MEMBER PROFILE - Wired Café from April Voice 2022

MORE THAN JUST A GOOD CUP OF JOE:

Wired Café

By Paul Anthony Arco

The past two years have been hard on many small business owners, and that’s certainly been the case for Crystal Douglas, owner of Wired Cafe in downtown Rockford.

Despite the many challenges running a business, Douglas knows her customers need her now more than ever.

Recently, Douglas came across her business plan that she wrote 12 years ago. “I wanted to create a place where people could form relationships over a cup of coffee,” she said. “I wanted to build a Cheers-type of place where people could come together, get away from their problems and feel safe.”

In 2010, Douglas and her two daughters, Shanna Hill and Maggie Douglas, opened Wired Cafe, named because of its connection to coffee as well as the Internet. Shanna and Maggie both had previous experience working in coffee shops, and all three women shared a love for a good cup of brew.

“Any time we went out some place we ended up in a coffee shop,” says Douglas. “And when I went to visit them at work I always said, ‘This looks like fun. I can do this.’”

After looking at different locations, Douglas chose downtown Rockford to call home. “We like the vibes of a downtown, whether it’s a small town or mid-size city like Rockford,” she said. “Downtown has so much life and a family feeling thanks to the neighboring businesses.”

Local Favorites

Wired is open Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Breakfast is served all day and includes popular items such as a burrito bowl and avocado toast. For lunch, there’s salads, soups, wraps and sandwiches, including the popular Don’t Tell Hammy – a ham, Swiss served on a sweet brioche bread, and The Kevin Haas, named after a local reporter, and includes beef, barbecue, bacon, jalapeno, and gouda cheese.

The kids’ menu offers peanut butter and jelly, macaroni and cheese and a Bitty Buster Bub, a smaller version of the Buster Bub (toasted English muffin, diced apples, peanut butter, and honey). There are plenty of baked goods – the Wired Cafe muffin, Crack bars (oatmeal, chocolate and caramel), banana bread and seasonal items such as pumpkin and lemon bars.

The drink menu features house coffee, flavored lattes, cappuccino, hot teas and fruit smoothies. The coffee is purchased from roasters in Michigan, the espresso from the state of Washington, and on Fridays, Wired offers an original roast produced by Fireman Dept. Coffee, a Rockford-based business operated by active and retired Rockford firefighters.

Customers pop in from nearby businesses, and as far as Belvidere, Winnebago and Roscoe. Tim Hanson has been a regular visitor for years. “I love going into Wired every morning,” he says. “After I leave there, I know I’m going to have a great day. There is no better place in town for a morning pick-me-up.”

But foot traffic has changed in the past two years due to COVID. The main reasons – more people working from home and Zoom meetings replacing in-person gatherings. “On the positive side, we are seeing more people meeting here for first-time dates, and more people are stopping in after shopping downtown,” she said. “And we’re doing more box lunch business, so that helps.”

Despite uncertain times, it’s the customers that keep Douglas going – like the retired group of guys who arrive every morning when the doors open, the ladies who show up twice a week after yoga or the group of strangers who met at Wired and later formed a book club.

“When I get in the dumps, I focus on the relationships,” Douglas said. “I can’t imagine getting through the past couple of years without our loyal customers. We were all there for each other, and that’s pretty cool.”

WIRED CAFE -- Owner: Crystal Douglas 414 E. State St. 815-316-2524