Note: This story has been updated with the link to the Indiegogo campaign for Cupcats, which is now live.
Love cats? Love cafes? Then you may be interested in helping support a local woman who plans to open what will be the Lehigh Valley’s first “cat cafe” in Bethlehem by the beginning of next year.
What is a cat cafe?
“A cat cafe is a cafe that fosters cats from a local animal shelter,” baker and cat lover Breanna “Bre” Cropley explained.
In the cafe and bakery Cropley plans to open, called Cupcats, there will be a separate room called the “cat lounge.”
“We (will) have a separated room to keep the cats and food prep areas separated for the safety of the customers and the cats,” she said. “Guests can grab a cupcake and/or coffee and head into the cat lounge if they have bought a reservation.”
Bre Cropley with a feline friend.
The cafe will also serve tea, cookies and cake pops, with vegan food options available.
Guests will also be able to visit the cat lounge without a reservation, space permitting, in half hour ($5) or hour ($10) increments.
Cropley said specific rules will be posted and enforced for the safety of both customers and cats.
A goal of a cat cafe is to give people a place to socialize with adoption-ready felines in an environment that’s more social and comfortable than a typical shelter setting.
“This also gives the shelter we are working with the chance to take on more cats and save more cats in need,” Cropley said. “Cat cafes help spread the word on the importance of adoption.”
Cropley, who is originally from the West Coast, said Bethlehem reminds her of some of the Pacific Northwest’s bigger cities.
“All my life I wanted to go back in that direction, until recently,” she said. “Bethlehem was always my favorite part of the Lehigh Valley, and after not seeing it for some time I came back and noticed how much it’s growing into a mini version of my favorite parts of the West Coast: Portland and Seattle.”
It was during a trip to Oregan one summer, she said in a recent Instagram post, that she visited a cat cafe and felt inspired to open one back home.
“(I) immediately knew this is what I wanted to bring to the valley,” she wrote. “A relaxing space where you can escape and hang out for a while in a room full of cats that are just looking for a home. A place where I can give cats the chance to find a loving home outside of the shelter. As well as a place for me to create unique treats!”
Bre Cropley says Cupcats Cat Cafe and Bakery will open in early 2020 if her goals for developing and raising capital for the business are met this year.
Bethlehem is home to several colleges and universities, which play a part in Cropley’s business plan; a plan that also includes launching an Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign to help raise some of the capital she needs to launch the business.
College students living on campus in Bethlehem obviously won’t be able to adopt any of the cats the cat cafe will be fostering, but “I am hoping that my cat cafe can bring students staying on campus a sense of comfort,” she said. “I’m hoping that the ones who are missing their pet can come here and feel a little bit at home for the time being.”
“I thought the cat cafe would be perfect for the…city of Bethlehem,” Cropley said.
To learn more about Cupcats, you can follow Cropley on Instagram: @cupcats_lv.
You’ll also have a chance to meet her at upcoming events, including “Cats for Tats,” which will be held “Caturday,” March 9 from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Raygun Samurai Tattoo, 7 E. Third St., Bethlehem. In addition to cat and cupcake-themed tattoo specials there will be food and drinks available for purchase along with raffles. Proceeds will help benefit Cropley’s mission to open Cupcats. Click here to follow the Facebook event.
Cropley said she is also planning to host a fundraiser at Sleepy Cat Urban Winery in Allentown on April 27.
At these events, and in between them, Cropley plans to continue to grow her social media following in anticipation of the launch of the Indiegogo campaign, which will reward donors with various perks.
“I know we have many cat lovers in the Lehigh Valley and I get a great response when I tell people about (Cupcats),” she said.
