This past weekend, The Shop on 2nd, owned by Erin and Andy Filips of Crofton, opened to the public at 1110 W 2nd St. downtown.
Filips, and her husband, Andy, both Crofton natives, have been working hard on the renovation of the building since the beginning of last year. “We always saw this building, and it was in need of some help, but we knew it could be something. So when it was for sale, we decided to buy it and that was the beginning of the coffee shop idea.”
The renovation has been a year-long process. The once insurance building, has needed more than a few updates. “The building itself, has an apartment in the back. So fixing that was phase one. After that, we moved to the shop front itself,” said Erin Filips. “We were both working hard to get the store complete, open and stocked” which officially happened with approval from the State of Nebraska’s health and fire inspectors – which was obtained about three days ago.
Since then, the Shop has been open on limited hours, with Erin and Andy Filips both filling orders and working the store with their new, state-of-the-art equipment, and soon-to-come set menu, which will include a lot more than just “coffee.”
Shopping local, is also a big part of the Filips’ business plan. They plan on sourcing things like Burbach milk, and local, raw honey. “We will have something for everyone, for those who aren’t coffee fans, we will have tea, smoothies, and energy drinks. We hope that we might be able to attract more people to downtown Crofton and then while they are here, point out all of the other businesses Crofton has to offer. With any luck it could be a way to attract families to the Crofton area.”
Filips hopes the shop will be a fun, interactive, community-driven business. “We’ve been really listening. We hope it will set us apart, because we like to ask people for their thoughts. We are totally open to ideas, especially now that we are working on putting together a menu. We are still figuring it out and we love feedback.”
“The community has been very welcoming and supportive and we can’t wait to give back. We would love to be the place that you can come get a drink, to your liking and just hang out.” Filips said.
For now, hours for the store can be found on Facebook or posted in the shop window. Filips encouraged those interested in the store to follow The Shop on 2nd Facebook and Instagram pages.
Andy and Erin Filips behind the counter at the Shop on 2nd.