Well Red, a bookstore, coffee shop, and wine bar in Auburn, Ala., will open a third location, to be called The Fox, that will focus exclusively on coffee. The Auburn Plainsman owners Richard and Crystal Tomasello launched the original Well Red on Opelika Road in June 2020, and announced last September they were adding a second location, on Donahue Drive, which has an anticipated opening date in June. They are aiming to open The Fox, at 124 Tichenor Ave., later this month.
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| Owners Crystal and Richard Tomasello | |
When Maddie Corbeau decided to close The Coffee Cat, she said she contacted Well Red "because I couldn't imagine a better fit in this space. I know them very well. Richard and Crystal are good friends of mine, and we worked together a little bit in the beginning of the dream stages of Well Red, because we have the same favorite bookstore and cafe in Asheville, North Carolina."
Richard Tomasello added: "We've always loved this place. Maddie helped us actually. She consulted with us on the coffee side of things and buying equipment and training and all for this place. We've known her for years and you know, she really helped Well Red in the beginning, so we've always had a great relationship with her."
The Fox will be a departure from their original coffee and bookstore model. Instead of selling books, the new shop is focusing on promotion of its coffees, teas and pastries. Tomasello explained that they want to distinguish the shop from the other two Well Red locations, and since there is already a downtown bookstore, Auburn Oil Co. Booksellers, The Fox will not sell new books, nor will it serve beer and wine.
"We're still working out the hours and things like that, because the Coffee Cat did late nights. And you know, that is something completely different than I think anybody else coffee-wise is doing in town," he said. "We've had some of their regulars approach us [who] tried to pitch us on keeping those hours going."