Ballard said she encourages creativity among her employees, which results in creations like this latte.[/caption]

Mugz Coffee Bar began celebrating its 10th year in operation in February, but owner Christine Ballard said it is a yearlong celebration. The coffee shop at 503 FM 359 Ste. 190, Richmond was opened by Lynn Briscoe and Tammy Ellis in 2007, but Ballard purchased the cafe in 2011.

“My story has always been, ‘Who doesn’t want to be in a coffee shop all the time?’” Ballard said. “I came in and [the owner] told me her life story, and she was looking to sell.”

Ballard took a chance and purchased the business—in which she had no previous experience—and she said the gamble was a successful one.

“I had never worked in a coffee shop, but I had 10 years in the restaurant industry,” she said. “So I went for it, and I’ve owned it for 5 and a half years.”

She credits her success partly to innovation, carrying local products and serving fresh baked goods.

“Most privately owned coffee shops don’t last 10 years, so I am faced with continuing to innovate,” Ballard said, “[I sell] nitro cold brew coffee, we exclusively serve Katz Coffee, [and] we make everything from scratch, so our muffins and our scones are made in-house always.”

Ballard said Katz Coffee—a Houston area coffee producer that specializes in small batch, custom roasting—direct sources its coffee, which allows the company to deliver fresh coffee instead of coffee that may have become stale from sitting on a boat while in transit.

Another part of its success is that Mugz acts as a networking place for different groups of people in the community, she said.

“Young people, older people and a lot of the parents come in groups,” Ballard said. “We are a very active place for stay at-home workers and families; this is a community church meeting spot, stitchery groups, all kinds of Bunko groups have met here for 10 years. So what we are celebrating is that we have been the place to come to for everything.”

She is grateful for the success that she has found within the community.

“We appreciate the 10 years that we have had,” she said. “We are proud to have been a part of Richmond.”