How Art Play Café Used ROLLER Capital to Get Ready for Their Busiest Season

Tucked into the heart of downtown Petaluma, California, Art Play Café is equal parts coffee shop, creative art studio, and indoor play space. The venue blends open play, messy art, sensory experiences, and community events into one warm, welcoming destination. Co-owner Elena Kaljian and her team opened the café with a simple mission: give families a place to connect, create, and stay a while.

The challenge: navigating the post-opening slow season

Like many new venues, Art Play Café faced a familiar pattern after a strong holiday opening: a quiet stretch at the start of the new year. With a downtown walkabout event on the horizon and retail inventory to stock, Elena needed a funding solution that was fast, flexible, and didn't penalize a business that was still finding its footing.

Traditional lenders weren't the answer. 

"When we were looking for funding in other places, they didn't even care about our history,"

Elena Kaljian

Co-owner

The options she found were either too expensive or too rigid for a new business.

The solution: funding built around how the business actually works 

ROLLER Capital changed the equation. Because it draws on Art Play Café's existing transaction history with ROLLER Payments, the application process felt less like a bank loan and more like a conversation with someone who already understood the business.

"With ROLLER Capital, we were able to build on the reputation we'd built with ROLLER Payments. They analyzed our business and felt like they could trust us. That meant a lot."

Elena Kaljian

Co-owner

The application process removed obstacles Elena expected to face. She received the announcement on a Sunday, applied Monday morning at 10am, and had funds in her account by Thursday.

"It was a super quick and easy process." 

The impact: stocking up, staffing up, and showing up

With funding secured ahead of their downtown event, Art Play Café was able to move quickly. Elena brought in additional retail inventory, completed venue projects she'd been putting off, and increased staff for the busier period ahead.

"We wouldn't have been able to do those things before. ROLLER Capital helped us to prepare for a busy season."

Elena Kaljian

"We wouldn't have been able to do those things before. ROLLER Capital helped us to prepare for a busy season."

What made it especially sustainable was how repayments were structured. Having them tied to revenue rather than a fixed weekly amount means quiet weeks stay manageable. 

"I like that it ebbs and flows with our deposits. On a quiet week, it's a quiet day — it's not a fixed weekly amount, which really helps." 

And critically, the cost of ROLLER Capital was competitive. "The other funding options available to us were more expensive. The fee was in line with the rate for a large bank loan. It didn't feel outrageous."

More than a platform

For Elena, the experience shifted how she thinks about ROLLER altogether.

"It keeps us from having to look towards other, more expensive options. ROLLER is not just our everyday operating platform anymore, it's also a resource. It feels very supportive."

Elena Kaljian

Co-owner