Morchella Market & Cafe has re-opened under new ownership.
Rebekah Quennell, Michael Weitzel and Clayton Bell are heading up the business, located at 101 Kootenay St. North in downtown Cranbrook.
This is an exciting new adventure for the first-time business owners, who envision Morchella as a place where community can gather. The trio renovated the front of the store to include a proper seating area and a patio.
“We saw the opportunity to open the space up and put our own little stamp on it. Cranbrook needs more patios and more cool places for people to hang out, enjoy the downtown and enjoy community again. We’re trying to create community,” said Weitzel.
They would also like to see the space become a hub for local business. They are encouraging new and established business owners and entrepreneurs to visit their store to discuss potential sale opportunities for local food products, clothing and jewellery. Weitzel described it as “community support”.
The trio began learning the ins and outs of the business in February and they held a smaller opening party for staff on April 1.
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Although Quennell and Weitzel always wanted to run their own business, they weren’t expecting it to be Morchella.
“It definitely wasn’t the next step in our plan by any means. If you had asked us six months ago what we would be doing, it would definitely not be running a cafe,” said Quennell.
“We didn’t find out it was for sale until the owners announced the closure. It was super last minute. I saw the post on Instagram that said the business was closing, so I reached out to them and asked if they were still willing to make a deal,” added Weitzel.
Corinna and Mike Robinson ran Morchella prior to the sale. The new owners will build on what the Robinsons created, but they will also put their own twist on the business.
They would like to have hot-to-order sandwiches and paninis available for customers, and develop a produce box program where organic vegetables, fruit, meat and eggs could be delivered to locals.
They have expanded the smoothie menu to include offerings like the green tea flavoured Simply Matcha, the chocolate peanut butter Groovy Gorilla and the classic fruit-flavoured Berried Treasure.
They will continue to offer locally-sourced organic produce, hot drinks and baked goods. Quennell said the majority of the staff have carried over from previous ownership, including the kitchen manager.
The trio anticipate that the summer season will be busy for them and they’re excited to dive in head-first.
“It’s just such a perfect little corner lot. It’s so sunny,” said Quennell. “We’re having a lot of fun with it.”
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gillian.francis@cranbrooktownsman.com
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