ANN ARBOR, MI -- When Hailey Polidori had the idea to open a café just a few years ago, she didn’t drink coffee.
Polidori, 26, was a student at Central Michigan University when she first realized she wanted to open her own business.
“There was a coffee shop there that I was always really drawn to,” Polidori said. “I didn’t really drink a ton of coffee at the time, but just something about the atmosphere and the type of people that came in really brought me into the whole idea of wanting to be in a café.”
Now, Polidori is the owner of Hazel Coffee Co., a mobile café built into a 1969 Red Dale trailer she calls Hazel. She named her trailer after hazelnuts, since her mother always drinks hazelnut coffee.
Polidori, who currently lives in Ann Arbor, first launched the concept while living in Austin, Texas, with her now-fiancé.
“There were coffee shops on every block. They were all so different and (had) so much personality,” Polidori said. “And everywhere I went, I just felt like the best people were always attracted to the shops. So I started working in coffee, knew I loved it, and it’s what I wanted to do.”
Despite not drinking coffee when first joined the industry, Polidori soon fell in love with the process of making drinks while working as a barista.
“I got to the point where I just loved making coffee so much that if I didn’t have anybody to make it for, I was just going to work on latte art and drink it myself,” she said. “So as soon as I started working in it, I got to loving it really quickly.”
Polidori returned to Michigan to be closer to family and was licensed by Michigan to serve out of Hazel in late August. Although she hopes to build up a community base in Ann Arbor, she also appears at local farmers markets and other pop-up events.
Building a space for the creative community is important to her concept, Polidori said.
“In one way or another, we all have different areas where we can shine and kind of put our own spin on things,” Polidori said, adding that she loves connecting regular customers with each other. “…Maybe they do the same thing or they can help each other out in some way. Then being able to see them come back to your cafe and meet and build a genuine friendship is really cool.”
Polidori uses house-made syrups — current flavors are centered around pumpkin — and serves up a variety of espresso and cold brew. Her roasted coffee comes from Gooseneck Coffee Co in Plymouth.
Although she plans to keep Hazel, Polidori hopes to eventually open a permanent location with a bay where can park the trailer. While customers will still be served out of the trailer, they will eventually be able to take their drinks to more enclosed seating.
“There’s so many different ways you can be creative,” Polidori said. “I think having a space that encourages that and encourages you to kind of build on that and share what you’re working on just further pumps back into your community.”
Hazel Coffee Co. will be at the Canton Farmers Market, 500 N. Ridge Road, Canton, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 11 and Graye’s Greenhouse, 8820 N Lilley Rd, Plymouth, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 17.
Find Hazel Coffee Co. online or on social media.
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