THAT MUCH RUMORED “European-style” coffee shop on Third Street is still at least a couple of weeks away from opening.
Sasa Kosic, the proprietor, says Cafe Intermezzo has two more final inspections to complete and then he’ll be ready to start serving coffee in what was formerly the Strictly Business Uniforms store.
Ninety percent of the inside work has been completed, and the most of the equipment and the coffees (more than 100 of them) are all set.
It’s just the….inspections. Anybody who’s opened a business here knows those generally take longer than expected.
So what does this “European-style” coffee shop look like exactly? Well, soft, comfy furniture for one. Dimmer lighting than you might be accustomed to. Lamps on end tables. Kinda like a cozy, well-appointed living room. It’ll be quieter and less crowded than the typical American coffee shop.
Kosic will also be offering some amenities that he doesn’t want to reveal yet.
Will it work here? Is there room for still another coffee shop in Marquette? We’ll find out.
A NEW SIGN has appeared on a store front at 221 West Washington Street this week. It’s the Upper Peninsula Supply Company.
“Frankly we don’t quite know how to define what we’re doing here,” says Bugsy Sailor, one of the owners. He’s an out-of-box entrepreneur who specializes in social media and Web work, and promotion of the Upper Peninsula. Most notably, he created “Plaidurday”, a yearly celebration of plaid. His partner in the new business is Paul Heff, a screen printer.
Their shop is open to other “creatives” who want to locate downtown but don’t have the cash or the need to lease an entire store. Sailor and Heff have two other tenant businesses already in house. They have room for two more.
What kinds of businesses? Writers, graphic designers, web designers, illustrators and such. No studio space but there is a shared conference room for all of the businesses.
There’s also room in front to display some of their retail products.
An interesting concept. A further indication that Marquette is opening its doors wide to entrepreneurs.
“IT WAS AN extremely difficult decision,” Mayor Tom Baldini tells you. “We had a number of well qualified candidates that I would have been very comfortable with.”
He’s talking about the City Commission’s vote Monday to appoint a new Commissioner to replace Sara Cambensy, who’s now taken her seat in the Michigan House.
The Commission’s choice out of nine applicants was Jenna Smith, an employee of Marquette Area Public Schools. She’s only 30 years old.
There was pressure on the Commission to select Tony Ghiringhelli, who placed fourth in the recent election (the top three won seats), but Commissioners resisted the pressure.
The first vote among the six Commissioners was three votes for Ghiringhelli, two for Smith, and one for Jeremy Ottaway, another also-ran in the recent election. The second vote was four for Smith (a majority), two for Ottaway, and none for Ghiringhelli.
Why Smith? Baldini says she was articulate and well prepared. She’s also young, part of a working family…and she’s a woman. There were some, Baldini says, who thought it was important that Cambensy be replaced by another woman. Otherwise, Sarah Reynolds would have been the lone female representative on a seven member Commission.
WE’VE HEARD SOME shoppers express dismay that the Be Local Buy Local campaign has only a couple of dozen stores signed up so far. It’s run jointly by the Marquette and Ishpeming Negaunee Chambers of Commerce.
Jason Schneider, the executive director of the Marquette Chamber, says hold on, the campaign’s been up and running for only three weeks so far. Give it time.
Here’s the source of confusion. Last year’s campaign began in October, with a similar amount of sign-ups, but by the time the campaign closed at the end of December, more than 100 stores were participating. And more than 2000 shoppers had downloaded the app, belocalbuylocal.today
So, there was a much later start this year, but here’s the good part: Last year’s campaign was a test run for a limited period– three months. This year’s campaign will continue in perpetuity.
The campaign is fairly simple (for those who understand apps and such). Buy something at one of the participating stores. Take a photo of the receipt and send it in, via the Be Local Buy Local app, and the receipt will be tossed into a hopper. Each and every week, one will be picked to win a $100 gift certificate to the participating stores.
It worked extraordinarily well last year. Should work this year and from now on, though many of the stores, it seems, are missing out on the lucrative holiday shopping season.
You got news? Email me at briancabell@gmail.com