BY WIL CREWS
SPORTSCREWS@
OPELIKAOBSERVER.COM
OPELIKA —
Joshua Dairen and his wife, Keema, are the proud new owners of The Coffee Shop in downtown Opelika.
The couple recently purchased the business from the previous owner, Gleason Jones, who opened the shop in the spring of 2022. The idea of entering the entrepreneurial sphere of business had for years attracted Dairen and Keema.
“My wife and I have always been looking to get into the entrepreneurial realm of things,” Dairen said. “But we weren’t sure where or what.”
The draw of owning a coffee business became clear to the couple after they fell in love with a local shop during their time living in Colorado a couple years ago.
“There was a coffee shop we frequented often,” Dairen said. “The customer service was really great and it just kind of stuck with us. That was the first time we realized we kind of like coffee a little bit. We are not so much coffee aficionados, but the person-to-person engagement is something we really enjoyed. We loved how we were getting to know our baristas.”
Upon returning to Lee County, where Dairen and Keema have spent a large portion of their lives, the idea of owning a coffee shop never dissipated, Dairen said. When The Coffee Shop became available, Dairen said it was like a “Eureka!” moment.
“This kind of came upon us by chance, but once we saw it we knew it’s what we wanted to do,” Dairen said. “We had been talking about a coffee shop. We had been talking about somehow translating what we experienced in Colorado back here. And we saw this opportunity as a way to do just that. Being able to be embedded in a community that I have grown up in my entire life, and [Keema] has spent a good portion of her life in, it just felt like the right move.”
Dairen and Keema are the proud parents of an 11-month-old baby, Kaia. Dairen said he believes the experience as a new parent prepared the couple to jump at the opportunity to purchase The Coffee Shop.
“I think that if we hadn’t had her, we wouldn’t be as prepared to do this; you have to be on your game for every facet,” Dairen said. “[Running a coffee shop is] a lot of work, and so are babies. A lot of the same principles apply. If you want something to grow, for it to prosper and be healthy, you have to nurture it. That’s kind of our intentions with this too.”
Already, Dairen and Keema said they are looking forward to chiseling out a presence and making a positive impact on the Opelika community.
“We want to just a be a positive, young business figure in the area,” Dairen said. “We want people to feel welcome here. We want people to say, ‘We can’t come to downtown without stopping by The Coffee Shop’ because we know the coffee is good but the people inside are also good. We are going to do our best to serve at our best. At the core of it, we are trying to be good humans to those who come in here. We want to be intentional with every interaction we can.”
Keema echoed her husband’s sentiment and said she hopes to make simple, yet intentional changes to the shop that will make it stand out to its customers.
“When people come in here … I want them to be blown away by the atmosphere,” she said. “And I want them to want to stay. It’s the simple things that resonate. It’s the little touches that people appreciate and creates this welcoming environment.”
With a background in communications, Dairen’s current full-time job offers him the ability to work remote, which means customers can expect to see his and Keema’s faces every day.
Ultimately, the couple said they just feel blessed to have this opportunity and hope they can share good coffee — and good fellowship — with all who walk through the door.
“We are very blessed because we couldn’t believe it was available,” Dairen said. “We are glad to insert a little bit of energy and youth to the area. There is a really good heartbeat here. We like that people come in here for the atmosphere, the environment and the vibes, but we know we can still add to it.”
The Coffee Shop is located at 122 S. 8th St. in downtown Opelika.