Jimmy Butler managed to parlay his love of quality coffee into a successful side hustle at the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Fla., after the NBA resumed the 2019-20 season last summer amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Now, we’re learning just how much cash the Miami Heat superstar pocketed thanks to his barista skills in the improvisational coffeehouse housed in his hotel room.
“What did I make? I think I made about, I’m not gonna tell you the exact number. Somewhere in between $1, and like $6,000. Somewhere in between there is about the amount of money I made,” Butler revealed in a recent GQ.com interview. “But I learned to do cappuccinos, lattes, obviously, pour-overs, chemexes, all of that good stuff.”
Butler’s coffee side hustle unquestionably made for one of the more amusing stories to come out of the league restart in the bubble.
Even more impressive, the makeshift coffee bar showcased the Miami Heat superstar’s admirable entrepreneurial spirit. Not only was Butler able to extract $20 out of his caffeine-craving NBA colleagues for a cup of joe, but he later sought to trademark “Big Face Coffee” to turn his side hustle into a full-fledged business enterprise.
Butler shared in the GQ interview how he arrived at the price point for what turned out to be a highly coveted cup of coffee.
“I know everybody got the same amount per diem, so everybody had four twenties,” Butler said. “Eventually, if I’m making coffee that’s good enough, they’re going to run out of those four twenties and then they’re going to have to start giving me hundreds. My plan didn’t work out like it was supposed to, but I was getting $20 a cup, so I can’t complain.”
It remains to be seen whether Butler will pursue his Big Face Coffee business endeavor in earnest, but the superstar deserves credit for making the most out of the bubble situation.
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