How did daydream start?
In a nutshell, Daydream was built on a shoestring budget, hard work, and a lot of help from friends. Founders Kyle Kennelly and Rebecca Mantei couldn't believe the news when they found out that they were selected to sign a lease on a 1500 sqft warehouse on the border of Newport Beach and Westside Costa Mesa. Kyle was 26 and Becca was 23, primed with enthusiasm, a vision, and motivation that surpassed their awareness of what they were about to get themselves into. Most people would consider this location to be in the middle of nowhere but Kyle and Becca knew the attractive history of Quiksilver, Volcom, Rvca, and other surf companies starting out just around the corner from this space. They also were inspired by the Post-War era boat building that this side of town used to be known for which later evolved into a surfboard production capital. It also offered independence from the zombie strip mall homoginization that they were avoiding in order to blaze a new trail. You had to be a little crazy to think that this was a good idea. Foot traffic was non-existent in this part of town, these two kids saved up a measly $30k each thinking that would be enough to get started and didn't have any sort of family wealth to fall back on. Kyle's Uncle Jon is the definition of a legend, not only did he teach Kyle how to surf when he was 7, he is a carpenter, contractor and can play the Grateful Dead on a ukulele. It didn't matter that the odds were stacked against them, this is what they were going to do. They were good at solving problems, loved each other, and needed to build something that represented their values. So off they went, it was Kyle, Becca, and Uncle Jon day in and day out for four months of nonstop work. Doodles turned to scale drawings on graph paper, then tape on the floor, then structures. They still vividly remember bringing pencil drawings to the health department and getting laughed out of the building. Even with legit plans, trying to get a suburban health department plan checker to comprehend an open air retail space with a specialty cafe was like teaching a dog to write code. There was a lot to learn quickly and not much left for a food budget. Their parents would drop off crockpots of chili and their desire for a vegetarian diet was replaced by an overflowing gratitude for free food. They traded a friend a future surfboard for plumbing work, another friend free coffee for life for welding the coffee bar... another friend crafty at another trade and another IOU was born. But finally the shop was complete... Well, actually they literally ran out of money and just opened their doors.
A few weeks later the suits came in and signed off with passed inspections. Luck was on their side, the inspector was a surfer and a fan of Tyler Warren. Luckily, Kyle and Becca had so many friends that lived in their hometown ready to support them. The opening of Daydream was like a big homecoming party- it was mostly their buddies and family coming out to support. Friends would tell their friends...and then they would tell others. Slowly it started catching on. Fast forward 7 years and Daydream is a local community hub that has attracted international attention. Kyle and Becca are married now and are still the sole owners of Daydream. This brand has carved its own unique path with a love not just for surfing but for a lifestyle embedded in nature and creating community.
Where did the inspiration come from?
Kyle and Becca moved from Newport Beach to the Bay Area to attend college in 2011, Rebecca studied Design and Fine Art at the University of San Francisco while Kyle transferred from Orange Coast College in Costa Mesa to the University of California, Berkeley and studied Economics. Spending their coming of age years in the Bay Area left an imprint on them and thus the philosophy behind Daydream. Becca was directed towards a career in interior design and worked under interior designers while attending USF. She had a great eye and was also someone who was able to find alternative twists by going places many interior designers wouldn't like flea markets and vintage warehouses. But the clientele was something that would eventually get to her and she began to realize that working for the stereotypical ostentatious tech millionaire wasn't the way she wanted to spend her time. Before departing this career path, she worked for an event design firm that ended up being the nail in the coffin where millions of dollars were spent on parties that lasted a single evening. Kyle spent his early years as a competitive surfer and was well integrated in the surf industry from the age of 10. He surfed avidly and competed almost every weekend. His first job was when he was 15 and a half at Huntington Surf and Sport. He thrived in the surfboard room and sold three boards on his first day on the floor. Burnout hit pretty hard in his teens, he transitioned from riding high performance shortboards to "alternative" boards. First it was bonzers then single fins then finless and just about any other non-thruster he could get his hands on. When he fell in love with Becca in 2010 he got his