In 2003 a group of young Copenhageners went to London and became inspired by cafés and bars there that were run on a special principle: giving all their proceeds beyond those needed for the café’s basic operations to humanitarian causes.
So they came back to Copenhagen and, with the assistance of about 25 volunteers, opened the now popular Café Retro on little Knabrostræde lane just off the walking street, basing it on the same non-profit principles.
Café Retro has since flourished, having created its decidedly international atmosphere from loyal groups of regulars and visitors from all over the world, who have heard about the bar’s unique concept either on the internet or through word of mouth.
Café Retro itself is operated by the now 50 volunteer workers who take shifts at the bar along with Simon Brolund, who has the job as the bar’s full-time manager. The money taken in at the café currently goes to Sewa Ashram, a patient rehabilitation centre for the socially disadvantaged in India.
Brolund said that beyond Café Retro’s commitment to humanitarian causes, the bar is operated on three key values: encouraging a universal ‘love thy neighbour’ principle; forwarding debates and discussions on existential issues; and advancing art, music and other creative activities, especially for not-yet-established artists and designers.
‘We have a clothing design shop that operates from inside the café, with nine people running it,’ said Brolund, pointing out a small corner of the bar. ‘They make and sell their clothes here and we get a little extra money from that. We also try to have live music four times a week - singer songwriters a couple times on the weekdays and bands on Fridays and Saturdays.’
Besides the designers’ area, Café Retro has a bar, a stage area for the performers, an upstairs seating area, and ‘The Quiet Room’.
‘The Quiet Room is a relatively soundproof room where people can come in and totally relax and release all the stress of a busy day.’
The room includes a reflection bowl, where people can pull out spiritual, fortune cookie-like recommendations for the day, such as ‘Think about tomorrow’. There are also meditation sessions once a week and a thought board where visitors can write down whatever comes to mind.
‘I have to check it, of course, to make sure there’s nothing unsuitable put there, but generally people are good about keeping it clean and relevant.’
The bar has provided aid to Sewa Ashram for the past two years, but things are going so well that Brolund said the board is on the hunt for other aid recipients.
‘We have a group called the I-Team - the International Team - that does research and travels around the world to determine what legitimate causes we can support,’ said Brolund. ‘Right now we actually have too much money to give to just Sewa Ashram alone, so we’re looking for one or two new recipients.’
Gurpreet Singh Dopra, 27, is a software engineer from India who came to Denmark two years ago to work for Nokia. He began working at Café Retro after hearing about it from one of his Danish friends.
‘I visited the bar and chose to work there because it gave me the opportunity to interact with people,’ said Dopra. ‘The concept is so fresh and different. You know the efforts you put in there are going towards improving people’s lives.’
Dopra said he considers Café Retro to be an almost ‘holy’ place.
‘The people from the café are in direct contact with the person who takes care of the field work in Sewa Ashram in Delhi,’ he said. ‘The people who receive help are extremely poor and cannot take care of themselves, so working here almost feels like working for Mother Teresa.’
Mihalis Kampanis, 30, from Athens, Greece, came to Denmark five years ago to study at the Technical University of Denmark. He has only been volunteering at Café Retro a short time, but knew it was the right move.
‘The whole atmosphere is extremely relaxing. From the first time I went there, it felt as if I was drinking my coffee at home,’ he said.
Kampanis said the bar is the ideal place for social interaction and the occasional work helps him improve his Danish. He believes that everyone should try to do something in order to improve the conditions of life for the less fortunate in the world.
‘Personally, I prefer putting work into that cause rather than giving cash to some humanitarian organisation.’
Brolund said that everyone who works at Café Retro agrees about what the bar should stand for and its values.
‘It’s about treating people with kindness and respect,’ said Brolund. ‘It doesn’t matter whether you come to work here because you want to learn to be a good bartender, because you want to live out some humanitarian dream, or whatever. We all know we’re here to make money for needy people and help them, and that’s what’s important.’
