Missoula Coffee Staple Enters New Era With Employee Owners

Chances are, if you’ve lived in Missoula for any amount of time, you have heard the name of Drum Coffee. Maybe it was your morning stop on the way to work. Or maybe you just dug the vibe of a shop put together by a guy who’d actually played drums for a living.

This week, Drum Coffee’s owners, John and Jenna Wicks, said they are stepping aside. One location is closing. One is remaining open but with a new owner. And it all feels like one of those moments where Missoula takes a breath and thinks, "Well, things are changing again."

A Business That Was Music And Missoula

John Wicks is not just a coffee shop owner. He's a professional musician, and he plays drums for Fitz and the Tantrums. Drum Coffee emerged from that world. The branding. The vibe. The playlists. It came from a man who had dedicated years to the road, to studios, and making a life of music before finding a place among everything else in Missoula.

And now he is passing it on.

The store on South Avenue will close in January and be sold. But one roastery, the Broadway location, will remain open, and three longtime employees will take over. Ben Gaude. Matilda Guille. Thomas Elsen. Folks who know the shop, know the customers and know the rhythm of the place better than anyone.

The End Of Something And The Beginning of Another

Drum Coffee was incorporated into Missoula’s daily grind, just like the Clark Fork or a Malfunction Junction. But there is something cool about what John and Jenna are doing. They are not handing over to a chain. They are not shutting the doors and walking away. They are giving the sticks to everyone who helped build the beat.

The Wicks say they want more time with their kids in the coming years. Fair. And now the shop enters its next act with a new set of owners.