Biggby Coffee coming soon

LIMA - The billboard along Cable Road promises the coming of the world's best cup of coffee. Peggy Rector is convinced her new Biggby Coffee store can live up to that considerable billing.

"It really is just a better coffee. It's fresh, it's not bitter like some of the others, it's really good coffee," Rector said.

Java aficionados will have to wait until Feb. 10 to find out for themselves. That's the day the Cable Road store will open, the first from the popular franchise in the region.

For Rector, the franchise represents more than just a cup of joe, it's her retirement plan. The Delphos native has worked in accounting and human resources for a variety of businesses around the region, but realized one day she would have a brighter future as her own boss.

"I'm tired of being downsized and right-sized and that whole gamut. I decided to go out on my own. I did some research on franchises, narrowed it down to coffee and that's when I discovered Biggby," Rector said.

The coffee chain - called Beaners until somebody realized the name was also a derogatory term for Mexicans - began in Michigan and has expanded to 102 stores in eight states throughout the Midwest and Southeast. The Lima location is one of more than 50 slated to open in the next 12 to 18 months.

Rector and her business partner, Vicki Ludwick, purchased the franchise in Sept. 2007. It wasn't until almost a year later that they found a location they and the corporate office approved of.

"I'll bet their VP was down here 15 times looking at different places. But we agreed, this is the place," Rector said.

The former Von's jewelry store has been through a substantial makeover. The storefront has been converted to glass creating an open space with plenty of natural light. The walls are painted in bright yellow, greens and watermelon red. At 2,450 square feet, the business can seat 40 with room to grow.

The menu includes the full array of coffeehouse standards including lattes and iced drinks and the rest along with a variety of sweets and pastries, all available inside or at the drive-thru.

But it's not the décor or the drive-thru that makes Biggby unique, Rector said. It's the energy. More than 300 people applied for the 20 part-time jobs, and only the most enthusiastic need apply.

"The people we have will be fun. I might make them get up on a chair and sing during the interviews. ‘I'm a Little Teapot" is always nice," Rector said.

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