We had the good fortune of connecting with Aryn Callarman and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Aryn, is there something that you feel is most responsible for your success?
The most important factor behind the success of our brand is our team. Our baristas are friendly and give great customer service. We empower them, include them in decision-making, and try to be the best employers we can be.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
121 Coffee Run is a coffee shop and small bakery. A couple things that us apart from the other coffee shops in our community is our constant changing of the menu. We have a baker/chef on staff. She comes up with a new food menu every month and is always trying new pastry recipes. The baristas are constantly coming up with new drinks and we feature new drink of the month lists every month.

The second thing that sets us apart is our community involvement. I love small business and being a small business owner, and I encourage other small businesses have pop-ups in our coffee shop, hoping to help them grow. We also go to community nonprofit events, are involved with our local CASA organization, local schools and Girl Scouts. I feel there is enough room for everyone to succeed and the more we can support each other, the better.

Being a business owner is definitely a roller coaster. There are high highs and low lows. When I first started, I questioned why am I doing this? Why am I working so hard to make no money? But then a customer would say how happy they were, or another business would reach out to collaborate in some way, and it would make it worth it. Being two years in, the lows are not as low, but the highs are just as high. There is so much trial and error when running a business. I have learned to do what we are good at and not worry about what other people are doing.

A second location is opening next week and I could not be more excited or more proud of my husband, my staff, and myself. We have started discussing and planning our third location as well. I am also excited about the day to day things like dipping thousands of chocolate covered strawberries for Valentine’s Day or being a part of our next community event.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
First I would take them to my coffee shop, 121 Coffee Run and we would shop The Perfect Pair. Lunch or dinner would be Coney McKane’s, Krekels, or TapRoot. We would probably visit all of the other local coffee shops as well. Shopping on Merchant Street and hiking at Rock Springs would also be on the itinerary. Lastly, I would take them to my mom’s house for her home cooking and board games.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Three people come to mind when I think of my story in owning the coffee shop. The first is my husband Kevin. He is a risk taker, small business owner, and fully supports what I do. The coffee shop was 100% his idea.

The second person is our awesome landlord & owner of The Perfect Pair, Wanda Timmons. She owns the boutique connected to our coffee shop. Wanda gave us the tools and connections we needed to get started. She has been 100% supportive of our journey. It’s so much fun being a part of her community.

The third person is my midwife. When I was in labor with my second child, we were discussing purchasing the coffee shop. She told us that she owns two coffee shops and gave us some tips and encouragement to get started.

There is no way I could have opened and successfully run this coffee shop without all three of them.

Website: 121coffeerun.com

Instagram: 121 Coffee Run

Facebook: 121 Coffee Run – Warrensburg, 121 Coffee Run – Harristown

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