women in franchising: Kat Hammac | Bad Ass Coffee of Hawaii
Entrepreneurship Has No Age Limit... Female Business Owner Shares Advice for Those Pursuing a Second-Act Career Kat Hammac is a multi-unit owner of three Bad Ass Coffee of Hawaii locations, with two more in development. She’s an allstar performer who has mastered the art of running multiple family-owned businesses with her four children – living life and truly enjoying her new found success.
There’s nothing like adversity to awaken the inner badass within. I spent most of my life taking care of others with lots of ups and downs before pursuing entrepreneurship.
Society tells us we have to become successful at a young age, so as I got older, I thought I missed my opportunity to become an entrepreneur. Fortunately, I overcame the age limit mindset and embraced the journey to a second-act career. As a wife and stay-at-home mom with four children, I started selling organic eggs and other farm items to help my family make extra money, but quickly realized I wasn’t earning enough. I then decided to go back to school and get a degree in Nursing. I became a Registered Nurse and worked in the ICU until Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005. The hospital I worked for never re-opened to the public, and shortly after, my mother became sick with cancer. Post-diagnosis, I took the time to take care of her. After overcoming many trials and tribulations, I still felt it difficult to leave my nursing career behind and seek passion elsewhere because of my age. Thankfully, I did not let those fears hold me back. I always had a desire to own a coffee shop and I used the little money I had to go to coffee school in Portland. The hunger to learn and set out on my own motivated me, so I did a tour in Seattle to learn everything there is to know about coffee beans. Soon after, I started my own
16 Franchising MAGAZINE USA
