Mother and daughter Ticy and Ayanna Cox have a deep passion for coffee. Every time they go somewhere new, they try to go to a local coffee shop because they love the atmospheres provided for conversations. Now, they hope to bring that same environment to Owensboro with their coffee shop named Kahawa Java.
Their motto for the coffee shop focuses on: “The pattern of coffee and conversation.”
“We love the fact that you come in and sit down and have a good cup of whatever you’re wanting to have and a conversation,” Ticy Cox said.
Ticy believes people have lost the ability to communicate without phones present or without consistently checking them.
The space they have at 2601 West Parrish Avenue will have room for spoken word, live music performances, and plenty of tables for face-to-face conversation. When they were consulting the owner of the strip center, the businesswomen realized they are also offering something different to that area.
“Talking with the realtor, he said ‘there’s nothing [like this] over here, nothing at all.’ … So we wanted to bring something to the west side and it ended up being exactly that,” Ticy said.
Situated on West Parrish, the women noted that the coffee shop is relatively in the middle of a residential area, but also not far off Carter Road where they can attract workers on their way to their morning shifts. Since moving in and promoting for their opening day, the duo has received messages of excitement about their venture.
The name Kahawa Java comes from their Swahili background, literally making the name translate to “Coffee Coffee.” However, their menu won’t be just coffee. It will include some teas, matchas, and pastries from local bakeries in town.
They hope to go into coffee cocktails for the adult crowd wanting a bit of a kick in their drink.
Their coffee provider will be Frothy Monkey coffee out of Nashville, Tennessee. This marks the first time Frothy Monkey has been provided in Owensboro. The connection to the coffee comes from Ayanna’s time at Western Kentucky University, when she had the coffee at local stores in Bowling Green.
When it came to decorating the business, Ayanna is using her photography knowledge to help outfit the store and hopes to include works from local artists.
Eventually, they hope to expand beyond the walls of the location. Originally the two planned for an on-the-road trailer, and they are open to continuing the idea after they are established in the brick-and-mortar.
“We hope to outgrow the space and hope that we do amazing to where we can take it to the next place that we go and do our own build, but you never know,” Ayanna said.
Kahawa Java is still in the final stages of renovation and decoration and plans to open it’s doors in mid-August. To stay up to date on the opening, head to their Facebook page here.
