By Evan J. Pretzer
Kaycee and Dylan Packard are newlyweds and, while some at this stage of life wait before big decisions, they are different and have begun their first-ever business in Mosinee.
Since last month the pair have been operating the Mission Coffee House Mosinee on Mosinee’s Main Street. The coffee shop will operate out of Lamplight sessions, giving it activity during the day to contrast with its nighttime music shows.
The Packards’ shop is a franchisee of the Mission Coffee House in Plover, will have a similar menu and is something the Packard’s each had as a dream job long before they ever got together.
“We both really wanted to start a coffee shop and prior to meeting loved the environment and community aspects,” Kaycee Packard says. “We are big coffee lovers and so we realized, oh wow,’ we have this common goal and this is something we really wanted to do with our lives.”
So, while still working at other jobs, they contacted the folks behind the Plover location and came to an agreement on how to structure this kind of business. They started planning while they were still dating, so they had a foundation in place by the time they got married about a year ago. Work picked up in January, they found their location in June, and the owner of Lamplight had already put a lot of work into the aesthetics of the place.
“All the stuff in here is the owner’s, nothing is actually mine,” Kaycee Packard adds. “This is part of his personal collection. Stuff has been sourced from antique stores, the plants are his wife’s and he is an industrial designer by trade. It definitely is surprising. There is a more communal aspect between us and the landlord and it has been a great partnership.”
This kind of community service will not just be delivered by the Packards in the form of scones, cookies, coffee and other edible products. They also give back to charity by giving a dollar of every roast bag purchased to local non-profits like Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Wisconsin and The Neighbors’ Place in Wausau. People can choose where to send their money, Kaycee says this makes them stand out and, while they plan to host events and are confident they will succeed, even if they do not she says she and her husband are glad they took a leap forward.
“Opening a business at the tail-end of COVID-19, we hope it only gets easier,” she says. “If we go under, it at least means we stepped out and did it. No promises, but we will do all we can to make it work. We will make sure we make enough to pay our employees and keep being open.”
More about Mission Coffee House Mosinee at 224 Main Street can be found by going and visiting their Facebook page. They are open from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday-Friday and 6 a.m. to noon on Saturdays.
Evan J. Pretzer is a contributor to City Pages. He can be reached at evan.pretzer@protonmail.com.
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