The owner of a popular Goddard coffee business is eyeing a possible Wichita expansion
The owner of a coffee shop that’s become a favorite in Goddard since it opened in May of last year is interested in moving into Wichita’s Delano district.
But before he does, he said, he wants to experiment a bit to see if Wichita feels the same way.
On Monday, Oct. 7, Cofellow Coffee Parlor owner Jeremy Weldon is going to put on a coffee popup on West Douglas. It’ll be inside the building at 1812 West Douglas that previously was home to Fusion Restaurant before owner Shannon Johnson lost her lease and moved out in April 2022.
Since then, the space has been purchased by New Life Covenant Church, which operates across the street at 1819 W. Douglas. According to Weldon, the church is planning to use the building as a mixed use creative space with spots for rent. (I’ve reached out to the church for more details on its plans.)
From 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Oct. 7, Weldon plans to be in the space with his Cofellow coffee cart, which he uses for weddings, catering and pop up events. He’ll be serving five of his most popular drinks, including the Maverick, a latte prepared with house-made bourbon maple syrup that’s been smoked with oak wood.
If the first pop up goes well, Weldon says, he may try to do a couple more in October. After that, he said, he’ll make a decision about his immediate future in Wichita.
“If it goes well, hypothetically, we could put a bar at that location as a second location,” he said.
That hypothetical bar would make Cofellow a permanent tenant in the space and would include an area that seats up to 25 people.
Though he acknowledges that Delano already has a couple of coffee places, including Pennant Coffee at 903 W. Douglas and Milkfloat at 535 W. Douglas, the far west side of Delano is lacking in options, he said. Cofellow will be the first business to use the space since the church took it over, he said.
Even those who haven’t traveled to Goddard, where Cofellow operates out of a big space at 107 N. Main, may be familiar with the shop’s coffee. It’s had a booth at the Old Town Farm & Art Farm & Art Market for the past couple of months and has been selling its batched ice lattes there. He plans to keep his spot at the Old Town market but will soon transition to using his coffee cart.
Weldon, who also plans to acquire a second coffee cart, also said he wants to try and get a spot at the Kansas Grown Farmers Market at 21st and Ridge.
Cofellow also roasts coffee beans and sells wholesale beans to businesses and churches around the area.
Weldon said that the year he opened Cofellow, several other coffee shops opened in Goddard, including Starbucks, Scooter’s and another locally owned shop called The Rusted Bean Coffee Co. Goddard suddenly went from no coffee to four different shops.
But he’s continued to do well in his downtown Goddard spot, he said.
“It’s been awesome and humbling to be here,” he said. “We’re honored to be here, and Goddard’s growing quickly. It’s crazy.”
Weldon said that after the Oct. 7 popup, people will be able to find out what he plans next by following along on the Cofellow Coffee Parlor social media pages.
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