Coffee business plans first brick-and-mortar location in region

NAPLES — An online wholesale coffee business is planning to open its first brick-and-mortar retail store in the same space in Mercato once occupied by another coffee retailer that closed earlier in 2019.

Cape Coral-based Narrative Coffee Roasters has set a planned opening date of early 2020 in the tony Naples shopping center to open their store in the 1,301-square-foot spot, previously held by Second Cup, according to a news release.

“We’re so happy that Narrative Coffee Roasters has selected Mercato as its first brick-and-mortar coffee house location, and we know it will be a wonderful fit with our existing tenant mix, offering our guests a comfortable and relaxing spot to spend time with one another,” Valerie Cope, senior marketing director for Mercato, says in the release.

The release says Narrative Coffee Roasters will serve a variety of coffees, including espresso-based and drip coffees, a number of teas, hot cocoa, pastries, salads, sandwiches, wine and local craft beer. Its line of wholesale coffees will also be available for sale.

“We got our start selling fresh-roasted seasonal coffees wholesale to restaurants, offices, churches and businesses, and by serving customers in person through a single mobile espresso cart,” Caleb MacPherson, co-owner and roast master for Narrative Coffee Roasters, says in the release. “Our dream, however, was to do something more, something bigger. We wanted to create a space where people could gather and share stories – their own personal narratives – over a cup of coffee. At Mercato, we’ve found just the right mix of atmosphere and foot traffic to help us create the dream that got us started.”