Daily Inspiration: Meet Chris Murphy

Today we’d like to introduce you to Chris Murphy.

Hi Chris, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
In 2017 my husband came up with the idea to open a creperie and design it like it was owned by a little old lady. At first I wrote it off as a crazy daydream but eventually came around to the idea and Brewella was born! So we found a storefront in Lakewood, the town we live in, and began to build it all out. We spent countless hours of thrifting to find vintage style mirrors and chairs and learned everything we could about crepes and coffee and in August of 2018 we opened our doors for the first time. We quickly realized that people loved atmosphere and began decorating along with our special seasonal holiday menus which was a huge hit. Halloween, Christmas and Valentine’s become our busiest seasons mostly do to the abundance of decorating we put into the shop. About two years ago we began looking for a bigger space to take Brewella’s to the next stage of her life and luckily found a space only 1 block away from us. It was a COMPLETE demo, down to the studs, but I am happy to say that the bigger and better Brewella’s will be opening this winter!

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It’s been a pretty bumpy ride. When we began, operating a business and a cafe were new to the both of us. The community was amazing in letting us find our footing with them and our staff was dedicated enough to the mission that they stuck through the growing pains. But only a year and a half in, Covid hit, so everything we knew and learned went right out the window. That time was monumental in us discovering the why of what we were trying to do when we opened this spot; give people a place of whimsy and coziness to escape from there day. When that meant customers only came in for about 5 minutes to grab and go I made sure we spent those 5 minutes taking them out of what was going on in the safest way we could. For that 5 minutes, you were somewhere else. A place that brings you comfort in the way only a grandmother can. With support from the community, we made it through and continued to grow our business and confidence to the point that we decided we needed more space.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
The staff at the cafe has been an amazing group of people, both young and old, each bringing their creativity to the table to help transform the cafe into something bigger. So may creative minds are involved in everything from decorating to coming up with recipes to naming the new menu items. I believe everyone has the ability to be creative but in their own way so helping people figure out what it is they like to create and what inspires them, then showing it off to the community, has been one of the favorite aspects of my job.

How do you define success?
Success to me is leaving a legacy of doing something meaningful, for myself but also for the employees and the community. Its about bringing joy to people when they step in the space or take their first bite of a crepe. Success is trying our hardest and doing our best to make sure what we do is with purpose and a mission in mind. It’s about learning and growing and surviving as individuals and as a team.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.brewellas.com
• Instagram: @brewellas
• Facebook: Brewella’s