Working at Harden Coffee in Campbellsville is a dream job for Campbellsville University junior Isaac Rogers.
“I remember being a kid and telling my mom that one day I would work there,” he said. “And when I was a freshman in college, I finally got the opportunity to start working there. My bosses are passionate about the coffee shop, and what it brings to our community. It shows in our work.”
Rogers’ main goal is to show his community hospitality and turn something like a morning coffee into a meaningful interaction.
“This job has taught me a lot,” Rogers said. “It has taught me that you can show people the love of Christ through any profession.”
According to owners Kendall and Justin Harden, they opened their coffee shop out of necessity. The Hardens and their two young children moved back to Campbellsville from Kansas City in 2008, and decided they wanted to plant their roots here.
According to Kendall Harden, she and her husband had grown accustomed to consuming “higher quality coffee” during their time living in Kansas City.
“We decided that if we were going to live here long-term, we should do what we could within our abilities to sow into ‘good coffee and culture’ … and Harden Coffee was born,” she said. “Our desire was for our space to be a ‘blank slate’ for art.”
In 2010, the Hardens opened a small coffee bar, and in 2014 they opened Harden Coffee on Main Street. Since its opening, Harden Coffee has faced several challenges, such as product sourcing and staffing. Being in such a small city, paired with the nature of their business, they must get very creative with procuring product and ingredients.
“We don’t advertise this much but Harden Coffee is very health conscious,” Kendall Harden said. “We source mostly organic coffees to roast, we make all our own syrups and drinks from pure ingredients, we avoid chemicals and preservatives with passion. We take much pride in how ‘clean’ our processes and products are.”
They also face challenges with staffing.
“We have to start from the ground up with training and skills, especially barista skills,” she said. “It’s rare that we have applicants with established espresso training and food management skills. With this being our reality, we have found unique ways to attain our needs and develop extensive training protocol for our team.”
Kendall Harden believes Harden Coffee plays an important role in the community.
“The people are the point, the culinary aspect is a bonus,” she said. “Our goal is to stay connected with customers through spontaneous conversation, excellent service and community engagement.”
Campbellsville University (CU) senior Janna Smith said she usually goes to Harden Coffee once every two weeks in the morning with her friend Kennedy Chesser to study.
“I really like the environment of the shop and the people that are really nice,” Smith said. “It’s a nice, very personable coffee shop.”
CU sophomore Corentin Hue, from France, has had a great experience as well. He started going to Harden Coffee last year, and he’s been going there regularly ever since.
“I love going to Harden to read my Bible,” Hue said. “The small, friendly environment is an awesome place to read. Since last year, I’ve been going there every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday just to read and enjoy great coffee and some great people around me regularly.”
Hue said he found out about Harden Coffee through his friends.
“At first it was just to get a good coffee and a little space outside of campus to lock in a little more on my homework, but then I really found a great community,” he said.
According to Hue, Harden Coffee has a very loving atmosphere.
“Everybody wants you to have a good time and to enjoy your coffee,” he said. “People even often come and talk to you and share the Bible.”
Hue traveled to Cincinnati recently, and he was told it was the “city of coffee shops.”
“I had my expectations very high because of Harden Coffee, but I didn’t find a single one that brought me the same atmosphere I find in Harden,” he said. “I’ve traveled all around the world as I’m an international student and this is probably the best coffee shop I’ve ever been.”
Harden Coffee is located 202 East Main Street in Campbellsville. For more information, call 270-283-4098 or visit www.hardencoffee.com.
