KUCHING: Nestled among the charming shophouses of Carpenter Street, a café that fuels both bellies and feline welfare has quietly blossomed in the heart of the city.
Pawsitive Vibes, founded by UK natives Greg Larcombe, 40, and Anthony Waller, 42, is not just a café but a growing mission dedicated to rescuing stray cats and supporting feline welfare.
The inspiration behind the venture stemmed from a personal experience when Larcombe rescued a tiny kitten.
“Unfortunately, the very, very small kitten didn’t make it. It was far, far too beyond saving — the tiniest thing ever. And that was the catalyst. That’s what started the whole thing. We thought, we can’t let this keep happening.
“Larcombe had this kind of thing in mind for a long time — to do cat rescue — but never really had the chance to do it,” Waller recalled when met by Sarawak Tribune at the café.
The cafe and cat rescue
Initially, the café was going to be named “Sundrop Cat Rescue”, after Sundrop, an orange kitten who inspired the venture and influenced the café’s colour scheme and theme.
However, the name Pawsitive Vibes eventually stuck and has since become a vital source of support for their rescue efforts.
Larcombe said that 50 per cent of the café’s profits go towards cat rescue efforts.
“And that can be anything — from feeding programmes to helping someone who’s rescued a cat and needs assistance with vet bills. Then we can help pay for that.
“As we grow, we can do more and more — spread out, build a bigger network of people, and make the money go further to help as many cats as possible.
“The main thing we want to focus on is spaying, so fewer kittens are being born. Because once kittens are born, you can help them, but more just keep coming. We want to try and bring those numbers down,” he said.
At present, Pawsitive Vibes operates on a smaller scale, focusing on rescuing individual cats.
“What we’re doing is quite small-scale, because obviously we’ve just started. So we use our money at the moment to rescue individual cats. We’ve actually got 19 cats at the moment.
“We’ll get them all spayed, vaccinated, neutered, and more,” he added.
He said that these cats were rescued from various locations around the city, including Waterfront, Carpenter Street, MJC, Night Market, and more.
“So usually, we just find a cat that’s not doing too well, take it to the vet — generally pay with our personal money — and then find someone to take care of it.
“But we only take one home ourselves. That’s the good thing here — most people really love cats, which is why this is such a good place to do something like this,” he said.
He acknowledged that while there are many strays and abandoned kittens, it’s not due to a lack of care in society.
“There are just so many. But once people know you’re doing something like this, they’re very, very supportive. So it’s a cat-loving city. That’s why it is called Kuching,” he added.
As for the daily care of the 19 cats, Larcombe described their routine as a full-day commitment.
“Some need medical care — some had a virus, so they have problems with their eyes and need daily medication. That will be in the morning.
“And then at some point during the day, we go back in to clean and feed them. And then again in the evening as well,” he said.
Building a network of support and goals
When asked about their process for accepting calls regarding cat rescues, Larcombe explained that while they do take calls, their space is limited.
“That’s why what we’re trying to do is focus more on funding the people who are already doing the rescues.
“We currently have 19 cats, plus the ones we feed outside. But what we prefer to do is build a network — where you have people available to collect animals, others to take them to the vet, and some who are able to foster — while we provide the funding to make sure it all happens.
“If people can provide their time, then we can help,” he said.
Looking ahead, the duo has plans to expand their efforts, with the goal of building a dedicated shelter to care for rescued cats.
“We’ve connected with a few people through some Facebook groups — like Kuching Save Our Strays and others.
“There are a lot of people who are already doing the work — volunteering, creating little DIY shelters — but they don’t have the money.
“So what we want to do is help them expand their shelters, improve their facilities, that kind of thing,” he added.
Although not many people approach the café about adopting cats just yet, Larcombe said they’re working to raise awareness and promote adoption whenever the opportunity arises.
“What we’d actually love to do down the line is international adoption — something I learned about during our visit to a cat sanctuary in Thailand.
“For example, in the UK, the sanctuary would organise the vaccinations, permits, and everything needed to fly the cat over to the adopter.
“It’s something that’s very popular, and we’d really like to do that in the future,” he said.
In the meantime, the café continues to care for its rescued cats — all of whom have been given names.
Larcombe mentioned that a recently rescued mother cat and her four kittens haven’t been named yet, but they plan to involve the public by asking for name suggestions on social media — giving the community a chance to engage with their mission.
Setting up
Pawsitive Vibes, which officially opened its doors just two weeks ago on March 21, is the result of months of hard work and determination.
Waller shared that the project began in January, with both of them handling all aspects of the setup themselves.
“We did everything on our own to keep the costs as low as possible. It took us about three months to get everything ready,” he said.
Larcombe added that they built the tables, shelves, and most of the café’s interior furnishings due to financial constraints.
“Obviously, we had no income during that time because the café wasn’t open yet. But it was good — we got to explore the city, source materials locally, and a lot of people helped us.
“We were given a lot of the timber for free and things like that, so we managed to pull through,” he said.
Despite the rocky start, the community has shown tremendous support. The duo even hosted a successful open house in conjunction with the Hari Raya celebration.
“For me personally, I want people to see that the heart of this is a community effort. We want to do something positive for the local community — and hopefully, in the process, serve food that people haven’t tried before.
“Our menu is a little different from what you usually find around here, so we’re introducing some new flavours,” he added.
The café operates daily from 8 am to 8 pm, but Larcombe noted that mornings tend to be quieter compared to lunch and dinner times.
“So our next mission is to draw people in during the morning hours. Even if it’s just for coffee, we’d love to see more early visitors,” he said.
Challenges
Waller explained to Sarawak Tribune that they keep the two aspects — food service and animal care — separate when discussing the biggest challenge of running a business that combines both.
He emphasised that the café primarily generates revenue to support their rescue efforts, as relying solely on donations is not sustainable.
“We keep it separate, obviously. The food business is primarily here to generate money. Relying on donations is very difficult, especially for something as small as us — we’re not a big name,” he said.
“For me, I’ve never had the opportunity to do something like this. It’s fantastic. It feels really good to finally be the one doing something instead of asking for help. It’s an opportunity to make a difference,” he said.
However, Waller acknowledged the financial struggles they face.
“The one challenge we’ve encountered is the financial aspect. If we could bridge that gap and make it easier for people to do rescue work, that would be a great thing for us — and, most importantly, it helps the cats, which is what we want,” he said.
Larcombe shared that their initial plan was to focus solely on cat rescue as a charity.
“But the problem, as Anthony said, is that you’re always waiting for donations. Initially, we wanted to have a cat café, but there are many restrictions on that. We planned to have a closed space where people could come in, interact with the cats, and play with them.”
“But recently, Sarawak passed a law that says you can’t combine the two, which makes sense, of course,” he said.
Larcombe emphasised the importance of operating within legal confines as they work toward offering a more interactive experience in the future.
Advices
For those interested in supporting the cause, Larcombe advises anyone wanting to start a similar venture to be prepared for a long and costly journey.
“It took us three months. We thought it would cost this much, but it ended up costing much more. You really have to believe in what you’re doing.
“Obviously, when something takes this long and costs so much, you can start to have doubts. But you just have to stay strong and focus on your objective, which for us was to help the cats.
“Even when we went over budget and beyond our timeline, and it felt like we could give up, we told ourselves, ‘No, we have to persevere.’ If you believe in the idea, you have to stick with it,” he said.
For those interested in learning more or making a donation, updates and information are available on Pawsitive Vibes’ social media platforms: Facebook (@PawsitiveVibesKuching), Instagram (@pawsitivevibekuching), and TikTok (@greggetseverywhere).
