What do a rock band and a coffee shop have in common?

0

SIDNEY — Sidney Mayor Mardie Milligan and Sidney-Shelby County Chamber of Commerce President Jeff Raible held a long red ribbon that was cut by Niki Woodruff, along with her husband, J.T. Woodruff, who own and operate Greenhaus Coffee during the business’s ribbon cutting ceremony on Feb. 11, 2022.

Each of the Woodruffs brought unique skills and experiences to the business that have influenced its development.

What’s in a name?

The name of the Woodruffs’ business, “Greenhaus Coffee” combines two concepts related to the dual nature of this downtown shop: plants and coffee.

The shop is unique in its combination of a retail plant store and a sit-down coffee shop, Woodruff said.

The “house,” portion of the name, which is spelled the German way, “haus,” came about because of Woodruff’s earlier business, located at 9 East Canal Street in downtown Troy, called Revival Haus, that she and a partner operated for the last three years.

Its website describes the focus of that business as “an online furniture restoration business” that “has evolved into a full-fledged brick and mortar vintage shop … [with] beautifully restored mid-century and Danish Modern furniture pieces, carefully curated vintage home goods and apparel, a great selection of house plants, and lovely paper goods and candles.”

Business in Troy was going well, and she wanted to expand into Sidney.

“When I started Revival Haus, I hadn’t planned for it to become a plant shop, but, over time, the store developed a plant following. So, I thought it would be great to do a combined plant shop and coffee shop in Sidney.”

Naming the Sidney store was about her growing plant business, which is where the “greenhouse” part came from, and retaining the German spelling “haus,” was about retaining elements of her brand from her earlier business in Troy.

The other obvious element of a name that “roots” the connection between a coffee house with a greenhouse, is to remind visitors that coffee is a natural product that comes from a plant. “Coffea” is genus of flowering plant in the Rubiaceae family that produces berries. The berries contain seeds, which are known as “coffee beans,” which are then roasted.

Woodruff said they even sell coffee plants in the retail portion of the shop, growing them “seed to cup.”

When visitors first walk in to Greenhaus Coffee, they are greeted with the warming greenery of the plant store and then proceed further ahead and begin to hear the sound of coffee grinding and brewing, and smell the coffee’s aroma, an experience that mimics the coffee growing and production process itself.

While having their coffee and food items, visitors are visually stimulated by the greenery, and feel more relaxed. Relaxed shoppers tend to stay longer and buy more, so the combination is also a good marketing technique. Because the plants are both decorative and items that are for sale, the scenery changes for its regular customers.

“Plants always add to the ambiance and serenity of spaces. The goal with the shop was to create a serene space where you can relax and feel like you are escaping everyday life.”

Greenhaus Coffee captures, perhaps, a more relaxed and less immersed version of the Rainforest Cafe concept. After all, the laws of the jungle inspire fight or flight responses, not relaxation.

The store displays also serve to demonstrate how to add dimension and color when decorating specific interior spaces, like floors, walls, windows, doorways, and overhangs. It is important to select from the various plant species, the ones best utilized in those specific spaces. Plants are living organisms, so buyers need to factor in the types of containers and lighting conditions that are best for each species’ growth and health.

Rock On: The great plant and coffee migration to Sidney

Prior to the ribbon-cutting ceremony, the business held a soft opening on Nov. 17, 2021, and then formally opened the doors as a coffee shop and plant store on Nov. 19, 2021.

“Right as Greenhaus was up and running, and all my time and energy was going into that, my shop partner ended up closing her portion of the Troy business. It forced me to make a quick decision. I wasn’t planning on closing my Troy shop, but after she left, I decided to close the Troy location and move all of the plants to Sidney,” Woodruff said.

But a short jaunt from Troy to Sidney is only part of the story of how the plants and the coffees make their way to Sidney.

Greenhaus Coffee sources all of its plants from within the state and works with international coffee growers and cooperatives to give their coffee options naturally distinctive regional flavors.

They get all their plants from a wholesaler based in the Cincinnati area, and they regularly change their stock.

“I prefer to go there myself and pick out my own selection, because I can get the ones that look the healthiest, the fullest, and see if they have something more rare or new that I haven’t tried before,” Woodruff said.

It’s not a Starbucks. You’re not going to find any globally marketed and packaged coffees prepared here. All of the beans are fresh from the growers. Greenhaus is not pushing their coffees around the world. Rather, it is bringing the coffees of the world to Sidney.

The story of how this is happening is truly unique.

