The chaos following the creation and then disruption within Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, provided the impetus for Sacramento’s Sav Moore to abandon a career in the federal government and take a new path in a promising way — by opening a coffee shop.
Moore, 25, was on a meteoric rise as a data analyst at a U.S. Department of Agriculture office in Sacramento, and after five years, was seemingly the kind of employee the federal government would want to keep around for a long time.
But then came all the “gimmicky and unprofessional” developments, as Moore put it, involving federal employees once President Trump was inaugurated on Jan. 20. With the arrival of the newly formed DOGE, then led by Tesla founder Elon Musk, thousands of federal employees across the country were immediately fired — with many hired back and then fired again — or offered various levels of buyouts. The administration ordered federal union contracts to be terminated. The confusion touched virtually every one of the Sacramento area’s approximately 14,300 federal employees as of August 2025, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.
Meanwhile, Office of Personnel Management Director Scott Kupor told the New York Times in late August that by the end of the year, they expect there will be 300,000 fewer federal employees than 2024, reportedly the largest single-year reduction since World War II.
Moore eventually took one of the buyouts offered in April, called a Deferred Resignation Program, that will pay her through September while she prepares to open a coffee shop with her partner, Connor McAnlis, and a group of friends near the old state fairgrounds at Broadway and Stockton Boulevard.
“The timing was sort of beautiful,” Moore says, who optimistically hopes to open in December while awaiting city permits. “We picked up the keys beginning of May, and my last day at work was the end of April, and we got six months of free rent from the landlord to deal with the remodel.”
Moore, a graduate of the University of Wyoming with a degree in mathematics and philosophy, was able to turn her love of numbers and agriculture due to her farming roots into a job she loved. Her work as a data analyst at USDA consisted of gathering information for California, Nevada and Hawaii, she says, that would end up in reports geared for farmers and the ag industry to make key business decisions.
“I was able to work with orchards and vineyards in California, which is really meaningful to me,” says Moore, who, growing up, moved with her parents from Carmichael to rural Wilton, where they raised goats, pigs and chickens. “I really like orchard agriculture and how it works.”
Moore’s road to the USDA began in Denver after she received a Pathways Internship — a since-discontinued federal employee program meant to lead into permanent federal employment. Because she says she was a 4.0 student at Wyoming, Moore entered federal service at an entry level, and after moving back to Sacramento, was promoted virtually every year to reach a GS-12 classification — an extraordinarily high rank for a 25-year-old.
“It’s unique that I had the ability to go that far,” says Moore, whose parents both work for the federal government.
As a result, though not technically a supervisor, she became a leader of her Sacramento downtown office of about 30 employees, a role that changed significantly after the new administration took over. Moore says she tried to stay focused on an already heavy workload, but that became impossible once DOGE made it clear there was going to be a massive reduction in force, sending out the now infamous Jan. 28 “fork in the road” email, offering employees the chance to resign and get paid through Sept. 30.
“Honestly, the first time we were getting those emails, it just felt like it must have been a scam email, or like someone had hacked something,” says Moore, who indicated even her supervisors weren’t aware the email was coming. “It was really bad for morale. It’s not good to hear that the public at large thinks you’re wasting taxpayer money and that you don’t care.”
Like many, she was skeptical the first buyout offer was legitimate, but as the months progressed and about a third of her office resigned or interns and newer probationary hires were fired, it became apparent her increased workload would be unattainable, plus there were also rumors her office would move out of state.
When there was a second buyout offered in April, Moore took it and resigned.
“I moved a lot as a kid; I moved more than every two years,” she says. “I bought a house and I am not moving. It’s terrifying to be doing statistics understaffed and overwhelmed. It really is worse to put bad numbers out there than no numbers, honestly.”
Her “daydream” of opening a coffee shop started early while in college, Moore says, when she was drinking a lot of coffee to stay sharp for class while working two part-time jobs. Her love of coffee continued in Sacramento and during the past year, she started talking with McAnlis about investment ideas, which led to an idea for a coffee shop.
They officially formed a worker cooperative with friends in February 2025 and found a 1,050-square-foot vacant space in a retail strip next to a Japanese restaurant at the Fairgrounds Plaza. The former laundromat needs a complete plumbing and electrical overhaul and Moore and other group members have begun an extensive rehab process, putting in 40-50-hour work weeks, she says.
The coffee shop, called Fair Grounds Coffee & Crafts, is situated in an emerging area near the DMV, the UC Davis Medical Center and the new UC Davis Aggie Square development, as well as other state offices and apartments. The shop will not only offer coffee but will also sell baked goods and handcrafted artwork, says Moore, who also makes pottery.
Web developer Momo Roth says he had been friends with Moore and McAnlis for several years and had mentioned he had wanted to open his own business eventually. At the beginning of the year, he was approached by McAnlis, inquiring if he wanted to be involved with their possible venture, and he agreed, along with his partner.
“It’s all very exciting and new,” says Roth, who notes he will be using his skills in web development and illustration to create a website and contribute to any other tech-related needs, while also creating art for the shop to sell in their retail section. “Since we’re a workers cooperative, I was a little worried about the decision-making process, but this group makes coming to decisions together very easy and smooth. I love getting the opportunity to try out new ventures and learn new skills, so I’m extremely grateful I was thought of when the idea was in planning.”
Moore, meanwhile, is embracing the group’s new venture after her abrupt departure from federal government.
“When we started looking for a place to lease in February, I still didn’t think I was leaving the federal government; I still thought I was going to do my federal job and I was going to do this crazy side project that was a coffee shop,” Moore says. “And then it was, like, oh, I can’t keep doing my USDA job, and not actually be able to serve my country in the way that matters to me. It’s just gonna keep getting worse. So it’s like, I need to leave.”
This story is part of the Solving Sacramento journalism collaborative. Our partners include California Groundbreakers, Capital Public Radio, Hmong Daily News, Russian America Media, Sacramento Business Journal, Sacramento News & Review and Sacramento Observer. Support stories like these here, and sign up for our monthly newsletter.
By Steve Martarano
