Why I Started Kind Coffee Paris (And What It Taught Me About Community)
When I moved to Paris, I imagined connection would happen naturally.
But like many adults, I found that making meaningful connections felt harder than expected.
I struggled to find spaces that worked for me: English-speaking, alcohol-free, centred around genuine conversation, and happening in the daytime rather than late at night.
More than that, I longed for spaces built around values that mattered to me: kindness, openness, curiosity, inclusivity, and thoughtful conversation.
At first, I wondered whether I was simply being too particular.
Maybe connection in adult life meant adapting to environments that didn’t quite feel right.
But over time, I started asking a different question:
What if belonging is not only about trying harder, but also about finding the right environments?
Because while effort matters, I have come to believe something else matters too:
Fit.
The spaces we place ourselves in shape what kinds of connection become possible. Some environments help us relax into ourselves. Others leave us feeling slightly out of place, even when everyone seems perfectly nice.
So eventually, I stopped asking:
“How do I fit into existing spaces?”
And started asking:
“What kind of space would genuinely feel right?”
That question became the beginning of Kind Coffee Paris.
What started as a small gathering around a café table slowly grew into one of the most popular meetups in Paris. It became a calm, welcoming space for thoughtful people who wanted to connect more authentically and without pressure or pretence.
Each month, we met for roundtable conversations, often using optional prompt cards to help conversations move beyond small talk and into something more meaningful. Over time, friendships formed. People started meeting outside the group for coffees, museums, dinners, and one-to-one catch-ups. Familiar faces returned.
And perhaps most importantly, it showed something simple but powerful:
When the right conditions are in place, shared values, psychological safety, and the right environment, people tend to open up naturally.
They listen more closely. Show more care. And begin to feel a sense of belonging.
In many ways, Kind Coffee became a quiet counterpoint to the anonymity of big city life. A reminder that meaningful connection does not have to be loud or performative. No networking. No pressure to impress. Just presence, honesty, and community.
Through this project, I learned something I now carry into all my work:
Connection does not only happen by accident. It can also be intentionally nurtured.
That insight eventually inspired me to think more broadly about how we create spaces, whether in communities, groups, or organisations, where people feel safe enough to be themselves and connected enough to truly belong.
In Paris soon?
