Coffee Shop Grand Opening July 28

Gabe Stark
Reporter

A Cup of Grace will soon open its doors in Trenton, offering customers a combination of traditional coffeehouse favorites, protein drinks, sugar-free options and products designed to complement an active lifestyle.

The Trenton Area Chamber of Commerce will hold a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new business at noon Tuesday, July 28. A Cup of Grace is located at 916 Harris Ave. in the same building as The Daily, a gym and wellness business.

Owner William Schroll said the coffee shop was developed as part of a larger vision to bring coffee, fitness and wellness services together under one roof.

“I wanted to open a coffee shop for a multitude of reasons,” Schroll said. “I knew for sure we were going to do the gym and the wellness side, and I thought coffee would be a perfect combination.”

While the businesses operate separately, Schroll said their services naturally complement one another. Customers could stop for a coffee or pre-workout drink before exercising, meet a friend after a workout or enjoy a drink before or after using the wellness services.

Schroll said the overall goal is to create a gathering place that encourages healthier choices and helps bring people together.

Bailey and Kristin Owen will handle much of the daily operation of A Cup of Grace, while Schroll provides business guidance and management support. Schroll said the three are working together as partners and emphasized that each person plays an important role in the business.

“They had a huge amount of ambition,” Schroll said. “The goal is for them to operate it and for me to help manage and teach them the business side.”

Schroll said customer service will be one of the company’s highest priorities.

“Customer experience is by far the No. 1 thing,” Schroll said. “Whether it is the product or the service, we want to focus on quality.”

The shop’s menu will include regular coffee choices and a variety of sugar-free drinks. It will also feature protein coffees, hydration drinks and optional additions such as collagen and creatine.

Kristin, part owwner, said the selection was partly inspired by her own difficulty finding coffee drinks that were not overly sweet.

“Not many places had a lot of sugar-free options, and adding the extra sugar made the coffee too sweet for me,” she said.

Schroll said the products were selected based on items he and the other operators already use and believe in.

“Everything here is something that I believe in,” he said. “The products we sell are products we were already consuming before we ever started this.”

Convenience will also be a major part of the business. A Cup of Grace will have a drive-through, and customers will be able to order ahead through the shop’s website. The name A Cup of Grace was chosen as a reminder that people should not expect perfection from themselves, particularly while balancing family, work and other responsibilities.

“As a mom, it’s really hard to give yourself grace and remember you’re not perfect,” Kristin said. “I have to remember to give myself grace as a mom, as a wife and in everything in between. That is where the name came from.”

Although the owners describe the business as Christian-based, they said the shop is intended to welcome people of all backgrounds and beliefs.

“We don’t want anybody to feel judged,” Schroll said. “We believe what we believe, but everybody is welcome to come in and enjoy some coffee.”