About
OUR STORY
Exchange was established in 2013 with the goal to make specialty coffee accessible and approachable. We were, and still are, committed to serving high quality coffee that has been sourced sustainably and responsibly, and roasted with care. We took over a 50 square metre site on Vardon Ave, built a simple coffee bar and made the best of it. It’s hard to believe now, but at the time Vardon Ave was a sleepy backstreet with no other hospitality venues.
We wanted to deliver a great coffee experience for the people of Adelaide and realised quite early on that we would have to work hard to build a market for it, and to establish a community around Exchange. After a couple of years we found our feet, our team of staff grew and, due to popular demand, we expanded our food offering to incorporate a full brunch menu. By 2016 it was clear that we were pushing our little space to its limit and we needed to find a way to grow. In a timely stroke of luck, the shop next door decided to close and we managed to secure this space which paved the way for a much needed expansion and total refit of our store. Working with an architect, we redesigned the space and installed a commercial kitchen.
Over the subsequent years we continued to grow and our community grew with us, providing us tremendous support and the drive to keep delivering great coffee and food experiences. Despite a couple of very challenging years during the Covid pandemic, we once again reached a point where we’d outgrown our space. In 2023, our tenth year of operation, our neighbour, Frank Vaiana, the East End’s legendary barber, decided to retire after more than six decades’ trade. We took the opportunity to expand for a second time, which doubled the footprint of our original store. Knowing that this would be our last opportunity to expand at this site, we worked with Hosking Design to create a beautiful, warm, light-filled space that would stand the test of time. Our store was rebuilt from scratch, again, and in so doing we dramatically transformed it, yet retained a sense of familiarity for our community.
We’re proud of the inclusive culture of our business and team members. We strive for values that allow us to build genuine, longterm relationships with our team, customers and community. Since we opened in 2013 with just four employees, our team has now grown to more than 20 warm, personable and enthusiastic people. We will always work to ensure that the work environment at Exchange is inclusive and that our team is happy and supported.
The community that has grown around our store and supported us for many years is wholly unique and immensely special. We’re proud that our venue has seen people meet, forge relationships, raise children, start businesses, write books and so much more. For all this we feel very grateful.