In Salt Lake City’s Downtown Farmers Market, Marisa Martinez greets regulars by name and checks in on the team she calls family. Santa Backyard Coffee is a community built from creativity, love and the lessons her mother left behind.
Martinez founded Santa Backyard in 2022 after spending years as a hairstylist. A trip to Europe sparked her interest in the coffee culture, but the drive to create a community shaped the business into what it is today.
That same year, her mother was diagnosed with cancer in 2022 and passed away shortly after Martinez traveled to Mexico to aid her. What followed was a period of grief, uncertainty and burnout. At the same time, Martinez began investing more seriously in her interest in coffee.
The woman behind a community
After the loss of her mother, Marisa Martinez built more than a coffee business. A pop-up where customers become friends, employees become family and people who feel like outsiders in Utah can find a sense of belonging, Martinez created the same kind of welcoming community her mother once modeled for her.
“Seeing my mom thrive in her career and how passionate she was, like, I could see that even at a very young age,” Martinez said in an interview with The Chronicle. “And I feel like that’s what always has driven us, me and my sister. We kind of drive with passion.”
Martinez remembers watching her mother work as a special education teacher in Mexico. Rather than leaving her daughters at home, she included them in all her projects aimed at building a stronger and tighter-knit community among her students.
Martinez spent hours helping her mother cut decorations, glue materials together and prepare elaborate displays for her students. “She always involved us in anything, and we would either be by her side,” Martinez said. Some of her happiest childhood memories came from watching her mother create.
Martinez learned from her mom that the most important thing she could provide for her customers was exactly her best. Every day, she and her team provide the best coffee and service that they can. “We’re such a reflection of her in so many ways,” Martinez said.
When Martinez talks about her business, she often returns to the same qualities she admired in her mother: creativity, passion and a commitment to making people feel welcome.
Building Santa Backyard Coffee
After her trip to Europe back in 2020, she became fascinated by the way coffee brought people together. As she developed the business, Martinez wanted a name that reflected her personality and experiences growing up in Utah. Her commitment to community comes in part from situations she went through growing up between Mexico and Utah.
Raised in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Martinez said she never felt fully connected to the faith. By her teenage years, she had begun distancing herself from the church and questioning many of the cultural expectations that surrounded her in Utah.
She often felt out of place in predominantly white spaces and struggled to find a sense of belonging. That experience inspired the name Santa Backyard Coffee.
Martinez explained that the word “Santa,” Spanish for saint, serves as a challenge to Utah’s religious culture and the idea of perfection that she often felt surrounded by. The “Backyard” portion came from her original plan to host small coffee gatherings in her backyard. The name reflects her willingness to embrace her own path rather than to conform to expectations.
She began taking coffee classes, attending conventions and learning everything she could about the industry. Eventually, she launched Santa Backyard Coffee as a small pop-up operation.
Martinez and her longtime friend hauled heavy equipment through summer heat, often working for little profit. She remembers struggling through farmer’s market seasons. Today, Santa Backyard Coffee serves hundreds of drinks during events, overall becoming exactly what she had envisioned.
However, Martinez measures success by more than sales. “Community and gathering and friendship and quality” are the values she said define the business.
Martinez wants every customer to feel welcome, regardless of their background. She believes a simple interaction over coffee can help people feel seen and included.
More than a team
Many members of Martinez’s team knew her long before Santa Backyard Coffee existed. Some were former clients from her years as a hairstylist, while others were childhood friends or family members.
Ashley Bellazetin, one of Martinez’s longtime friends and former clients, said Martinez has built a workplace that feels more like a family than a business. “We’ve all been brought together by Marisa,” Bellazetin said.
They first met as children and later reconnected with her as an adult when Martinez became Bellazetin’s hairstylist. Years later, when the business began to grow, Bellazetin joined the team. “She has the biggest heart,” she said.
According to Bellazetin, Martinez remembers customers’ names, favorite drinks and personal stories. She encourages employees to pursue their goals outside of work and celebrate their success as if they were her own.
Bellazetin said Martinez often motivates others simply by the example she sets. “I don’t think she sees how much of an inspiration she is,” Bellazetin said.