Woodruff’s husband, J.T., is in a rock band. The band, Hawthorne Heights, formed in 2001 and is based in Dayton. J. T. sings the lead vocals, plays rhythm guitar, piano, and keyboards. Their 2006 album, ‘If Only You Were Lonely,’ reached No. 1 on the Billboard’s Independent Albums chart. In 2021, the band released its eighth album titled ‘The Rain Just Follows Me.”

Woodruff has the luxury of traveling with her husband around the world during his performances. They make it a point, when he is on tour, to sample the regional coffees and teas wherever the band is playing.

“My husband is a musician, and he is also part owner. He’s been fortunate in that he gets to travel a lot with his job. We’ve been all over this country and internationally. Our favorite thing to do is to go to coffeeshops if we’re in Tokyo, or London, or wherever. We want to find the coolest coffee shop.”

The coffees they encounter in other countries or when visiting internatinally inspired U.S. restaurants are unusual.

“When we were in Australia, the biggest thing on their menu was a ‘flat white,’ which is similar to a latte, but they use something that is more like half-and-half instead of whole milk,” Woodruff said. Then when they visited Oregon, they went to a Finnish restaurant and had a cardamom latte, and that led to them bringing a honey cardamom latte to the menu at Greenhaus Coffee. (Cardamom is a warm spice).

Greenhaus Coffee goes out of its way to establish relationships as closely as possible that connect directly to farmers. The coffee bean roasters are the Purebread Coffee Company, located in Troy. “They have a direct-to-farmer relationship in Guatemala, Columbia, and Nicaragua,” said Woodruff.

Artificial flavors are often added by the large coffee chain stores to make the coffee taste a certain way, she explained. “But we’re getting our beans in their natural form, in the region that they’re grown and in a seed processing method that is common to that region. It changes the flavor. And that’s what’s interesting and what we’re trying to highlight — our coffee offerings are unique and are flavored naturally from the earth, whether that is fruity, nutty, or earthy. Educating the customer about that is part of the fun.”

The store also carries a rotating tea selection and a range of coffeeshop healthy food options.

Plantscaping your home and business

Woodruff’s plant business extends beyond the storefront to providing custom plant selection and design for the interiors of businesses and homes.

Ohio’s winters are long and overcast, and amid COVID-19 when people are indoors more than usual, business and home interiors are more relevant than ever to boost everyone’s happiness level.

“Houseplants are a great way to make your space feel warm and cozy, and happy, and I think everybody needs that,” Woodruff said.

Greenhaus Coffee is located at 126 E. Poplar St. Its hours of operation are Monday through Saturday 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., while Sundays are available only for event rentals. They can be reached for advanced orders at 937-710-9019. For more information, visit them on social media at facebook.com/greenhauscoffee and instagram.com/greenhauscoffee.

Niki Woodruff, third from left, speaks during a ribbon cutting ceremony for Greenhaus Coffee which she runs with her husband, J.T. Woodruff (of the rock band Hawthorne Heights), second from left, both of Troy, on Friday, Feb. 11. Standing far left is Sidney-Shelby County Chamber of Commerce President Jeff Raible. Greenhaus Coffee is located at 126 E. Poplar St.
https://www.sidneydailynews.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/47/2022/02/web1_SDN021221GreenHauseRibbon-1.jpgNiki Woodruff, third from left, speaks during a ribbon cutting ceremony for Greenhaus Coffee which she runs with her husband, J.T. Woodruff (of the rock band Hawthorne Heights), second from left, both of Troy, on Friday, Feb. 11. Standing far left is Sidney-Shelby County Chamber of Commerce President Jeff Raible. Greenhaus Coffee is located at 126 E. Poplar St. Luke Gronneberg | Sidney Daily News

https://www.sidneydailynews.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/47/2022/02/web1_DSC_8948-1.jpgLuke Gronneberg | Sidney Daily News

https://www.sidneydailynews.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/47/2022/02/web1_DSC_8988-1.jpgLuke Gronneberg | Sidney Daily News

https://www.sidneydailynews.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/47/2022/02/web1_DSC_9050-1.jpgLuke Gronneberg | Sidney Daily News

https://www.sidneydailynews.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/47/2022/02/web1_DSC_9131-1.jpgLuke Gronneberg | Sidney Daily News

Ribbon cutting at Greenhaus Coffee
https://www.sidneydailynews.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/47/2022/02/web1_DSC_9113-1.jpgRibbon cutting at Greenhaus CoffeeLuke Gronneberg | Sidney Daily News
Band tour inspires international flavors

By Shannon Bohle

[email protected]

No posts to display