Anti-capitalist 'pay what you can' cafe in Canada closes doors after one year

TORONTO (TND) — A cafe and coffee shop in Toronto named "The Anarchist," which was a self-described "anti-capitalist" establishment that had a "pay what you can" model of operation, has announced it will shut down after being open for only a year.

The Canadian business opened in March 2022. According to an announcement from The Anarchist's owner, Gabriel Sims-Fewer, the cafe will close on May 30.

Sims-Fewer writes that "it's been an amazing experience" running the cafe and "connecting with so many great community members, sparking desperately needed debate," and "raising the blood pressure of Conservatives."

The Anarchist cafe also fulfilled "the dream of most service workers by not having to tolerate the presence of professional class-traitors (pigs and military)," according to Sims-Fewer, who added that cafe offered chances to experiment "with living and working in ways that don't enthusiastically embrace the pure misanthropy of Capitalism."

Unfortunately, the lack of generational wealth/seed capital from ethically bankrupt sources left me unable to weather the quiet winter season, or to grow in the ways needed to be sustainable longer-term," Sims-Fewer says in the announcement.

The cafe offered customers drip coffee with a "pay what you can" model of operation, but it traditionally charged customers for purchases like espresso and tea. Breakfast pastries and other treats were also sold to subsidize the cafe and a small collection of art and books were for sale in the store.

The Anarchist also boasted that its bathrooms were open to the public without a need to purchase anything and that the public was allowed to hang out and stay at the cafe even if they purchased nothing.

Sims-Fewer called his cafe "a huge success in every way I hoped" despite its single year of operation, saying the business "has given me so much inspiration and education that I plan to put to use in future projects."

At the end of the announcement, Sims-Fewer strings together a few expletives and bolds the text, saying: "F*** the rich. F*** the police. F*** the state. F*** the colonial death camp we call 'Canada.'"

Back when the cafe first opened, Sims-Fewer said that he wanted the establishment to be a place for anti-capitalists.

I hope by openly declaring the business as anti-capitalist I can motivate people to think and ask about what that means, and let those who are already anti-capitalists of one kind or another know that this is a place for them, where their politics, ideas, and identities will always be welcome," Sims-Fewer told blogTO in April 2022.

One thing I want to make more people aware of is that I'm doing Pay What You Can drip coffee, as the first of hopefully many attempts to make great, non-corporate coffee more accessible to the working class people who are increasingly denied the good things we all deserve," Sims-Fewer reportedly added. "The specialty coffee industry is heavily involved in gentrification and neocolonialism and I really hope to learn more and find ways to resist, subvert, and challenge that involvement."

However, online criticism flooded in shortly after the cafe opened. Many blasted the coffee shop for its prices and message seemingly clashing.

Charging five dollars for coffee that costs thirty cents to make. That is capitalism," one critic on TikTok said."Getting publicity to grow your business. That is capitalism."

GO WOKE GO BROKE!," anothercritic on Instagramsaid, invoking a popular meme about businesses losing money over going "woke."

Sims-Fewer pushed back against the criticism by repeatedly explaining the cafe's motives and goals, and eventually released a statement agreeing that the thought of the business transforming into a "’leftist-themed’ gimmick selling slave-made products keeps me [Sims-Fewer] up at night."

The cafe owner offered some criticism to his detractors, telling them that they were "devoting" their "time and energy to doing the right’s dirty work," and that they "are the greatest obstacle to revolutionary progress."

Enjoy your digital echo chamber. I’ll just be over here TRYING to do something," Sims-Fewer added.

Sims-Fewer thankedPop Coffee Works in the cafe's announcement it was closing its doors for good. He called them his "coffee supplier and landlords" and thanked them for their "generosity and patience."

They could easily have sold this space, or rented for more than twice what they've charged me, so this place wouldn't have existed without them,"Sims-Fewer said. "They roast the best coffee in the city, so please continue to support them if you buy coffee beans."

Sims-Fewer tells his customers to "Keep an eye on the Instagram page to see what I end up doing next!"