A cornerstone of the community: Chemn Cafe brings people together

Plenty of people consider their morning coffee essential, but it’s hard to imagine a coffee shop making itself an essential piece of the community quite like Monica Nava and her daughter/partner Deja Cooper have with Chemn Cafe. In the nearly seven years since the shop opened, it has become a place for people to gather for a cup of coffee, but also a place of comfort, and a resource during challenging times and an anchor in a piece of downtown that has seen a tremendous resurgence in the past couple of years.  

Take Covid, for example. While other businesses around town were forced to close in response to public health concerns, Chemn (the N is silent) remained open under an exemption for restaurants. So when Monica, who had opened her doors just nine months earlier, saw lines around the block at the local H-E-B, she recognized an opportunity to help. She brought in a refrigerator and started buying 50-pound bags of flour, sugar, and other staples at the restaurant supply store. Customers didn’t come in much for coffee in those days, but her family delivered coffee, eggs, milk, and other groceries residents were struggling to find elsewhere. 

When a 2021 ice storm caused extended power outages for many residents, the girls stepped up again. Monica and Deja held a drive to distribute the cafe’s food before it spoiled, then solicited donations to keep the project running once their own refrigerator was emptied. Along with a team of volunteers, they created an assembly line to take orders, package supplies and deliver everything from soup to diapers. 

“I think that just really helped drive home that we’re going to show up when we’re asked and even when nobody asks us to help support the community,” Monica said. “People still tell me they can’t believe I did those things, but in my mind helping people is just what you should do.”

Today, the duo continue to serve the community. Both have served time on Elgin’s Main Street Board, helping to coordinate the We Are Blood blood drives and assist with the Elgin Community Cupboard. Deja – Chemn’s general manager – is also the school’s PTA President, sits on the Elgin Rec Center board and The Elgin High School education foundation volunteer member. 

"We are grateful to have Chemn Cafe as a part of our community,” said Kaley Frye, EDC Director. “Their continued support and commitment to making a positive impact truly reflect what it means to be a great community partner."  

Learning on the fly

Opening Chemn Cafe at all was a leap of faith for Monica. When she first moved to Elgin, she was commuting to work in Austin every day. The drive added about three hours to her day, which created challenges for her entrepreneurial spirit. So, when Monica had a foot injury, she used her recovery time to start planning her own business. She wasn’t sure at the time what that business would be, but she had long loved locally owned coffee shops as places to work and gather. And since Elgin didn’t have a sit-down coffee shop at the time, that’s where she landed.

Even then, it took Monica three years of study, planning, and research before she was ready to open. She spent a year working for a roaster to learn that end of the business, as well as a short stint at a coffee truck in Austin. But she still didn’t know how Chemn would be received when she first opened the door.

“It was scary, because no one had had a brick & mortar coffee shop like this in Elgin before. I really had to earn everyone’s trust and faith,” said Monica. “It was nerve wracking, especially because I’m in a strip on Main Street that at the time had about 50% vacancy. Right now we’re probably at 90% occupancy, which is huge. That just speaks to the growth in the area.”  

Monica set out from the start to make Chemn a place where people felt comfortable gathering. When she opened, she had a small lending library filled with thrifted books. When that didn’t catch on, she replaced the books with puzzles and toys that kids could play with while their parents chatted with friends or enjoyed some quiet time with a cup of coffee. 

The community has noticed Monica’s efforts, and they have paid her back with support. One long-time customer and Elginite volunteered to paint a mural on one of the shop’s walls. And Deja said she appreciates having the shop as a way to teach her own children about the value of community. 

“I didn’t grow up with that sense of community, so it’s really invaluable to have a place like that where people can get together over coffee and where we can support each other in times of need,” Deja said. “We’ve been through so much since we’ve been here, it’s like an extended family. I wouldn’t want to go anywhere else.” 

Monica said she’s heard suggestions that she should turn Chemn into a franchise and open in other cities. But she can’t imagine replicating what has happened in Elgin anywhere else. 

“The relationships we’ve built, the investment we have in the community, that’s not something you can just pick up and move,” Monica said. “It’s something that happened organically here, and I don’t believe it can be repeated.” 

Residents of Elgin can appreciate that it happened at all. 

To learn more about the businesses that make Elgin a special place to live and work, contact the Elgin Economic Development Corporation today.