Coffee Joint in Albion has new owner, with expanded hours and menu

Photos by Tom Rivers: Kolin Vangorder, owner of the Coffee Joint at 59 North Main St., pours a cup of coffee this morning. He became the owner on Nov. 1.

ALBION – Kolin Vangorder is determined to make the Coffee Joint stay a part of the Albion community.

Vangorder, 20, became owner of the business on Nov. 1, taking over for Albion Police Chief David Mogle and police officer Chris Glagowski. The two members of the Albion PD ran the business for a year, while juggling the demands of their full-time jobs and families.

Vangorder, a 2020 Albion graduate, started working for the Coffee Joint in August. He sent Glogowski a message through Facebook when he saw the business was looking for an employee.

Vangorder was working from home at the time in graphic design and video editing.

“It seemed like fun,” Vangorder said about the job at the Coffee Joint. “I wasn’t getting much people interaction at the time. What could be more fun than working in a coffee shop?”

Vangorder said the job as a barista is more challenging than he expected due to the many types of drinks offered in a coffee shop. But he learned from Heidi Peterson, the site manager, as well as through trial and error.

“It’s more than just pouring coffee in a cup,” he said.

Kolin Vangorder and Heidi Peterson run the Coffee Joint, which is open six days a week in downtown Albion. Peterson and Vangorder both worked for the previous owners.

As the owner Vangorder has added an espresso machine to the lineup of eight different types of coffee and 30 different other flavors. The site now offers lattes, cappuccinos and macchiatos.

Coffee Joint is looking to add frozen drinks including smoothies, Frappuccino and protein drinks. Vangorder said Coffee Joint also will be adding breakfast sandwiches prepared on site.

Coffee Joint was open from 7 to 11 a.m. Vangorder has expanded the hours from 6:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. from Monday through Friday and 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday.

He also has changed the looks inside, with a focus on making the space feel like a living room. Earlier today there were four customers inside on their laptops, using the Coffee Joint’s WiFi network while doing their work and sipping a coffee.

“It’s nice to not be at your house and still be able to feel comfortable,” he said.

The closing of the Main Street bridge doesn’t seem to have hurt the business because more traffic is turning at Bank Street, right by the coffee shop.

Peterson, the site’s manager, worked for the previous owners after several years at Burger King. She said she is optimistic Vangorder will be successful in the downtown.

“There’s so much energy behind Kolin,” Peterson said. “We both love our town and we love our customers. We love what we do.”