Coffee and teahouse to open on south side

A husband-and-wife team is bringing a new coffee and teahouse concept to south Springfield.

Greg and Cherie Venturella plan to open Travellers House Coffee on April 23 at 2151 W. Republic Road in Republic Plaza.

The name of the business stems from the Venturellas’ previous 18-year careers as missionaries through Assemblies of God, most recently as area directors for missions in 11 countries in southeastern Europe.

“This is kind of a third career,” said Venturella, who also has worked with Convoy of Hope and has 20 years of experience as a residential and commercial general contractor in California and Colorado. “When we lived overseas, we really came to understand how other cultures enjoyed coffee and tea.”

Venturella said the company signed a five-year lease for the 2,400-square-foot property for $9 per square foot with RCM Properties LLC. The space formerly housed Hometown Veterinary Hospital, which moved to 2215 W. Republic Road, Ste. A. Startup funds were obtained through a $150,000 U.S. Small Business Administration-backed loan from The Bank of Missouri.

Venturella said the shop would feature coffee from Kansas City-based The Roasterie and 33 varieties of loose-leaf teas from Adagio Teas and Harney & Sons, both on the East Coast. The store also would sell handcrafted artisan sandwiches, small salads and breakfast items.

“We’ll also have tea information classes, coffee cuppings and pour-overs,” Venturella said, adding a business goal is to have portions of sales directly support local nonprofits through Travellers House’s loyalty program.

The Venturellas’ sons Nick and Andrew work for the venture in areas of design and finance, respectively. Greg Venturella said the company plans to hire between six and 10 part-time workers in advance of the opening.

“That’s the big picture,” Venturella said. “We’d love to someday go into other cities and go international, but we have to get this started first.”