first custom Liddle (shaped by Greg) that still hangs in the shop today as a symbol of a life shift. It was an easy decision to quit the ASP and Pro-Junior circuit in favor of a full time scholastic path although he was able to retain a couple sponsors that he surfed for through his college and first couple years of Daydream. Life at UC Berkeley was challenging. He spent all of his time studying and was infatuated with dreams of being an economist. He immediately picked up research assistant jobs and was even published for work in a Macroeconomic study. He had his sights on top grad schools but was unable to make the path for a PhD and decided to start interviewing for jobs instead. He was offered a job as an Investment Banker at J.P. Morgan in San Francisco. Working 9am till midnight daily took its toll quickly and that career ended within a year in favor of picking up shifts at Mollusk Surf Shop. In an interview with owner John McCambridge, Kyle told him about his dream to open up his own surf shop and how inspired he was by Mollusk. John promoted Kyle to working at their headquarters for two years before the two moved back to Southern California to start Daydream. Living and surfing in Northern California shifted their perspective on surfing from a "youth sport" to one of many recreations that nature enthusiasts partake in to harmonize with their environment. There are some people who have only experienced surfing as a municipally manufactured revenue generator. An example could be the experience one has pulling into the massive parking lot at the Huntington Beach Pier, surfing then shopping at the Pacific City mall after.
On the contrary, there are so many more places in the world where surfing is much more meditative. An example could be hiking through a National Park, smelling the california sage on the trail, listening to the healthy bird population as they thrive, arriving to an empty beach with nothing but the sound of waves lapping across cobblestones, rejoicing in the crystal clear water, and riding waves amidst an abundant marine habitat. The latter experience is what Daydream is all about and is the perspective Kyle and Becca want to show people surfing can be. This is where the inspiration for Daydream came from at its core.
When the shop opened in 2016, there were a lot of things that these two had grown accustomed to from living in San Francisco that were missing from Newport Beach or Orange County as a whole for that matter. Specialty coffee was something that was alive and thriving in the Bay Area and most other major metropolitan areas but hadn't really broken into Newport Beach in the same way. Portola was one of the only shops really holding down the Costa Mesa coffee scene at the time with a few soon to be reputable shops getting their start. Good coffee was a crucial component of the morning surfing ritual. Of course you can make it at your house but having a space where you can meet friends before a morning surf is the social component that's missing there. And you just never know who you're going to bump into in a public place. The romantic randomness of being out and about cannot be underestimated. So specialty coffee needed a seat at the table of Daydream in so much as it was the communal glue that brought all walks of life into a shop that would've mainly attracted surfers.
Why is there a cafe in a surf shop?
Kyle was raised by surf shops but it was time to change things up a little bit. Kyle and Becca had a bigger vision, that was to build community and connect nature enthusiasts, not just in Newport or California but globally. Daydream first opened with San Francisco based roaster Sightglass and was the only account south of LA at the time. This was Kyle and Becca's favorite coffee shop and roaster in San Francisco. Delicious espresso and adventurous, light bodied coffees grabbed people's attention. Good quality coffee is one thing but saving the world is another. Specialty coffee roasters are doing just that. Massive corporate shops will price gouge coffee farms and disregard quality while specialty coffee roasters support a market that pays a premium to these farmers, most of the time working directly with the farm and helping to make capital investments into a longstanding relationship. This is how an economic system is improved: a focus on a quality product, attention to detail, and a premium that's paid for this attention. Long story longer, Orange County was just behind the curve and needed the kids that had contact with people outside of the suburb to show them how good coffee could be. Kyle and Becca saw the changing of the tides and also wanted to create a space that was a communal hub and a hangout spot that they would genuinely not mind hanging out at all day. All your senses were treated, the sound of Becca's home record play crackled as warm music filled the air, you could smell the sweet aroma of Sightglass coffee, and an open floor plan filled with all sorts of nik naks from surfboards to vintage clothing, homegoods, and art books. Coffee cuppings (aka tastings) were conducted as often as possible, at least weekly, and still are.
