COVID & COFFEE: Brothers brewing up a new kind of business
Stonewall – Dixon Brothers, Navan
One of the newest arrivals on the scene is Stonewall Coffee run by the Dixon brothers Evan, Kyle, Jack and Reese, who named their business in honour of their late grandfather Paddy 'Stonewall' Dixon who won an All-Ireland medal with Meath in 1949. The brothers opened the coffee shop in the Kilcarn part of Navan last week.
“It was something that had been on our radar”, said Evan who also works for Leinster Rugby as a coaching development officer but was temporarily out of work due to Covid restrictions.
“We saw how going for walks and coffee became the new normal during the pandemic and how other mobile coffee places were doing well so we decided to give it a go.”
After buying a rundown trailer online Evan and his father undertook the arduous task of converting it into a premise fit for selling coffee out of.
“We bought a trailer on Donedeal at the start of February, which was falling apart and myself and my dad converted it. We completely underestimated how much work it would take, the trailer only had a four wheels, floor and walls. It took nearly three and-a-half weeks to finish it but it was over two weeks before you could see if any work was done. We did save a lot of money by doing it ourselves but it took a lot of time and effort.”
As with any new business location is key and Stonewall is no different. The shop is located in Navan Rugby Club, where Evan also coaches some of the club’s teams on weekends but moves to the nearby tennis club during the week.
“There’s a primary school on the rugby club premises and we’re not allowed to operate on school grounds during the week so we moved to the tennis club midweek which is only a short walk away and then we move back to the rugby grounds on the weekend”. As the weather improves Evan hopes they will be able to sell to people out walking in the area.
“We’re in a good part of the town there’s a lot of houses nearby and the rugby club recently opened up its walkway to the public which will bring more foot traffic to the area. We’re hoping if the coffee is good enough people will walk up towards us. While the business opened up in the Covid era Evan is conscious that it is coming to an end in the coming months and has begun to make plans for when restrictions are lifted.
“We have another trailer purchased and hope to use it for events such as weddings, 21st parties etc. once things open up again. But that’s a while away yet so our main aim is to focus on the trailer we have running now and get a bit of money coming in.”