Areas of patchy fog early. Cloudy skies this evening will become partly cloudy after midnight. Low 43F. Winds light and variable..
Areas of patchy fog early. Cloudy skies this evening will become partly cloudy after midnight. Low 43F. Winds light and variable.
Updated: December 31, 2022 @ 11:32 pm
Robert Morrison poses outside the Good Stuff Coffee business he plans to open next month in the space next to Lost River Pizza at 2440 Nashville Road in Bowling Green.
Robert Morrison poses outside the Good Stuff Coffee business he plans to open next month in the space next to Lost River Pizza at 2440 Nashville Road in Bowling Green.
Once a go-to venue for locally sourced lunches and dinners, the former Home Café space in the Penn Station shopping center will soon be another stop for Bowling Green-area coffee lovers.
An extension of the adjoining Lost River Pizza Co. since 2020, when Lost River Pizza owner Keith Coffman bought the Home Café space from Josh Poling, the 1,800-square-foot eatery is being turned into “The Good Stuff Coffee & More” by local businessman Robert Morrison, who hopes to have it open in mid-January.
“When I bought that space, I planned on using it mainly for overflow seating for the pizza restaurant,” Coffman said. “Then the pandemic hit, and we couldn’t use the seating.
“It’s now being used primarily in the evening, so I started to think of ways to utilize the space during the day. Rob and I discussed it and thought a coffee shop would be a good idea.”
It also represents a good opportunity for Morrison to return to his roots in the restaurant business. A former manager in the Boston Market restaurant chain, Morrison spent more than 20 years managing distribution facilities for Camping World before seizing on what he believes is a great opportunity to tap into a segment of the restaurant business that has come back strong after the pandemic.
While many traditional restaurants struggled to bounce back after the pandemic, and are now battling a tight market for workers, coffee shops have stayed relatively strong.
According to the Toast internet cloud platform that serves the restaurant industry, the average coffee consumption in the U.S. is 1.87 cups per day, and the coffee market brings in $80 billion in annual revenue.
“The coffee business really never suffered any,” said Morrison, a 45-year-old California native who has lived in Bowling Green for 17 years. “People still want their coffee on the way into work.”
Morrison aims to provide it along one of the main thoroughfares for people commuting to work in Bowling Green.
Located in the Penn Station shopping center at 2440 Nashville Road, Good Stuff Coffee will be a convenient stop for morning commuters.
“I believe we’re on the right side of the road for people coming into town,” Morrison said. “We want to give them the option of getting in and out quickly.”
Providing prompt service, in fact, is one of Morrison’s main goals.
“This grew out of my experience going to other coffee places and sitting in line forever,” he said. “One of our main goals will be to provide great service in the drive-thru.”
The drive-thru installed by Coffman to help his pizza business during the pandemic is wide enough for two lanes, so Morrison believes he can configure it for a smooth flow for customers.
Morrison has attended classes on coffee styles and visited coffee-industry trade shows in preparation for opening Good Stuff Coffee, and he believes he has the products to bring customers in.
His source for specialty coffees is Nashville Roast Coffee Company of Goodlettsville, Tenn.
“It’s a good source for coffee,” Coffman said. “Rob and I tried it out, and we liked it a lot. I think Rob is on to something.”
Morrison also plans to offer various teas and plant-based energy drinks along with such food items as protein bites, fruit, cinnamon twists, breads and even biscuit-and-gravy.
He plans to be open from 5 a.m. until 4 p.m. Monday through Saturday, although he said the hours and the menu will likely be tweaked based on customer demand.
“We’ll start simple and expand from there,” Morrison said. “We just want people to have a good experience and want to come back.”
– Follow business reporter Don Sergent on Twitter @BGDNbusiness or visit bgdailynews.com.
One man’s downsizing is another man’s expansion opportunity.
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