Texas-based franchise Summer Moon Coffee will open this weekend at 9127 Metcalf Avenue in Overland Park, Kan.
Although Summer Moon Coffee has over 20 locations throughout Texas, the Overland Park location will be the first to open outside of The Lone Star State.
Mother-daughter owners Shelly Graham and Kiersten Graham, both natives of Overland Park, discovered the shop known for its wood-fired coffee almost two years ago (March 2019) in Dallas, Texas.
“We never had plans to open a coffee shop. My dad, Steve, develops outdoor-lifestyle centers and has a project in Dallas. My parents traveled there one weekend to try all the coffee shops in Dallas that had multiple locations to find the best one for his shopping center. They tried over 30 different shops in one weekend,” Kiersten said.
“When my mom tried Summer Moon, it stood out to her and she raved about it for months. I later went to Dallas for a marketing job interview and decided to try this coffee, accompanied by my dad. When I had my first sip the words flew out of my mouth - ‘Dad we have to open this in Kansas City - this is the best coffee I have ever had!’ From then on, everything fell into place,” Kiersten said.
Summer Moon’s specialty is their smooth and flavorful, oak-roasted coffee made from organic coffee beans that are roasted over an open-flame, wood-fired brick oven in Austin, Texas.
The franchise also carries “moon milk,” a secret, seven-ingredient blend and serves scratch-bakery goods.
“The moon milk is what makes our brand unique. It’s a sweetener that can be added to any dairy and nondairy milks. I am really looking forward to Kansas City trying it. I also am looking forward to creating a space that allows others to have community,” Kiersten said.
From light-roast to dark-roast coffee, Summer Moon has it all. The impressive selection features over a dozen coffee flavors (with very creative names). They also offer a “Brew of the Month” mail-in subscription, coffee-pods (Keurig-cups) and of course, their own “merch.”
Kiersten is a recent graduate of Kansas State University with a degree in marketing and sales; Shelly was previously employed in the social work industry.
Kiersten and Shelly do have hopes of opening more Summer Moon Coffee locations in the KC metro area down the road.
Summer Moon’s grand opening is this Saturday, January 23, opening at 7am until 6pm. To learn more about Summer Moon, you may visit their website at summermooncoffee.com.