Scottsdale-based juice bar Kaleidoscope opened its newest location three weeks ago in the same building as the Cartel Coffee Lab in downtown Phoenix.
Alexandra Maw, a student at Arizona State University and co-owner of Kaleidoscope Juice, said she is excited to share her new location with her friends at Cartel.
“They’re such a great company, and it’s nice for two small local businesses to partner together,” Maw said. “I can’t say enough good things about them. The transition has been so smooth and they are the kindest, nicest people.”
Amanda Cohen, manager of the downtown Cartel location, said the two businesses “complement each other really well,” adding that having the two businesses in the same space is like “hitting the jackpot.”
Maw said the two companies specialize in different things, so it creates a “vibe” that makes her happy.
Kaleidoscope Juice downtown manager Rachel Sedgwick said she has been trying to treat the Cartel workers well and be a good neighbor by giving them free samples and drinks.
“We promote them and they promote us,” she said. “I try to learn about Cartel, and they’ve all been really great. They’re all hard workers and they’re good at their jobs.”
Sedgwick said she has noticed the Kaleidoscope Juice customers growing as a result of the Cartel partnership.
“There’s a lot of business men upstairs who come down for coffee, but they’ve started to bring their wives in and their wives get juice,” she said.
In the past, Kaleidoscope has been an organic cold-pressed juice, smoothie and health food service that also provides take-home juice cleanses. Now, Maw said the vision for the downtown location is to create a healthy restaurant with made-to-order food.
“We think that’s going to make an impact downtown and pressure our company to improve and grow,” she said.
Kaleidoscope Juice offers a nutritious lunch menu with options including salads, but so far its breakfast menu has been the most popular, Sedgwick said. The all-organic breakfast burritos and the gluten-free skillet are more substantial options, but she said the protein waffle is good if you have a sweet-tooth.
The Cartel kitchen was underutilized, so the partnership just made sense for Kaleidoscope Juice to take over that section of the building, Cohen said.
Kaleidoscope Juice mainly specializes in cold-pressed juices, Maw said. They are offered fresh in the store and are available for take-home juice cleanses that range from one to seven days.
The most important benefit the juices offer people on a day-to-day basis is the opportunity to have more healthy variety in their diet, Sedgwick said.
“Across the board, they say you should have eight servings of fruits and vegetables, and really no one gets that,” Sedgwick said. “Most people have the same thing — they have a piece of chicken with carrots on the side. And you get a variety of vegetables without having to cook them all.”
Much of the clientele from both Cartel and Kaleidoscope have merged together because of what the businesses offer, Sedgwick said.
“A lot of people come in here for coffee and they want something to eat, so it’s been great, they can get something from both areas,” she said.
“I think it’s always good to introduce healthier options no matter what you do or what walk of life you come from or what you do for a living. I think health is important and it’s like an epidemic right now. Everyone is getting into the health thing.”
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