Kayahan Curtis Gunes of Wollongong, New South Wales has found himself becoming a viral sensation on the back of his posts on Instagram and TikTok that took followers behind the scenes of his life in the cafe he owns.
An ex-cop turned cafe owner, Gunes originally created the posts with the aim of promoting his business Evil Eye Cafe. Over time, he has managed to gain 45.1k followers with 532.1k likes on TikTok, and 14.3k followers on Instagram.
“I wanted to show that Evil Eye Cafe isn’t just a business, but that there’s a real person behind it who has a personality and story,” Gunes said. “I wanted to bring joy and entertainment to people while promoting my business. The videos that I like to film are coffee or hospitality related, but also humorous and something the public can relate to.
“I chose Instagram and TikTok as my main platforms, because I know they are used by a lot of people. Viral marketing is also very much alive on these platforms,” he added.
One of the most popular videos features Gunes in his police uniform, before and transitioning to working in the café. “Customers always come in and say they’ve seen me on TikTok, and love my videos,” Gunes said. “I often get recognised in the street, and people come up to say hello and ask to take photos with me.”
Gunes started his career as a police officer, following his mother’s footsteps. After spending eight months training, he graduated from the academy and became part of the St. George police force. But two years later, he realised that business was where his passion truly was.
Having graduated from the University of Wollongong with a Bachelor of Business in 2017, Gunes decided to finally pursue his dream of owning his own business with his father, Steve.
“I decided I wanted to open a cafe, because of my love for coffee,” he explained. “My entire family are big coffee lovers, too. Every day that we have off, we always go for coffee.”
Gunes opened Evil Eye Cafe in 2020, with the name coming from a Turkish pendant that is believed to protect against supernatural curses and malice. “Coming from a Turkish background, the Evil Eye is a very prominent symbol,” he said. “Growing up, the symbol of the Evil Eye was all around my house, so when we were thinking of a name of the cafe, we thought, ‘Why not name it the Evil Eye Cafe?’”
Alongside its strong ties to Gunes’ Turkish heritage, the cafe is Australia’s only Evil Eye-themed cafe, which has been nominated as a finalist in the Illawarra Business Awards, and is well-regarded across the country for its distinctive décor, and menu of Turkish and Mediterranean-inspired delights.
With the success of the first cafe despite the pandemic, Gunes and his father opened a second cafe – The Evil Eye Beach Cafe – in the Wollongong Harbour in 2021. Gunes hopes to continue growing his Evil Eye Cafe franchise by opening more cafes throughout New South Wales, and ultimately expand into Queensland and Victoria.
The story was originally published on Inside Small Business.