Coffee evolved quickly and Daydream wanted to be able to serve some of the coffees they were hearing about from roasters all over the world. Daydream's cafe soon expanded to a multi-roaster platform. A lot of shops work exclusively with one roaster but Daydream's experimental nature led them to working with two then three then six then to whoever had the best tasting coffee on the tasting table.
Continuing to pave a path of innovation, Daydream brought in Onyx from Arkansas, Sey from Brooklyn, Manhattan from the Netherlands, Proud Mary from Australia, DAK from Amsterdam, April from Copenhagen, The Barn from Berlin, and the list goes on. New experimental processing of coffee paralleled fine dining and it's infatuation with fermentation. Coffee processing was looking at techniques from winemaking and experimenting with carbonic, anaerobic, and extended fermentations. Daydream provides a diverse selection of coffees but these roasters that are experimenting with fermentation are leading the "future" of coffee at Daydream to this day. The coffee philosophy is nonchalant. Daydream is like, "it's just coffee," but deep down they're hoping you're a coffee nerd so they can come out of their shell and geek out with you. Elitism in coffee is silly and just because Daydream was rated the 9th best coffee shop in the US by Food and Wine Magazine doesn't change their down to earth attitude. The last thing anyone wants is to go into a cafe and be met by a barista who thinks less of you because you don't know as much about coffee as they do. That is the furthest opposite of Daydream's mission - to build community - as you can be. In 2022 Daydream was offered an incredible opportunity to move their shop across the street to a warehouse that was twice the size and with a landlord that was twice as cool. The cafe was able to evolve with this new opportunity and a small kitchen was built to round out the cafe with some breakfast and lunch items. Everyone at Daydream has an interest in the culinary world whether they enjoy cooking or exploring cool new restaurants and cafes, it's a part of the culture. The addition of a culinary menu is widely celebrated by the Daydream commonwealth. Ok, one last cool thing about specialty coffee: if you want to treat yourself to the pinnacle of a culinary experience it's going to cost hundreds of dollars. However, if you want to treat yourself to the pinnacle of a specialty coffee experience you're spending under ten bucks. So you're able to get this glimpse into a fine dining experience and a very advanced culinary analysis applied to coffee but it's at a price point that is much more inclusive.
Wasn't Daydream in a different building?
You are correct, Kyle and Becca first started Daydream across the street from its current location at 1588 Monrovia Ave (also in Newport Beach) and is currently at 864 W. 16th St. The story goes that Kyle and Becca were feeling mounting pressure from their property manager to move. They were continually cited by the management company for odd and insignificant claims so they started looking for new options. The most serious threat was a formal letter threatening eviction on the grounds of Daydream taking up too much parking within a massive parking lot that was rarely ever used to its fullest potential. Luckily, one day a neighbor named Michael stopped by for his morning coffee and asked if Daydream would ever consider moving into his warehouse across the street. Michael was a fan of the shop, worked in the surf industry for decades, and had his space opening up later that year. The only issues were that it was twice the space, required the funding of a whole new build out, and the headache of going through everything that it takes to get signed off by city and health department inspectors. Kyle and Becca got to work on the new 16th Street space while the current Daydream was operating on Monrovia. Their business history was heading in a successful direction and they were able to fund the build out with an SBA loan. The new Daydream opened on November 11th, 2022 merely three days after the old location ceased operations. There were some new additions that the previous shop didn't have such as an art gallery and a culinary program (check out past art exhibitions and their kitchen offerings). It was an instant success, for some reason it seemed as if anyone who had ever been to the old location wanted to come check out the new one all at once. The execution of rebuilding a shop from the ground up wasn't easy, Kyle and Becca claim that the new shop is ever evolving over a year and a half later. They love their new space and the community is rejoicing as well. Their new landlord is a much better fit and allows them much more freedom to host events, markets, and community gatherings.
On any given month you'll find vintage markets, art gallery openings, film screenings, farmers markets, community bike rides, and much more. Visit the shop or follow us for more info!