Coffee Emporium sold to North Liberty couple, rebranding and expansion ahead

A popular Johnson County coffee chain has switched hands. Coffee Emporium, which has locations in Iowa City, Coralville, North Liberty and Tiffin, was sold last week to North Liberty resident Alex Nelson. Mr. Nelson and his wife, Jordan, own wedding venue The Midnight Gem in Swisher and Little Gems Baby Boutique in North Liberty. The couple wanted to diversify and expand their business portfolio, and owning a coffee chain aligns well with the event and hospitality industry, he said. “It’s kind of an extension of that,” he said, citing The Midnight Gem’s experience with crafting cocktails for guests. “It's an opportunity to kind of grow and have more offerings, and maybe tie them all back together in some way, shape or form.” The menu will still offer favorites, and new drinks will be introduced as well, said Mr. Nelson. Capanna Coffee Roasters in North Liberty will be retained as the roaster, so customers can expect the same flavor. “We really want to emphasize everything being local,” Mr. Nelson said. What won’t stay the same will be the name – a rebrand is planned, which will include remodeling some of the stores. “We're going to go shop by shop, and kind of do some improvements and some remodels. Certain shops need a little bit more love than others,” he said. “And then once we get things up to the new brand standard, I would say, is when we (will) officially change the name. So probably not (until) towards the end of the year, early next year.” Coffee Emporium’s previous owner Abby Ochs said finding a local buyer was important to her.

“My biggest focus for them was that they were going to be better off having local owners that still have a driving passion to continually grow the brand in the area,” she said, speaking of Coffee Emporium’s staff. Ms. Ochs and her husband moved to Texas three years ago. “It was kind of a godsend,” she said, of meeting the Nelsons through mutual connections this past summer. “We immediately connected on all the same points. They are also local entrepreneurs (and) have other businesses going. They have been very successful. They're respected in the area, and most importantly of all, they identify really well with the employees and the brand that we built.” Ms. Ochs bought Coffee Emporium’s Cedar Rapids location in 2021, around the same time she began her own consulting business, Gro Consulting. Four months later she opened a Coralville location, and in April 2023 she opened a location in Iowa City, closing the less successful Cedar Rapids location at the same time. Locations in Tiffin and North Liberty opened soon after. Traveling to Iowa from Texas every quarter to manage the businesses put a strain on family life, however, and took time away from managing her flourishing consulting business. Closing on the sale of her coffee business July 30 was bittersweet. “(Coffee Emporium) really is probably one of the most fantastic teams I've ever been a part of,” she said. After the Nelsons fine-tune the business, they plan to expand into Linn County eventually, and look forward to the new endeavor. “It’s definitely huge for us,” Mr. Nelson said.