Derek D.’s Post

Location #4 — Pittsburgh International Airport 4.5 years later, here we are. In July 2021, just six months after opening in Wexford, I reached out to Jerad Bachar from VisitPITTSBURGH to see if he could connect me with someone at the airport. The new terminal was years away, but I thought, maybe one day... Since that email, everything has moved at lightning speed. People thought I was crazy for opening a café mid pandemic and then saying I wanted to open in an airport next. I’ve been obsessed with airports since I was a kid. The excitement, the people, the feeling that you can go anywhere - it’s always inspired me. When I saw the new terminal renderings, I knew Café Conmigo, LLC belonged there. The design, travel, nature, and culture all just fit. Huge thanks to the incredible team at PIT who believed in our vision and made space for local businesses like ours. While working on the airport, Cranberry became our “unexpected child.” After two years of delays and lessons in expansion, my small but mighty team found ourselves building two cafés at the airport, one airside and one in the arrivals hall, while running two existing shops. It was intimidating and exhausting, but somehow, we pulled it off. Now, our post-security café is open, and construction on our pre-security location is complete, just in time for the terminal’s debut this autumn. I don’t know how it went so fast, but I do know we didn’t do it alone. Endless gratitude to TJ Fairchild and Commonplace Coffee for believing in me since day one and helping with training, equipment, and our coffee; Stephanie Ritter, our Director of Operations, for being my rock through growth and joining at the perfect time; and Patty, our Finance Manager, for keeping every late-night spreadsheet in line. Thank you to Amanda Webster at F.N.B. Corporation for making it possible when others didn’t believe, and Nicholas Molea, Jr. at Huntington National Bank for his support even when timing didn’t align. And to my best friend Juan Alday and his mom Virginie, who pushed me every day, helped with many things, and gave me the confidence to keep going. A huge thanks to mossArchitects for working closely with me to design for high-traffic airport use and blending our brand beautifully with the terminal’s natural, modern aesthetic. Their team created something truly special, and I couldn’t be happier. Enormous thanks as well to Rycon Construction for bringing those designs to life so quickly and with such pride in their craftsmanship. Kudos to luis vidal + architects North America, Gensler, & HDR for their incredible vision that makes our airport such a stunning gateway to Pittsburgh. And a heartfelt thank you to Christina A Cassotis and the entire ACAA team for giving us this opportunity. Christina worked tirelessly to bring this project to life while running a world class airport. She’s a force of nature and a true light for Pittsburgh. This dream became a reality because of all of you.