A Washington Township coffee shop is seeing longer lines after YouTube star Ms. Rachel gave it a shout-out on social media.
Blended Joe Coffee Bar, a South Jersey coffee roaster, has had an influx of customers after Rachel Anne Accurso, the online educator and songwriter, chose the business to feature for National Black Business Month.
On Aug. 11, Ms. Rachel asked Black business owners to share the names of their businesses under her post on Threads.
Eric Powell took a chance.
A part-owner of Blended Joe, a 13-year Air Force veteran, and a father of four, Powell commented when he spotted the post a few weeks later. He promoted the coffee shop and an app he created, HEARTBEAT, which reminds users to reach out to the people they care about.
It only took two days for Ms. Rachel to shout out Powell and the coffee bar in a post that included its address at 421 Hurffville-Cross Keys Rd. and has been viewed over 81,000 times. Powell’s phone was dead when it happened, but his coworkers broke the news the next morning. He immediately called Joe Iaconelli, the founding owner of Blended Joe.
“I called Joe,” Powell said, remembering he told him: “‘I think we need to beef up [our staff] this weekend.’” The shop, which opened in 2018, has 15 employees.
Powell was one of only a few business owners to get a shout-out from Ms. Rachel.
She has since made a follow-up post telling people to follow Powell on Instagram, which has garnered 90,000 views. He gained 5,000 Instagram followers, including Ms. Rachel herself.
Powell’s sons, who range from 10 to 18, have been teasing him about his newfound fame, but Powell said he knows they think it’s cool.
“My oldest son is laughing at me the whole time,” Powell said, adding a joke by his son. “’Bro, you’re not gonna be single for long now.’”
The Gloucester County coffee shop has seen a boost in customers since the promotion. One couple drove all the way from Virginia, Iaconelli said, and others have come from at least an hour away.
Blended Joe, which sells coffee drinks made with flavored beans rather than pump syrups, moved to Washington Township from Mantua in March 2025. It’s one of several jobs for Powell, who also has a laser-engraving business and writes children’s books.
Powell said he hopes the posts by Ms. Rachel inspire other fathers and up-and-coming entrepreneurs.
“What are the chances of Ms. Rachel seeing a small coffee shop in South Jersey? It got her attention,” Powell said. “My message would be to keep trying.”
And it’s not the first celebrity encounter for Blended Joe, Iaconelli said.
Blended Joe ships coffee to Delatron Johnson, the mother of former Eagles safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson, for her own coffee shop, Cafe Krewe Breakfast Bar, in Rockledge, Fla.