When Ken and Mary Olds moved back to their hometown of Memphis, the couple noticed that the Whitehaven neighborhood where they were raised still didn’t have a coffee shop.

“We saw that residents were leaving their neighborhoods for amenities instead of staying in the area,” Ken Olds said. “We knew it was a problem we could help solve, so we decided to learn everything about the coffee business.”

Opening brewing for Muggin’ Coffee House in Whitehaven

Muggin’ Coffeehouse opened in Whitehaven in July 2020. The Olds now plan to open a second location of the coffee shop in Uptown’s Malone Park Commons, at 606 N. Main St., this fall. 

Rhonda Brown, the economic development coordinator for the Memphis Medical District Collaborative, knew Ken Olds wanted to expand Muggin’ to other areas of Memphis. She met with developer Andre D. Jones of Jones Urban Development and immediately thought Muggin’ would be a great amenity for Jones’ live/work development Malone Park Commons.

“I reached out to Ken (Olds) and told him, ‘I need you to come,’” Brown said. “I want you to look at this space. It’s the perfect fit for kind of like a satellite location of your larger location.’”

When Ken Olds saw the location at Malone Park Commons, he immediately loved the space and knew Muggin’ could help bring amenities to the neighborhood, residents and surrounding area.

“Muggin’ is a community builder and a neighborhood builder,” Brown said. “Residents won’t have to go outside their neighborhood to get coffee or pastries. Muggin’ will just be another aspect of a neighborhood for them.”

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As for Malone Park Commons’ developer Jones, he had been looking for a local business to offer amenities to residents and make the area more walkable.

“Muggin’ is a good fit because it’s a locally owned, Black-owned small business,” Jones said. “We need to put more amenities within walking distance in neighborhoods near housing to make our neighborhoods more walkable.”

Muggin’ will be one of four commercial tenants in the Malone Park Commons development.

While Muggin’ Uptown will be about half the size of the Whitehaven location, it will offer an outdoor patio space.

The Olds said that they want Muggin’ to be a “one-stop-shop” for residents — a place to get caffeinated or catch up with friends.

“We’re all about being out in the community and being a part of it,” Ken said. “It’s directly related to what our mission is. It’s about coffee being approachable and the access to it in an environment that’s inviting and accepting.”

The new location will have many of the same staples as the Whitehaven location including Flickin’ on Beale, Zippin’ Pippin and the coffeehouse’s signature bourbon macchiato. Mary Olds said the community will help dictate what the offerings will be.

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In conjunction with Muggin’s two-year anniversary, the Olds are releasing a new coffee roast, and the proceeds from those sales will go toward the Muggin’ Vision Scholarship.

“We provide last-minute funding to high school seniors who are heading off to college,” Mary Olds said, adding that she and her husband both come from families of educators.

In its first year, the scholarship was awarded to one Whitehaven High School student; it grew to two scholarships in its second year. The program will expand to help students in the Uptown area in addition to Whitehaven.

“The ideal thing for a business owner is to have a vision for what you can see in a community and have that attached with what the community wants or has requested,” Mary said. “That’s something we feel really positive about.”

Muggin’ Coffeehouse in Uptown will open in the fall of 2022. The hours will mirror the Whitehaven location, with extended hours Monday-Friday and shortened hours on Saturday; it will remain closed on Sunday.