Coffee, cakes, flowers, event planning and more… in one location
Planning a wedding is often hectic and stressful. There are flowers to be ordered, invitations that need to be printed, food to be catered, a cake to be made, dresses and tuxedos to rent. So you’re driving from one business to another.
It’s enough to drive you crazy.
Instead of all that running around, co-owners Taylor Bachman and Mollie Piehl assist you with their one-stop shopping business in Winsted. Although the sign outside the establishment reads Crazi Coffee and Bakery, there is actually much more craziness going on inside.
The building on Sixth Street North actually houses four businesses in one: Crazi Coffee, Crazi Cakes, Crazi Flowers and Crazi Events.
“There were many emails sent between Taylor and her dad (Scott Bachman), discussing the business name,” said Piehl, 27. “We were toying around with different names. He kept telling us that we were crazy so we went with that name, but changed it to an “i” on the end.”
Bachman, 23, bought the former Roadhouse Coffee Shop a year ago when she had just turned 22 years old and added a full-time pastry chef.
“A friend of my dad’s owned the business before,” explained Bachman. “So he told me which things were successful and which ones weren’t. They sold sandwiches and coffee, and also a few baked goods they brought in from another bakery.
“I really wanted to bring cakes into it because there wasn’t another place to get a cake for over 20 miles. So I hired a pastry chef and added cakes and pies and other sweet treats.”
Piehl was a frequent customer in the store. During a conversation one day, Bachman informed Piehl that she was getting married (her wedding date is Aug. 16, 2014) and was looking for someone to plan her wedding. Piehl had attended Ridgewater College Hutchinson in sales and marketing program for her associate’s degree and got her bachelor’s in fashion retail management at the Arts Institute in Minneapolis and offered to help.
“I’ve always loved to plan things like that,” said Piehl. “So Taylor allowed me plan her wedding. We didn’t really know each other that well before, but we became good friends, and now I’m going to be standing up in her wedding.”
On the other side of the coffee shop, the Winsted Floral Shop was put up for sale. After mulling the idea over, Bachman and Piehl decided to buy the floral shop, and soon the two young women were in business together.
“It does get a little crazy around here sometimes,” laughed Piehl.
If the atmosphere inside the building doesn’t capture your attention, the scents will. The smell of fresh coffee, soup and sweet treats on one side, and flowers on the other, are enticing.
“It’s so cozy and smells so good in there,” one woman remarked as she exited the coffee shop. “I go there quite often, and I try a different hot drink or sandwich every time I’m there. The desserts are delicious, too.”
Inside each Crazi business is a partial chalk wall where the specials are neatly printed in various colored chalk. Customers also enjoy interacting with a weekly random question posted in the entry hallway.
“We also want to make it easy for the customers to see our specials by putting them on Facebook, faxing and emailing them out, ” explained Piehl. “A lot of people have commented that they like the bright colors.”
There is much more than luring customers with smells and bright colors. The quad-business is designed to make it easy and fun for the customer. Beneath the Crazi Coffee and Bakery sign outside the business is a subtitle below: “Coffee and friends makes the perfect blend.”
So does a little craziness.
Crazi Coffee & Bakery
There are over 25 hot or iced beverages, appropriately named Crazi Drinks, posted on the chalk display board.
“We refer to it as a full-service coffee shop and bakery,” Bachman said.
Also on the menu are sandwiches, wraps, soups and salads. For those wanting to start the day off right, customers have the opportunity to choose goodies like pastries, muffins or doughnuts. Or they may want to try a homemade breakfast burrito or choose to “Build Your Own Breakfast Sandwich” from bagels, English muffins or croissants.
Crazi Cakes
All the cakes, cake pops, pies, cheesecakes, cupcakes and truffles are fresh, handcrafted and made to your request.
“We will do our best to make any special orders for birthdays or weddings or something else,” said Bachman. “You bring us your idea, and we will try to satisfy you.”
Crazi Flowers Whether it’s a single flower for a loved one or a large order for a wedding, corporate event or funeral, Crazi Flowers will do their best to fill your order.
Their motto is: “You bring the thought, we bring the flowers.”
Crazi Events From a backyard barbecue to a wedding, Crazi Events can assist you in planning your event.
They offer various wedding packages to fit your budget and needs. They can assist you with such things as your budget, creating and designing, décor, catering, meeting with vendors, favors and fittings. Or they will assist you with printing needs, such as invitations, menus, programs, table seating and more.
They also fit and rent tuxedos. “We will help with whatever type of party or event you are having,” said Piehl. “It’s often hard to run from place to place when planning an event, so we try to make it easy for them by doing as much as we can to help them.”
For more information, visit www.crazicoffee.com, see them on Facebook or call Crazi Flowers & Events at 320-485-4212 or Crazi Coffee & Cakes at 320-485-2217.
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