University students will soon be able to find one of their favorite breakfasts at a new location when Kolache Kitchen owner Will Edwards opens a new store near Towne Center on Jefferson Highway around March.
This month marks Edwards’ second full year in business, and with revenue up 40 percent from his first year, he is confident in his decision to open another restaurant.
“I’d always hoped that it would take off, that we would be able to open another one,” Edwards said. “But I didn’t expect to be able to open one this quick.”
Edwards said he was prompted to open a new location after discovering many of his customers were not University students.
He sifted through the credit card transactions made at his store and noticed many of them had zip codes from the Towne Center area.
“Students were my initial audience,” Edwards said of his customer base. “They are the majority here, but they only make up about 60 percent, not 80 or 90 like you might think.”
He thinks the Jefferson Highway location will attract more families and a slightly older demographic than the Nicholson location.
“Jefferson’s a big retail area — a lot of businesses,” Edwards said. “I think we’ll do good there.”
Criminology junior and Kolache Kitchen customer Jeffrey Martin anticipates the new location will be successful.
“That area is more diverse,” Martin said. “Plus, students leave during breaks, so a store on that side of town should help.”
Edwards also has plans to expand the Kolache Kitchen menu and increase the restaurant’s hours.
The new menu will feature a small variety of lunch items such as salads and sandwiches.
“We’re going to add a couple things, but we’re not going to try to go too far out of the box,” Edwards said.
The new menu items will be available at the Jefferson location upon opening, but the menu at the Nicholson store won’t be updated until a later date.
The store’s new hours are not yet available, but Edwards said they will most likely be extended until early evening.
Music junior Rebecca Schreiber said she thinks it’s wise to include new food on the menu.
“I’m probably not going to purchase those items there, but I think it’s a good thing for their business,” Schreiber said. “Not everyone knows what a kolache is, so other options are a good thing.”
Though Edwards hopes to see his new location become just as successful as his first, he said he won’t start a franchise.
“Baton Rouge is plagued by chains,” Edwards said. “People love the locality of the restaurant. The customers love knowing that they have access to something no one outside of Baton Rouge has.