Two Lakewood Friends Are Building Community at Their New Cafe, Brynmor

In August, longtime friends Lacey Collum and Amy Genaris debuted a new cafe on the corner of West Colfax Avenue and Carr Street in Lakewood. Yes, the coffee at Brynmor is delicious. Yes, the space is well lit and has plenty of seating. There’s a really cool mural, too. But what really makes this new cafe shine is how welcoming it is.

Collum and Genaris know everyone’s kids, who’s getting married, who’s speaking at the PTA next, and who’s stopping by to jam. Community, in a word, is what is being made at Brynmor — something we need more than ever.

We spoke with Brynmor Coffee's owners about the business and what it means to them:

Westword: How did Brynmor come to be?

Genaris: I came out here eleven years ago, and Lacey was one of first people I met. We were opening a new climbing gym [Earth Treks, now Movement] in Golden. She was one of our first hires, and I never left!

Collum: The name Brynmor means “great hill," a Welsh word that’s a nod to my heritage and the mountains being what brought Amy and I together in the first place. A lot of people who are longtime Denver residents know of Common Grounds [which closed in 2020 after 28 years]. That was my first job out here, and it holds a very special place in my heart. My husband and I would leave for up to a year at a time to climb and live in our van, and every single time they had a place for me [on staff], like a longtime friend that you can just pick up [with] where you left off. ... I always had it in the back my head that if I had the opportunity, I would have my own shop with that similar community and focus. I also knew I didn’t want to do it alone.

Genaris: Two years ago, Lacey told me, ‘I’m doing this, for real,” so we sat down in her kitchen, drew up a partnership agreement, and she was like, "Aren’t you nervous about doing this?" And I was like, no, I’m really not. Let’s just do it! I would do it all over again.

Collum: We both put our life savings into this.

Genaris: From the artwork to the furniture to the actual buildout, we got a lot of help from a lot of friends.
What do you think Brymor Coffee means to Lakewood?

Collum: The overall theme is supporting local. This mural artist here is my neighbor — walking distance from the shop. In September, there was The Glens Art Walk, and I met [artist Alex Rodriguez] there and thought how her work would really help our colorful space here. If there’s interest from someone in the community, we’d love to showcase it here.

Genaris: We’ve also had artwork from students at Rocky Mountain School of Art & Design. When they approached us, we were just so happy.

Collum: I was really excited when we opened to get to know people because we’re in their walking range. Just south of us, there a lot of first-time home buyers moving into the area.

Genaris: A lot of early thirty-somethings.

Collum: Yeah, and a great diversity of neighborhoods surrounding us in every direction, and I think we’re easily accessible for all of them. We just really want to create a gathering space where people can come together for delicious coffee and community.
Genaris: I’ve been really surprised who our customers are. I was expecting commuters going east on Colfax. Our biggest customer base are families who live in the neighborhood and walk here, work remote, coming in here to get out of their houses for a bit. ... We know them now. I know all their kids’ names, where they go to school. ... I mean, I love that! Just having conversations while I’m making drinks for people. We also have a lot of older people coming in from the north. They are interesting and lovely and they love to talk, and I feel like I am just getting to know this community where we live. Because of this, I joined the PTA for South Lakewood Elementary, and now we like to help them out.”

Collum: We also love [Lakewood City Council member] Isabel Cruz. We’ve gotten to know her — she’s great.

Genaris: Same with some of the folks at the West Colfax Community Association, and we’re going to be their November sponsor. We’ll have our coffee and breakfast burritos.

Collum: Not to mention the local businesses who’ve been here for decades, like Chicago Market and Colorado Cookie Company.

Genaris: I feel we’re helping them as much as they’re helping us. So many times, they've sent customers over here and we our customers back intentionally. We want to work with them. We love them. And all of those guys from the tattoo shops come in, lots of musicians, including two of our baristas. It’s just fun. ... We would love to partner with our neighbor businesses more. We’re applying for a grant to build a patio out back next year. We love the idea of open mics.

Collum: That’s the ideal vision here. We want to showcase one another’s strengths as businesses, and we would love to collaborate with Mint & Serif Cafe. I believe they feel the same way — that together we can make this area a destination for good coffee and music.

Brymor Coffee is located at 1480 Carr Street in Lakewood and is open from 7 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Saturday. For more information, visit brynmorcoffee.com.