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When Kayleen Klamn and Nicole Thompson first met in kindergarten at Napavine Elementary School, the two had no idea their friendship would eventually turn into a business partnership.
Now, they are venturing into their second year in business together as the owners of the Two Brewnettes Espresso & Tap Trailer.
The Chronicle visited Two Brewnettes on Thursday, June 26, to learn more about the stand and how Klamn and Thompson ended up in business together. The mobile business is available for catering to events ranging from private celebrations and weddings to car shows and festivals throughout Lewis County.
While having met originally in kindergarten, the two became close in middle school.
“It was in sixth grade we became like best friends, when she was my catcher and I was her pitcher for softball, and the rest is history,” Thompson said. “... College happened, life happened, and then we ended up at the same espresso stand together when we were 25.”
Klamn was actually Thompson’s manager at their old job, where they spent around 15 years working together. Because of that, they didn’t really have to think twice about opening a business together.
“This kind of just came naturally,” Thompson said.
The decision to venture out on their own as business owners was prompted by a desire for change, Klamn explained.
“You get where you’re middle aged, and it’s like, ‘It’s time to do something for ourselves and something we enjoy,’” Klamn said.
Given both are now married with families, running their own coffee stand also gives them more freedom with their schedules.
Two Brewnettes officially opened on May 9, 2024, and along with fresh roasted beans from Mint City Coffee Roasting in Chehalis, Klamn and Thompson source as much of their other products locally as well.
This includes pastries and baked goods from Cinn-A-Girls Bakery in Centralia and a selection of fermented teas from KombuchaLuv in Centralia.
“We did NapaVinyl for our sweatshirts. She’s great, too,” Thompson said.
For private events only, Two Brewnettes also has keg coolers and can provide a selection of craft beers on tap from Ashtown Brewing Co. in Longview and Dick’s Brewing Company in Centralia.
“Unfortunantly, we can’t roll around with alcohol on board. Car shows are probably the biggest events where everyone is like, ‘Where’s the beer? Do you guys have beer in here?’” Thompson said.
“We’ve been to a few events for kids and parents like, ‘Beer? It says tap on there,’” Klamn added.
Recently, the duo also added an odd food pairing to serve alongside coffee at events they cater — hot dogs.
During their first year in business, they tried adding other lunch options including traditional deli meat sandwiches, salads and paninis. While they did see some sales, customers kept asking for the same thing.
“All last year at so many events, we just kept getting asked, ‘Hey, do you guys have hot dogs in here?’ We kept going, ‘Where in here are we gonna have hot dogs? This is a coffee stand,’” Klamn said.
So, finally, they added a hot dog roller grill inside the trailer, and now customers are satisfied to say the least.
“Now we sell hot dogs like crazy,” Thompson added.
Having successfully navigated their first year in business together, the duo thanked the local community for its support.
“One thing we want to share is how appreciative we are for the community support,” Klamn said. “And building such incredible relationships with the (local) food truck community. The food truck community is amazing.”
When not catering an event, Two Brewnette Espresso & Tap Trailer is normally located in the Moose Lodge parking lot located at 1400 Grand Ave. in Centralia.
For more information or to contact Klamn and Thompson about booking Two Brewnettes for an event, message them on their Facebook page at https://tinyurl.com/ye992tye or email two.brewnettes.tap@outlook.com.
