Crumble Coffee & Bakery is in the university town of Bloomington, Ind. Crumble’s original location, opened in 2013, is on the southeast side of town in a village center surrounded by mostly upper-middle-class neighborhoods. Most of the regular customers there are families, retirees, professors, and graduate students.

The second location is on a busy street close to Bloomington’s downtown area and a 10-minute walk from Indiana University. It is in the first floor of an apartment building and surrounded by other apartment buildings. Most of the regulars are undergraduate students and people who work downtown.

In late 2013, when we featured your shop, it had been open only a few months. Now, you have two storefronts. What has happened to make this possible?

We recently celebrated our five-year anniversary and had an opportunity to reflect on this very question. It is difficult to know where to start!

In Dec. 2015 we moved from our original location, which was approximately 800 square feet, into a 1,300-square-foot spot in the same plaza. We practically doubled our seating capacity and gained more visibility.

About one year later, we were approached by our original landlord with an intriguing offer. They had just built a large apartment complex a few blocks north of the main downtown area on one of Bloomington’s main streets and needed a tenant for the still-vacant, ground-floor retail spot. In exchange for a lower build-out cost and a few other perks, we could expand into a new side of town and provide a great amenity for their tenants. We opened our doors there in Jan. 2017. Without the goodwill and respect of our landlord, we never could have made the move to open our second location.

Our employee group has grown from our original 6-person crew to almost 30 this semester. These folks have been some of our greatest joys—and greatest struggles, of course. There is no way we could have grown without the hard work, creativity, and passion of our employees. They boast skills and interests that Scott and I will probably never have: they have developed our social media presence, our quality of service and training, our relationships with customers, and our love for coffee and our baked goods, to name a few. One is a professional photographer, which has improved our image.

We continue to source our roasted coffee beans from Quarrymen Coffee Roasters, owned and operated by our good friends Wes and Debi Burton. They also happen to be members of Bloomington RPC.

Ultimately our continued operation is because of God’s blessing. He has provided for us throughout, often in ways we never would have thought to ask. Our church family has supported and cared for us in incredible ways as well. I know that God has worked powerfully through the prayers of our fellow church members.

How has having two storefronts changed the way you operate? Do you still do most of the shop management and baking, with your brother-in-law Scott still overseeing most business aspects?

It was much more difficult to expand than we had thought it would be. The logistics have increased exponentially: quality control and consistency alone have proved to be a huge challenge.

The biggest change in my role has come with the addition of two highly skilled part-time bakers and a small team of prep assistants. We do all of our baking prep in our new location’s beautiful, big kitchen and drive prepped items across town to our original location. I am now only prepping in the kitchen about once a week, instead of doing almost all of the baking and prep every day. Because of this, I have been able to focus more on employee management, customer relations, barista training, and menu development, along with several minor jobs (like writing schedules).

Scott is still responsible for all accounts management, payroll, and taxes. He has also taken over inventory and ordering, for which I am extremely grateful. His business skills have kept our doors open through many dry seasons, and his ability to cut to the point of the issue at hand has been incredibly valuable.

You’ve mentioned before that coffee shops can minister to the local community. What does that look like for you and Crumble? Have you found ways to share your faith with customers and employees?

Almost a year before we opened, Scott and I were faced with two choices: we could either be a Christian coffee shop, or a coffee shop that happened to be run by Christians. Because we decided on the latter option, we don’t trumpet our faith or require our employees to be Christians. We are trying to be faithful to God’s call and do our work well, knowing that our aim is to serve and glorify Him. We believe that this level of care and diligence in our work, knowing that we answer to a higher authority, sets us apart from most other businesses.

Coffee shops often suffer from being stereotyped as snobby. Since many first-time customers know little about coffee, it can be easy to make new coffee drinkers uncomfortable. The many options on the menu can feel overwhelming, especially when customers are unfamiliar with basic terminology (espresso? cappuccino? latte? pour over?). We try to make everyone feel welcome, whether they can describe all of the notes in our single-origin Nicaraguan or always order a large, extra-syrup caramel latte.

Crumble aims to welcome people from all backgrounds by offering high-quality products and positive customer interactions. Coffee shops and bakeries provide a unique opportunity to develop relationships, and we want to facilitate that in every way we can. We aim to make every person’s day better, whether they spend two minutes or two hours in the shop.

Since we are closed on Sundays, most people understand that we are Christians. I have answered some questions from regulars and employees about my faith, but most do not interact with us about Christianity directly. Instead, we seek to be witnesses in the way that we live out our faith. Bloomington is a fairly liberal university town, and we employ and serve people who have never been around positive examples of Christianity. When God chooses to put other Christians in their lives, or to work in their hearts in other ways, we hope that their hearts will already be softened through their interactions with us and the other Christians we employ.

What has God taught you through some of the challenges of long hours, operating two storefronts, and regular interaction with customers?

Scott and I have come to see even more clearly that we must rely on God. It’s a lesson that we have to revisit over and over.

We have also learned how to work together and listen to each other. I’ve grown in that important but difficult skill of telling people no and standing by my decisions when tempted to waffle. I’ve also learned to ask for help and support—again, we can’t do this by ourselves. I have to remember every day to cling to my identity in Christ—it’s the only way I can move on from my sins and mistakes and seek forgiveness.

We work with sinful people, many of whom are not Christians. I’ve learned to ask that God would give us compassion and love for our regular customers and employees. Often it’s easier to ignore the people right in front of us—both customers and employees—and go on about the more urgent business of fixing the leaking sink or writing the week’s schedules. But we are here to serve the people on both sides of the counter, and only God can supply the grace to care for them.

What are your suggestions for those who are interested in starting their own business?

My answers to this question come mostly from other people. Bethany Warren, at Beaver Falls Coffee & Tea (BFCAT), said to write and stick to your business plan. What is your vision, and what need are you meeting? Write down your goals and be willing to change over time to meet demand.

You also need to be prepared to sacrifice a lot of your time and energy, knowing that you may not see much or any return.

Dr. Dennis Prutow asked the question, how is your prayer life? Praying for your business is the most important thing you can possibly do. If you can’t trust God to take care of things in your life now, expect to grow either in prayer or in anxiety and sorrow.

I also highly recommend having a sister in town who will feed you and keep you sane. My older sister Evelyn is an amazing source of wisdom and has supported us throughout.

What is your favorite thing to drink—or make—at Crumble?

The Honey Bear Latte, based loosely on BFCAT’s Canaan Conquest, has been one of our most popular drinks since we opened. Honey, vanilla, and cinnamon come together to make the drink a classic that I recommend to every new customer. However, both Scott’s and my favorite drink is called a Cortado: equal parts espresso and steamed milk, served in a four-ounce Gibraltar glass. It looks beautiful and has the perfect balance of espresso and milk flavor. It’s also incredibly fun and rewarding to make, as it takes a certain amount of skill. I also love making croissants and macarons for the same reasons.

Laura Noell and Scott Reynolds co-own and operate Crumble Coffee & Bakery in Bloomington, Ind. Laura is a Geneva College grad and received most of her coffee training from Russ and Bethany Warren, owners of Beaver Falls Coffee & Tea. Laura and Scott are sister- and brother-in-law and are both members of the Bloomington RP Church.