Parlour Coffee closes, clearing way for Passage

Two-and-a-half years after purchasing Parlour Coffee, Connor Vogt is closing the Exchange District business to make way for a new venture next door.

Parlour staff will pour their last drinks at 468 Main St., on Friday and then open Passage at the corner of Main Street and Bannatyne Avenue next month. The new coffee shop will feature a bigger space, longer hours and live events while retaining Parlour’s emphasis on being a gathering place, Vogt said.

“There are so many great coffee shops in our neighbourhood already doing their thing,” said Vogt, 31, naming Sho Coffee & Bar, Saintuary and Más Coffee Co., as examples. “We want to do something just a little bit different.”

While Parlour is between 400 and 500 square feet and can fit around 20 people, Passage will be more than double the size, with room for around 50 customers. Renovations are currently under way in the building, which is owned by Vogt’s father Ernie. (He also owns 468 Main St.)

Vogt did not disclose how much he’s spending to get the new shop ready. The entrepreneur is aiming for a rustic industrial look — think brick-faced walls and an exposed beam ceiling — with a warm, inviting feel. Windows on two sides of the building offer plenty of natural light, and a large wall behind the counter will be decorated with work by local artists.

Beyond serving coffee, the shop will host live music, artist-led workshops and pop ups by local vintage stores. The basement includes a meeting space as well as a workshop where Vogt and a few collaborators are working on a line of furniture also called Passage.

“So much of our life is built on the work of artists and we need to support that,” Vogt said. “That’s the ethos here.”

Vogt purchased Parlour Coffee from original owner Nils Vik toward the end of 2023.

Vik, a former EQ3 furniture designer, opened the shop in September 2011. He was at the forefront of the third wave coffee movement in Winnipeg, which brought the likes of Thom Bargen, Fools and Horses, and Café Postal.

Vik aimed to create a community atmosphere in the small café and decided against offering WiFi to discourage people from using electronic devices. In the early days, a note at the end of the menu on the wall behind the counter encouraged customers to talk to their neighbours.

Vogt, meanwhile, is a former competitive swimmer and cook who grew up in East St. Paul. After graduating from the University of Manitoba’s Asper School of Business, he worked in wealth management and accounting before returning to school for a year to study philosophy.

Vogt moved to the Exchange District nine years ago, and got to know Vik while visiting Parlour Coffee. When Vik expressed interest in selling the shop, Vogt saw an opportunity.

However, while Vogt was initially inspired by Vik’s vision, he struggled as the owner of a business built by someone else.

“I was very grateful (to take over Parlour), but it was also very heavy because I didn’t want to disrupt the thing that people already loved,” he said. “I found it very hard to find my place there in terms of bringing my perspective and my energy into things while trying to learn how to run a business and be a leader for people.”

Now he’s ready to close Parlour and open Passage.

“It took me so long to feel comfortable with myself and express myself authentically,” he said. “I’ve finally found some sense of peace over the last six to eight months and I can be myself and I can try to do things my way.”

Vogt plans to open the shop during the week of July 12. Many businesses in the Exchange District close at 5 p.m., he said, but Passage will be open late so people in the neighbourhood have somewhere to hang out in the evening.

Across the street, the general manager at Across the Board Game Café is looking forward to having a new neighbour.

“I’m happy that businesses are able to thrive enough that they can move into a bigger space,” said Hilary James. “I think it’s good for us. Technically, we (both) sell coffee, so we’re all sort of competitors, but we’re pretty different in our business model.”

She added Passage’s extended hours are a good idea.

“We often will get people (saying), ‘There’s nothing open anymore,’” James said. “It’ll be good to have more people in the area (open) later.”

aaron.epp@freepress.mb.ca