Giz & bugra

Photos courtesy of Hayden Turnbull

The first question is always the same. Can either of you juggle? 
No. 

Sorry to hear that. 
Are we stopping the interview now? 

That usually dictates which way this interview will go. 
Juggling what? 

Very good lateral thinking. Anything. 
Life. We’re good at juggling life. 

Why Clapton? 
I was born here. Not in this building, yes but at Homerton Hospital. Yes I was born in a hospital. Very important. And then we lived here until I was eight. My dad was doing upholstery here. 

I think we feel lucky. Because I think it's such a nice neighborhood. There's a lot of independent shops and our locals, they're really lovely people. There's that community feeling. It's not very central London-ish. You feel like you live in this little town. Where there's a lot going on. But in a very wholesome way. We know our neighbours so like if there is a situation where we need help I know a few people I can call in the area like it's such a nice feeling which is rare. 

A lot of people have been giving us their keys. It was really easy and quick to build those relationships with people. I think it feels lucky that it ended up being here. 

Do you feel pressure being the face of Lodestar? 
I don't know if I feel any pressure or anything but it's just like it can make socializing outside a bit difficult sometimes.  I don't mind saying hi to people or having chats with people. There's sometimes I also obviously want to have my own time on my own or like with my friends and then you know like a short trip to London Fields (25 minutes walk) turns into like 45 minutes because you stop and chat with people which is obviously lovely.  It just kind of makes you feel, obviously this is our home. We know these people, it's lovely.

I actually kind of enjoy it. 

He loves it. 

I love it. I have not got a complaint. No, it's nice. It's actually nice. Being able to see so many familiar faces during the day, also them recognizing me..it's a positive…it's a familiarity, yeah. So it's positive overall. 

Say you had this space, and it wasn't a coffee shop, what would you do? 
I've always been in hospitality, so my first plan was opening a restaurant because I was really into cooking.  

Definitely not a restaurant. That's a crazy idea. No, no. No. But I think a space where it would carry on the same values of the space. I would like it to be a space where people can like relax and find their own time. Maybe like a bookshop. Although we have lovely bookshops around. A library or a bookshop is my dream. 

Who picks the playlist? 
Bugra obviously. 
It's seasonal. 
There's a bit of summer ones coming, get ready. 

Does anyone ever complain?
The volume, yes, but not the music.  

Did your parents think this is a great idea? 
I guess with Lodestar, I'm going to say yes. Okay. But not with being a barista. That was a challenge to convince them that being a barista was the right thing to do before starting your own business. But once I started Lodestar, it happened just after the pandemic. So it was a bit tricky with my dad deciding to retire. He didn't retire yet, but he was kind of forced into retiring because of me, because of me doing this. 

I was like, this is what I'm planning next year. What do you think? He's like, oh, maybe give it a bit more time. Don't rush into it. And then obviously he got used to the idea because I was talking to him every day about the process. And then once I did it, they couldn't come around for like a year and a half. When they came to see the shop for the first time, my mum was crying her eyes out. She was like, ‘oh, I'm very proud of you.’ My dad said nothing. 

He just looked at me and walked inside, sat in the back room on the armchair. And he was just staring around looking at the floor. I was like ‘say something?’ He didn't say a word. So he wasn't happy. 

There were a couple times where the shop was super busy with a queue and I saw him just staring through the window.  Just looking in and smiling.  My mum comes and says oh that he is really proud of me, she’s the messenger. 

Cyprus. I've never been.
You should go. Cyprus is complicated because of the politics. There's North and South. North isn't recognised because it's occupied by Turkey. This is where we're from and we identify as Turkish speaking Cypriots rather than Turkish. There are a lot of political issues within. If you're going as a tourist, you're avoiding that and it's amazing. The beach, the food, it's so welcoming. It's amazing. I see my parents and friends then have some beach time. That's my perspective on it, for holiday...thumbs up.

So good holiday destination.
Yeah I would usually not go back to Cyprus because of political reasons. Politics is the reason why I left Cyprus. But lately I've been going and not socialising with my friends as much. Because whoever you meet they're talking about the country's political problems. I can't see myself going back to live there ever. But holiday is very enjoyable .

Holidaying back home sounds easier for you?
Yes if I don't get involved in the politics. It is really difficult to avoid politics in Cyprus because that is literally life for them.  

So then, what is the south of Cyprus called?
The republic of Cyprus. 
Because it is 'legitimate'. The north is called TRNC (Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus) which is not legitimate, it's just occupied by Turkey. 
When you Google Cyprus it's mainly talking about the south of the island. 

How do I say hello in Cypriot? 
We would say it in Turkish. So either merhaba or selam. 
I would never say merhaba, too formal. And then the Greeks say yassou 

At this point, Justin rather let himself down by attempting and failing to pronounce these very basic greetings. Bugra very kindly recommended a documentary that could provide a nuanced overview of the political history of Cyprus. No further attempts at saying hello in Turkish were made. 

If you're going to go, you should probably watch that first. 

Final question, what's been your favourite recent album? 
On a day like today, Billie Eilish. 
Either the EP of hatred/Drake diss tracks by Kendrick Lamar. That or ‘The Car’ by Arctic Monkeys. 
One of our customers produced that. 

Justin once again let himself down by listing Alex Turner as one of the greatest poets of our generation. Giz agreed. Bugra heard 'greatest pervert' of our generation and disagreed strongly. 
Giz has a crush on him.
No I don't. He can seem a bit pretentious but I don't mind. 

If I had his success from age 17 and not failed at much...I'd be unbearable.