Mugs ’n Mittens Cat Café slated to open in Fairmont next month

Mugs ’n Mittens Cat Café will open Sept. 2 in downtown Fairmont, founded by newlyweds Keith Hamilton and Morgan Boyles.

FAIRMONT — Fairmont’s newest coffee shop is sure to be the cat’s meow — and that’s because the business will place its feline friends in a very prominent role.

Mugs ’n Mittens Cat Café is slated to open Sept. 2 in Fairmont, founded by Fairmont residents and newlyweds Keith Hamilton and Morgan Boyles.

The cafe, located at 1620 Locust Avenue, will serve coffee beverages and baked goods — and also house 10 rescue cats that guests can play with when inside the shop.

The entrepreneurial idea blends Hamilton’s experience working with cats and Boyles’ background working in a coffee shop.

Hamilton said he had thought about opening a cat cafe for some time, but the plans really came into motion when the couple saw Facebook users express interest in visiting a cat cafe in town.

“We jumped on the idea,” he said.

In addition to housing 10 cats long term, the cafe plans to host recurring adoption events with the Marion County Humane Society to help other animals find homes.

Profits from the business will partially go toward supporting the health and well-being of the cats living in the cafe, Hamilton said.

To meet health codes cats will be closed off from the kitchen, and will instead live in a separate area open to diners during business hours.

Hamilton said that the process of finding a building to house the cafe was difficult.

The couple initially considered opening in Morgantown, but settled on Fairmont because it was cheaper and closer to home.

For Hamilton, the biggest surprise in developing the business has been the outpouring of support he and Boyles have received surrounding their idea.

“We got way, way more support than we thought we would,” he said.

Hamilton said that between the cafe’s GoFundMe and new Facebook page, community support has been palpable.

As a cat lover, Hamilton said hopes the cafe can help people get to know cats better, and erase a long-standing stigma surrounding cats as pets that prevents many from getting adopted.

“I hope it’ll help people realize that cats are a lot more fun to hang out with and keep as pets,” he said.

Hamilton added that when he was young he was not a big cat fan, but that he came to love cats through working with them and raising two of his own, named BMO and Jake.

“Cats get overlooked,” he said. “I wish people would realize they’re good animals.”

Reach Jack Walker by email at [email protected].

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