Michele Carlton: Brewing Connection. Serving Community.
Michele Carlton, CityBox Magazine Cover Star and owner of PJ’s Coffee in Pensacola. Photography by Joan Savage | Jai P Photography
CityBox Magazine Cover Star | Owner, PJ’s Coffee | Ambassador, Greater Pensacola Chamber of Commerce
Owner, PJ’s Coffee of New Orleans | Pensacola
Ambassador, Greater Pensacola Chamber of Commerce
CityBox Magazine Cover Star Michele Carlton has built her entrepreneurial journey around connection, community and the simple power of bringing people together. For Michele, entrepreneurship has never been simply about building a business. It has been about creating a place where people feel welcome, conversations begin, and community takes shape.
Her journey to becoming the owner of PJ’s Coffee in Pensacola was built over years of experience, resilience, and a willingness to keep moving forward.
Michele’s first job began at just 15 years old as a busgirl at Annadelle’s Plantation in Covington, Louisiana. It was there that she began learning lessons that would stay with her throughout her career: work hard, pay attention to the details, take pride in serving others, and show up with excellence.
The road that followed was anything but linear. Michele worked as an office manager, became a business owner, returned to college as a single mother while working full-time, built her own candle company, and became a franchise owner of Vintage Market Days.
Looking back, each chapter was preparing her for something she had long imagined: owning a coffee shop.
Today, through PJ’s Coffee of New Orleans in Pensacola, Michele has created more than a place to pick up a morning cup. She has built an environment centered on connection, conversation, and relationships.
Her commitment to community extends beyond the coffee shop. As an Ambassador for the Greater Pensacola Chamber of Commerce, Michele continues to invest her time and energy in the people and businesses contributing to Pensacola’s growth.
Her story is a reminder that entrepreneurship is rarely defined by one decision or one moment. It is often the accumulation of experiences, challenges, relationships, and lessons that eventually lead us exactly where we are meant to be.
For Michele Carlton, that destination just happens to come with a very good cup of coffee.
“Every job, every challenge, and every season led me exactly where I was meant to be.”
Experience the Full Cover Story
Step inside Michele Carlton’s complete CityBox Magazine cover story, featuring her leadership interview, entrepreneurial journey, and editorial portraiture.