Coffee Shop Trailer- Update 1

Good things come to those who wait…the coffee shop trailer is coming along, slow and steady. With every little victory and accomplishment, we become more and more excited. If you haven’t already read about our Coffee Shop Trailer plan, read it here!

As we have mentioned, we hope to do this project on a fairly limited budget. This means doing as much as we can ourselves. Our husbands are both engineers and are very excited about this trailer (Okay, maybe Ellen and I are imagining how excited they must be!). Nevertheless, they are doing all the outside work and once it is all properly fitted, we ladies can get in there and do some damage. We have to be patient though, because they have to find time to work on the coffee shop trailer in between performing their full-time jobs, maintaining their farms, and being dads.

Coffee Shop Trailer Recap

Currently my dad, my sister and I own a small bakery, the Flour Barn, in Marysville OH, on the family farm. We have recently bought a utility trailer that we are converting into a coffee shop trailer. We hope to sell amazing coffee as well as our favorite baked goods.

Currently, we sell hot coffee and sweet cream cold brew at our bakery, but as we venture further into the coffee world, we are looking to grow our knowledge of all things coffee and expand our offerings.

Creating a Space for the Magic to Happen

The first challenge we faced was finding a large enough space in which to store and work on the trailer. The space had to be under roof, of course, and have electricity. Luckily, when we bought our small farm one year ago, it came with five barns that really needed a purpose. Some will be perfect for animals someday, but one just seemed to be begging to house a coffee trailer. Gladly, it’s close enough to electricity to run an extension cord when we need to have power. Challenge met!

The Bro barn

My husband would cringe if he saw that I named the barn “the Bro Barn”, but it is just fitting. It is where he and his bro (our brother-in-law) go to work. They are both pretty serious and quiet engineers, so calling it the Bro Barn just makes me smile.

Anyway, once deciding where to keep the trailer, we needed to prep the space. This involved going in and clearing out old wood boards and other items that were left in the barn. Once cleared out, the Bro Barn could be filled with gravel and be the perfect spot to put our beloved trailer. We ordered the gravel and had it delivered to our farm and dumped. My brother-in-law then brought over his skid steer and moved the gravel into the barn. Next, he and my husband spread out the gravel and moved the trailer to its new home.

I was able to watch all the progress while making Homemade Greek Yogurt for the week.

A Window into our Progress

So finally, the Bro Barn was completed, and the trailer was moved to its new home. We then had to start removing what was already in the trailer, which was some simple wood paneling and a shelf. After that was removed, we plotted where we wanted the main window and how big we wanted that window to be. Next, we actually ordered a window with a pop-up awning. Once that came in, we (by “we,” I mean the bros) framed out the window with two by fours and then installed the window. This was so exciting. It felt like the first real step toward the realization of this dream project.

Next Steps in our Coffee Shop Trailer Journey

Finding a roaster

What a drag, having to go from shop to shop trying all kinds of coffee:) We have tried straight black coffee, lattes, cold brew and several other fun drinks from various coffee roasters. So many were amazing and it only makes our search more difficult.

Here’s what we know we want:

• A small batch coffee roaster: We want to make sure our customers are able to get freshly roasted coffee every time they come for a cup. Small roasters have more control over what beans are used for each particular roast. It also gives the beans a more consistent roasting, therefore a more consistent flavor.

• A local coffee brand: We want to support a roaster that is local to our bakery. Not only would this make receiving inventory easier, but it also helps create a good relationship with the roaster when you are from the same area. Being a small business ourselves, we want to support another small business.

• A unique brand: We want to make sure that although local, we are not using a brand that other popular coffee shops are using. Optimally, we would like our shop to be the closest place to get this brand.
• An understanding of where the beans are coming from: I want a roaster that truly understands where the beans are coming from, how they are harvested, as well as the effects the industry has on the farmer.
• An amazing flavor of course!

We have narrowed our searched down and will be making a final decision soon, so stay tuned!

Deciding on a name

Coming up with a name is so daunting because it becomes your business’s identity. We threw so many names around when trying to name our bakery, The Flour Barn. I remember one was, The Bakery at Scheiderer Farms, but our cousins down the road owned Scheiderer Farms Greenhouse and we thought it might get confusing.

We thought that this being a secondary business, it would be easier to name; but so far, it is not. Here are some of our ideas.

• The Flour Bud
• The Flour Pot
• The Coffee Shop Trailer by the Flour Barn Bakery
• The Coffee Cart at the Flour Barn Bakery

Any suggestions are welcome. Let us know which one is your favorite in the comments below!

Getting the work done

Although we have designed most of the trailer, we just have to wait for the big projects to be done to start working on the appearance of the trailer. We still have to work out how to make the back doors convert into a drive thru window for customers. That is the project we are working on currently. Once the outside is properly set up, we can really get into setting up the inside. This means installing the backsplash, cabinets, countertops, appliances and more. We also will be painting and adding some fun additions to the look of the outside. I cannot wait to start getting artsy and creative with this project!

Current progress

What we have accomplished:

• We bought the trailer
• We have obtained the proper licensing, as well as the appliances needed to sell various baked goods and coffee in our trailer.
• We have created a proper workspace for trailer renovations.
• We have installed the walk up window for the trailer.
• We have created a design for the outside of the trailer.
• We have decided on the color scheme and aesthetic for the trailer (can’t wait to show you all!)
• The list is getting longer!

Coffee Shop Trailer

So there is your update. Let us know what you think of the progress as well as any thoughts your have on the name in the comments below! More updates to come…