CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Need coffee to start your morning? The Charlotte Bitty and Beau’s Coffee location is now open in South End, and business hasn’t slowed down since they opened.

Since October, the coffee shop has hired 33 people with disabilities and a number of additional support staff to help with the steady stream of customers.

The South End shop is one of 23 Bitty and Beau’s locations around the country.

For employees like Ryan Collinger, who goes by "Ranger," it gives him a new sense of independence in life.

“My mom and stepdad wanted me to work at Bitty and Beau’s because I like coffee,” Collinger said. “And it’s the best fantastic place ever.”

Since the original location opened in Wilmington, North Carolina, the coffee shops have employed more than 200 workers with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

The shop is located on Camden Road and is open from 7 a.m. until 6 p.m. daily.