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Thirty-three years after two brothers started the locally loved—and widely recognized—Leelanau Coffee Roasting Co., they sold it.  The acquisition officially took place on New Year’s Day when Grand Rapids-based Schuil Coffee Co. took it over.  Like Leelanau Coffee, Schuil is a specialty, Michigan-based roaster that’s withstood the test of time. In fact, when Garry and Gladys Schuil started the company in 1981, it became the first specialty coffee roaster in the state. Inside the Glen Arbor cafe, things feel unchanged.  “Right now, it’s business as usual and will be for the foreseeable future,” said Mara Miller, the cafe’s manager and one of its longest working employees.

The Early Bird breakfast and lunch destination in downtown Leland has a new tenant—one whose brand is already ubiquitous in northern Michigan. In mid-June, John and Steve Arens, who own the Leelanau Coffee Roasting Company in Glen Arbor, will open a breakfast bistro that combines high-quality food with fresh-roasted coffee on the main drag in Leland. They are leasing the space from Skip Telgard, who owns the Blue Bird restaurant next door. The Early Bird sat empty through much of 2020 as Telgard struggled to find enough employees to staff the popular eatery.