'The confidence to make it happen': Wicked Good Beans founder opens Winchendon coffee shop

When Heather Connor and her husband, Michael, began roasting coffee beans and selling them out of their Winchendon home during the COVID-19 pandemic, the couple had no idea that the venture would lead to the opening of a coffee shop downtown - Sippin' Serendipity Coffee and Cafe .

But a phone call out of the blue from local Realtor Michelle Peterson , who, along with her husband, Eric, owns the property the Central Street shop is in, set everything in motion, according to Heather.

“Michelle found out through the grapevine we roasted coffee and sold it via porch pickup, and she as a Realtor has always wanted to have a coffee shop to bring her clients, so she asked me about a year-and-a-half ago if I had ever wanted to open my own coffee shop, and I said absolutely,” said Heather. “And here we are.”

Peterson, whose Elm Grove Realty office is next door to Sippin’ Serendipity, said when the nearby commercial space became available, she couldn’t get the idea of a coffee shop out of her head.

“But I also didn’t know the first thing about opening one, nor did I really have the time,” Peterson said. “I started talking to some friends in town and someone mentioned that Heather roasts her own beans and she would be a good person to speak to. As soon as we met, I knew it would be a great fit; this is something we have both always wanted, and together, we had the confidence to make it happen.”

Sippin' Serendipity has been doing brisk business since opening downtown in June

Sippin’ Serendipity has been doing brisk business since it opened at 206 Central St. in June. The name of the shop, which has 10 employees, is a nod to the serendipitous chain of events that led up to its establishment.

Heather was a paraprofessional and a stay-at-home mom before becoming a small business owner. She studied online to learn how to open her own coffee shop.

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“It’s been a lot of fun, here it is, and it’s busy,” she said recently during a break from training two new employees behind the counter. “Winchendon has been wonderful to us, and they’ve been very patient. People have been meeting here and connecting, and that’s what we wanted – for people to be able to stop here and connect.”

The coffee, which includes flavors such as French vanilla, English toffee, and brown sugar cinnamon, might be the main draw at the shop, but it’s far from the only item available on the breakfast and lunch menu.

In addition to a classic egg-and-cheese breakfast sandwich, the lunch menu includes sandwiches named in honor of the owner’s deep ties to the community – the Clyde, the Toy Town, the Murdock, and the Winch.

“I was born here, raised here, a proud Murdock grad, so I wanted to name my sandwiches all after Winchendon things,” Heather said. “The Clark is a peanut-butter-and-jelly for the kids.”

Cinnamon rolls, coffee cake, cheesecake, soups and chowder, and tea and herbs are also available at the shop. The beans the Connors used to sell from their porch – Wicked Good Beans – are also for sale, along with Sippin’ Serendipity t-shirts.

Town Manager Bill McKinney said he was excited to welcome Sippin’ Serendipity to town.

“It is great to have another food and beverage option downtown,” he said. “The place looks great, and the line was out the door for the ribbon cutting. This has been something Heather has wanted to do for a long time, so we wish her much success.”

Cafe's interior design described as 'coffee shop cozy'

Heather described the business’s interior décor, for which she said Peterson deserved all the credit, as “coffee shop cozy.”

Peterson said she drew on her long experience visiting coffee shops over the years to decide on a décor that would offer a welcoming atmosphere for customers.

“I wanted a place where people felt comfortable and relaxed,” Peterson said. “I wanted people to feel they could sit and enjoy their stay as if they were at home, whether they were there to socialize or work. There is nothing that puts a smile on our faces more than watching people drinking their coffee, laughing with friends, and enjoying the space we created for them.”

This article originally appeared on Gardner News: 'The confidence to make it happen': Wicked Good Beans founder opens Winchendon coffee shop