Pikes Perk Coffee & Tea House

Pikes Perk began its humble start back in 1996. Founded by Lee & Maureen Geary, the caf made its way into the hearts of Colorado Springs with an all local approach and encouraging fun events, such as "Friends night." By February of 1998, this love for Pikes Perk coffee and ambiance allowed the beginning of an expanding franchise in the Springs. It was not all fun and games, however. Coffee giant Starbucks was not going to yield the downtown area so easily to the second store, opening up shop right across the street, despite already having a location two blocks away. Pikes Perk raised brows when the owners put up a sign saying "Locally Owned: Are You Local?" in their downtown caf window where the Starbucks could see it. In April '99, the owners had opened a third store off of Uintah, which would be the last they would run before selling the franchise over to Rick & Ellen Roehrman 3 years late on April 3rd, 2002. The new owners planned to keep the expansion of the franchise running strong, but, to do this required establishing individual ownership of the shops. At its prime, the Pikes Perk sign was displayed out of eight store fronts all around Colorado Springs before the economic collapse in 2008. Many of the stores were forced to close, but the name and legend lives on, slowly making a comeback. Pikes Perk strives to provide customers with a superior specialty coffee roasted locally and encouraging a welcoming atmosphere for friends and family to relax and have fun. The vision of Locals First also remains a prevalent cause of the store, working hard to meet the goal of having everything sourced from Colorado companies. Finally, the GoGreen initative has been in place for some time, therefore another dream is to become a sustainable and fully green caf.