Now Reading
Cat Café Claws its Way to Denver

Cat Café Claws its Way to Denver

Amanda Moutinho

Every cat person has a hole in their heart that can only be filled with lots of cat lovin’. It can be a dark existence for those who don’t have a furry friend in their lives. Luckily, the new cat café Denver Cat Company opening in December will finally help us get our feline fix.

Cat cafés are all the rage around the world, because who doesn’t enjoy being covered in cats as they sip their coffee? Asia started the craze several years ago. Since then, they’ve been popping up in Europe and they’re finally starting to trickle to the United States, with Denver being one of the first locales.

For the new Denver café, all thanks goes to Sana Hamelin, an attorney who left her job and followed her love of cats into owning her own business.

“I was a corporate litigator who decided that was too stressful a life,” she says. “It didn’t satisfy my creative side at all. As an attorney, you never create anything. So I was on this path of wondering what to do with myself. I had just turned 32 and didn’t want to spend my 30s sitting in an office.”

Sana’s been a cat lover since she was a child. She grew up in Saudi Arabia, a place, Sana says, that is filled with cats, but they aren’t seen as pets. She says her parents weren’t fans of cats, but Sana constantly kept her furry companions around. America is the first culture she’s experienced that has so much respect for cats and other animals, making them an important part of the family.

“[Where I grew up], nobody gave any mind to the cats around,” she says. “No one tried to improve the cats’ lives. Even though that attitude was all around me, it never really influenced me. I loved cats naturally, and I never questioned it.”

After quitting her job, she realized that cat cafés were on the horizon, and she wanted to open one before someone beat her to it. So she took the plunge and started the process in July, using her savings and crowdfunding efforts.

The café will feature a rotation of 8 – 10 cats from the Rocky Mountain Feline Rescue, and all cats will be available for adoption. Sana says one of the reasons she chose to work with the shelter was because the cats aren’t in cages and are free to roam about. That also means cats are used to socializing with people and other cats. For anyone apprehensive, Sana will be supervising in case the cats get — ahem — catty.

Opening a new business is a process that comes one step at time, and Sana is finding out the cat cafés come with their own set of issues. Her challenges have been dealing with health codes and zoning permits, which is the reason she had to push back her November 15 opening date to mid-December. But she’s determined to keep moving forward. Since it’s such a new market, she’s hoping that as more cafés pop up around the country, each can start learning from one another.

And for those who are hoping to bring their cats, you’re out of luck. The only cats at the café will be from the shelter, so save yourself some scratches from trying to transport your cat in the car, and just enjoy the cutie kitties already there.

The café’s environment is going to focus on a cozy environment with mismatched mugs, art, books, and cats, obviously. Sana is including a book-lending library for customers. She is also partnering with Teller Street Gallery & Studios to bring in some local art. Beyond that, she is calling for any artists who want to display their work to contact her.

For anyone anxious to visit the café, Sana says they can volunteer or donate to the cause. Meow’s a good time.

For more information visit DenverCatCo.com.

What's Your Reaction?
Excited
0
Happy
0
In Love
0
Not Sure
0
Silly
0
Scroll To Top