Runners-Up: $5,000 each

The Rush Espresso - MT

The Rush Espresso opened in 1998. I was a small girl and my grandmother took a big risk by quitting her 8-5 secretarial job and putting a drive through espresso in a rural Montana town. I’m a third generation family business owner and my passion for the business started years ago. I would wake up early so I could go help at the Rush Espresso before school and when I was old enough I worked there after school and on the weekends. I left for college and finished my degree but when my grandma became sick it was time for me to return.
I’ve been managing The Rush for ten years now and while it’s been challenging, it’s also been a blessing. We outgrew our first little 10x10 building and built a larger building with running water. The larger building allows us to serve more customers efficiently and we use the old building for storage. We continue to adapt with the times, we purchased a mobile coffee truck that we use at a variety of local events such as high school track meets to summer car shows. We do coffee deliveries to other small town businesses and work together with other businesses to bring new things to our community. Recently, we worked together with a new floral business to create unique Valentine’s gifts. We want to keep growing. We want to do more. We want people rushing to The Rush. We currently serve around 150 cars a day, and many of those people we have been seeing for years. In a small community, we’re one of a few businesses you can go to get a special treat.
The Rush currently employs around 12 team members, many who are high schoolers and learning from their first job. We are consistently able to give back to our community, mainly focusing on health, education and suicide prevention. Not only are we able to give back financially but also in the form of volunteering with local organizations. In my opinion, we are a staple to our community of Sidney, MT. I have so many progressive ideas for The Rush Espresso and being awarded a prize for makes those ideas reality.