored, but it’s not just about me — it’s a community thing. The workers make the business.”
Johnson’s path to coffee stardom began in 2009 when he opened Cafe Mosaic in downtown Eunice.
“After giving up that dream and really moving forward with Mosaic, I left college, found a building and started working,” he said. “My thoughts were I wanted to offer something to Eunice instead of the revolving notation to leave Eunice because it didn’t have something to offer.
“It starts with someone to change that. Talk is cheap. Downtown was where I bought my building, the Mosaic. Now, downtown was dead at the time so many people didn’t believe in the dream I had or its success.”
Johnson said he worked tirelessly on the building for six months, and he credits his parents with helping him get the business on its feet.
“They were my life line and truly the only reason I was able to do this,” Johnson said. “I always say ‘No one gets to where they are without standing on the shoulders of someone else’s success.’”
Johnson said the coffee shop was well received when he opened the door for business.
“There was a big response,” Johnson said. “There was a definite need for such a business downtown for more reasons than one — for what it was and it was a new business in Eunice. Downtown was not thriving very much. I figured a coffee shop would be well received.
“I think, like anything, (opening a new business) takes a leap of faith. Coffee shops are a community-driven type of business. They bring that atmosphere there. It definitely encourages more and more businesses to come to that area. Coffee shops in general do that. They are unique to revitalizing a downtown.”
While coffee gets people in the door, Johnson said paintings and music offered at the cafe also bring in walk in traffic at the business.
In addition to contributing to the economy of Eunice and St. Landry Parish, Johnson is also contributing the overall economy of Acadiana. In 2013, he opened Campus Grounds on the campus of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette as well as a Reve Coffee Roasters, a locally owned micro-coffee roaster brewing company located in Lafayette. Johnson employs 30 people between the three businesses. He is also in talks to open a coffee house at LSUE, and he hopes that location may become a reality by the end of the year.
Johnson’s coffee shops, roasting facility and contributions to the Acadiana area have also been recognized by numerous magazines and internet blogs. Reve Coffee Roasters has even received national recognition as one of the top 10 newest coffees to try in the U.S. 
“I hope to do this for many more years,” he said. “I am excited that the community responded.”