Inspiring Conversations with Julia Freemont of Flora + Fauna café and roaster

Today we’d like to introduce you to Julia Freemont. 

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
My husband, Hunter, and I met while working for a local coffee company in Nashville. We both had a passion for the hospitality industry and both had dreams of opening our own coffee shop one day. A few years ago, we began to seriously consider taking the plunge to open our own place. We shared our vision for Flora + Fauna with some friends, Kristin and David Saunders. They decided to partner with us to turn our vision into a reality. We found the perfect location in the Highland Yards building and designed a beautiful space with WBA Architecture. 

We are currently in the process of building out the café. We will hopefully open in early 2022. Inside our space, we’ll have a full kitchen offering breakfast and lunch dishes that will change with the seasons. We’ll be roasting our own coffee right in the cafe and we’ll offer a full beverage menu with coffee and alcoholic options. We are very excited to serve the East Nashville community, which have already shown us a lot of love. 

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
We have definitely had some challenges. We are used to managing coffee shops and running coffee programs but this will be our first café buildout! Trying to open a place in the middle of a pandemic is for sure quite a challenge. We have had several delays getting construction started and we running into long lead times on equipment and materials. There’s nothing you can really do about it so you just have to take a deep breath and know that it will all be worth it in the end! It’s all been a learning curve but we have been very fortunate to work with some talented people who have been guiding us through and keeping us sane. 

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
Flora + Fauna is a local cafe and coffee roaster. We offer fresh seasonal breakfast and lunch dishes as well a full beverage menu with coffee, tea, and alcohol. We take our coffee pretty seriously and will be roasting our own coffee inside the café. We wanted to create a space where all guests can feel at ease and order something healthy and delicious and relax with some plants. Located in the Highland Yards building on Douglas Ave, it’s the perfect space to grab a coffee or quick bite before checking out some of the other businesses in the building. 

So, before we go, how can our readers or others connect or collaborate with you? How can they support you?
We hope to be able to welcome guests into our space in early 2022. Until then, you can follow us on Instagram @florafaunanashville to stay updated on our progress or sign up for our mailing list on our website www.florafaunanashville.com. 

Contact Info:

• Website: florafaunanashville.com
• Instagram: @florafaunanashville

Image Credits
Heatherly Benedict