Nibbles + Bites

Performance Coffeehouse opened in mid-March and serves a variety of beverages and delectable desserts and pastries.

Percolating Performances

Performance Coffee House blends musical talent with great java

by Karel Bond Lucander | photography by Jamie Cowles

Laura Rumple started a voice training studio, The Singer’s Spotlight, that’s been going strong for more than a decade. But recently, she and husband, Jeff, brewed their first loves into a second business: Performance Coffee House in downtown Mooresville. Here, musical talent blends perfectly with coffee, which is what first brought the couple together.

Rewind to 2009 when Laura, touring as a professional singer, first patronized Jeff’s Addicted to the Bean in Madeira Beach, Fla. She was just finishing seven years on the road as female vocalist and songwriter in the contemporary Christian band, His Season. Jeff wrote a note

Left: A welcoming space at the coffeehouse. Right: Performance Coffeehouse owners Laura and Jeff Rumple with their three children.

on her coffee cup, revealing his interest in her. And they began a long-distance courtship as she returned home to Ontario to transition into a new career as certified ViP vocal coach. As their relationship steamed up, Laura moved to Florida and they tied the knot. After a few years, they sold their business, relocated to North Carolina where Jeff’s parents lived, and added three children to their family.

In January, when the space opened a block from The Singer’s Spotlight, they jumped at it.

“We started talking about it just before Christmas and opened our doors in mid-March,” Laura says. “The stars just aligned so perfectly. I thought, ‘If God is leading me in this direction, I’m going to be open to it.’ We believe in the big vision more than anything.”

susTaining naTure, Free Trade & even lives

Java Estate was purveyor of coffee beans for Jeff’s Florida coffee house. After touring the North Carolina-based facility again recently, the Rumples decided to continue their relationship with this organic, fair trade coffee source.

“The consistency is so on point,” Laura says. “It’s smooth with a really good coffee flavor. Java Estate provides excellence, and we have had a great response from the community about the coffee!”

Part of their business plan includes donating 10 percent of all daily sales to Children’s Impact Network, which rescues abandoned, abused and neglected children worldwide.

“We were adamant about making that part of our DNA,” she adds.

Pair your full-bodied coffee, flavored latte, tea, hot chocolate or signature caramel steamer with a delectable treat from Red’s Scratch Made cookies or goodies from Queen City Pastry, including brownies, biscotti and lemon or rum walnut bars. “We’ll always have something delicious from a local company,” she says.

percolaTing The careers oF FuTure Famous perFormers

The Performance Coffee House accommodates up to 100 people, with garage doors that open to more outdoor seating. Here, musicians and singers that have auditioned in advance or that Rumple knows through her vocal training try their bright talent on a pop-up stage.

“The stage is about promoting artistry to the community,” she says. “If they don’t have an outlet for it, that is what this is for.”

Guests can sip first-class java and nibble tasty treats while enjoying the talent of various genres. These have included “show tunes,” “pop music” “singer-songwriters’ showcase” and, coming on June 19, “princesses,” featuring dresses, tiaras, fun cakes and an Elsa from “Frozen” extravaganza. Recently, 10-year-old Anna Haller, who is just off of Broadway, graced the stage along with “phenomenally talented” Ethan Regan, who Rumple describes as “a young Ed Sheeran.”

“We’re hosting people we think will be famous in the future,” she says. “People that I believe are on the road.”

giving a plaTForm To greaT TalenT and coFFee

“We want people to come in and have community with a really great cup of coffee,” Laura says. “And we’re giving a platform to really great talent in our backyard. They don’t always have a stage or way to be discovered, but here they can share it.”

Performance Coffee House

143 S Broad Street, Mooresville 704.677.3448 performancecoffeehouse.com