GLADSTONE, Mich. (WZMQ) – A Gladstone business is expanding its hours and menu to take advantage of local developments while bringing the community together.
This time last year, Superbloom Coffee House was just opening for business. Owner Whitney Maloney had worked at a local brewery for a few years before deciding to start her own coffee shop.
“My inspiration behind it was coming out of COVID and just really feeling like we lost that sense of community, that physically coming together, and real human interaction,” she said. “What rooted the idea for me was that idea of community, providing this for the community.”
Maloney says that is exactly what Superbloom has become. In May, the City decided to establish a social district along Delta Avenue, sparking a new idea for the business.
“Bringing more foot traffic to the downtown, really utilizing this awesome space that we have in Gladstone—I really wanted to be a part of that, but I actually quit drinking about two and a half years ago after leaving the brewery,” said Maloney.
Setting out to offer an inclusive experience for everyone, she came up with Flora by Superbloom. She transformed the business into a coffee shop by day and a mocktail bar by night.
“The more I talked about it, the more excited people got about having a non-alcoholic option where you can still come together and enjoy each other’s company without it being centered around alcohol,” Maloney said. “I really think that that’s something that’s lacking in society as a whole, but definitely in the U.P. and in Gladstone.”
Superbloom makes its coffee syrups in-house. Maloney is translating that practice to the Flora side of the business to produce a unique, rotating menu of zero-proof drinks.
“Right now, we’ve got a non-alcoholic margarita, which was the one drink that maybe I start to miss in the summer as a non-drinker,” she said. “It’s got non-alcoholic tequila with fresh lime juice and some homemade simple syrup. We have a paloma we make with what’s called Three Spirits—a botanical elixir—so it’s got a lot of really good health benefits to it, like adaptogens. That’s got fresh, muddled grapefruit and some grapefruit sparkling water. Then we use a thing called kava kava root. They call it a ‘botanical buzz,’ but it just makes you feel really good. That is a kava mule, so it is borrowing from those flavors of the muddled mint, the ginger beer, the kava kava powder, and a lime juice.”
In June, Flora is operating on Fridays and Saturdays from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. Maloney says the mocktail bar was a hit with customers on its first day of business earlier this month.
Maloney says she is actively engaging with the public to learn what community members want to see from Flora by Superbloom as it grows.
“There’s so much opportunity here in the outdoor space and in Gladstone in general,” she said. “We just like to keep those lines of communication open with trying to get more folks in and just really being open to that feedback.”
To keep up with Flora by Superbloom hours and menu changes, follow Superbloom Coffee House on Facebook.