Lyde looks to bring coffee house uptown

County native hopes to help restore “a hometown feel” 

By Kevin Spradlin
PeeDeePost.com

Lillie Lyde has a thing for memories.

The 46-year-old Richmond County native figures there’s no better place to talk about those memories, and perhaps form a few new ones, than over a cup of joe. Lyde (nee Goodwin), said Wednesday she plans to open a gourmet coffee house with her two daughters in three to six months. She spent part of Wednesday afternoon meeting with a building owner near the Richmond County courthouse to discuss specifics.

Lillie Lyde and her daughter Elizabeth, left, are two of a three-person team that plans to bring a gourmet coffee house to Rockingham.

Lillie Lyde and her daughter Elizabeth, left, are two of a three-person team that plans to bring a gourmet coffee house to Rockingham.

Her goal is to bring to Rockingham “a new, upscale, relaxed atmosphere coffee house,” Lyde said.

A working name is Top of the Morning Cafe, a name offered by husband Robert. The idea for the coffee house came when daughter Elizabeth, 18, visited her brother in South Dakota. While there, “she worked at a little place out there. A gourmet coffee house. It was very small, but they had great coffee, pastries, sandwiches. It’s done really well.”

With the help of Elizabeth and her older daughter, Amanda Currie, 24, Lyde said she hopes to duplicate that success in Rockingham.

“It’s something I have a passion for,” Lyde said. “I love drinking coffee myself. I’ve gotten into gourmet coffee. Some of them are just to die for.”

Lyde said she hopes to help save people the drive to Moore County for the beverage.

“I figured, what the heck? Why can’t I bring one here and make it work?”

Though no permit applications have been filed with the city or at the health department — Lyde said she needs to secure the premises first — progress is ongoing.

“I’ve found the perfect building,” Lyde said. “It’s the perfect spot. It has all the demographics. It’s just right on the money.”

But like any good business plan, she has some built-in flexibility.

“There are several other buildings that we have looked at,” Lyde said. “If this one does not pan out,” it doesn’t mean the gourmet coffee house concept becomes lukewarm.

Along with offering a great product, Lyde said she wants to be a part of the revitalization of downtown Rockingham. She’s already spoken with Susan Kelly, of the Rockingham Downtown Corporation, to seek guidance and begin networking.

“Rockingham has went downhill,” Lyde said. “Back in the day, uptown Rockingham was super busy. Everything had a very nice shop in it. I would love to see uptown Rockingham just as beautiful as it used to be, where people are walking the streets, going in and out of those really nice shops.”

Lyde has experience in the business world as a purchasing agent for a chemical company. She said her role in that position included inventory, “making sure they had everything they needed to put out a product.”

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