New coffee shop opens in Palmer

Palmer’s newest coffee shop, Wild Spruce Coffee, celebrated its grand opening last Tuesday. From start to finish, owners Erik and Hope Gerasimyuk opened their business in only three and a half weeks.

“Three and a half weeks of really late nights and a lot of stress,” Erik said. “With the family and everyone who helped, it got done a lot faster than we both thought it would. It almost seems unreal.”

Hope said the two had previously tossed around the idea of starting a coffee shop. After driving by their new location at 123 E. Blueberry Ave, the two thought it would be a great space for the business. After reaching out to the owner, Erik and Hope started the process of paperwork, logistics and preparing the physical space to fit their needs.

Erik said he had doubts throughout the process, but that Hope was there by his side encouraging him along the way. This is the first business that either one has started on their own and both currently work other full time jobs.

Wild Spruce Coffee will be open Monday through Saturday from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. They will be offering hot and cold coffee, smoothies, milkshakes and other tasty beverages similar to those found in other shops. They also offer breakfast burritos, sandwiches and muffins. Hope said they would like to partner with a local bakery to offer even more food items in the future.

While Erik and Hope are still trying to figure things out during their first weeks of operation, they said that they are most looking forward to creating new relationships with customers throughout the community. After only a few days in business, Hope said they’re already seeing return customers.

“I think for both of us, it’s getting to meet all the Palmer community and to see how we can build relationships and see our usual customers,” Hope said.

The staff at Wild Spruce Coffee has been working hard every day to meet the community’s needs. Hope said they have received feedback on ways to improve their shop and make the most of this new opportunity to engage and grow within their community.

“We’re not super big coffee connoisseurs, but we definitely notice Alaska is,” Hope said. “Alaska loves its coffee and we thought we’d give this location a try.”