Library, museum cafe owners take their customers seriously

The two entrepreneurs founded the business five years ago.
By SEAN BARRON
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
POLAND -- Bring together two business owners -- both of whom have many years' worth of experience in the restaurant industry -- throw in their ability to be creative, flexible and adaptable, and you have the ingredients for a successful enterprise.
It also doesn't hurt to have attention to customer service as your No. 1 priority.
"We take people seriously, whether they're here for a cup of coffee or a reception," said Lynn Porch, one of the owners of Thymely Events Inc., a local corporation that operates three area cafes.
That has been one of the main philosophies behind the growth of Thymely Events since its inception five years ago, says Porch, who also worked in the restaurant industry in her native Pittsburgh.
Thymely Events has grown over the years and now owns Chapters Cafes in the Poland and Austintown branches of the Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County as well as Winslow's Cafe, part of the Butler Institute of American Art.
Thymely Events was selected after bids were solicited for the Poland cafe, which opened in 2001.
Upon hearing that the Austintown library and the Butler were planning to expand, the Thymely Events owners placed bids and were chosen to run cafes there as well.
Growing business
What started as a small business that employed five now has 45 part- and full-time local workers. That number increases in the summer when Thymely Events hires Youngstown State University students to help with that busy time of year.
For several years Porch and Thymely Events' other owner, Claudia Wheland, ran their own restaurant. Now, Wheland mainly handles food preparation, developing menus and other related duties for Thymely Events, while Porch takes care of baking and catering, the other arms of the company's expansion.
The business offers catering for bridal and baby showers, baptisms, corporate events, luncheons and funerals, and can do two to 15 events in one day during the summer, Porch noted. The business also is on hand for special occasions and events at Fellows Riverside Gardens in Mill Creek MetroPark, Stambaugh Auditorium and the Butler.
To accompany the growth, a catering manager was hired about nine months ago.
Porch said she sees added potential growth for Thymely Events as the library branches grow.
Close ties
Her business and the library system have a close relationship. Chapters and Winslow's give to the library and the Butler 6 percent of their sales, and the libraries often allow special occasions in their meeting rooms to be catered, Porch said.
Another asset to Thymely Events' success and growth is its philosophy of "not [being] in this for the money, but for the people," Porch says. Also part of the success mix is Porch's and Wheland's having few inhibitions about trying something different, Porch says.
For example, the cafes make specialty items during the Christmas season such as mini-muffin dishes shaped like Christmas trees and candy cane-shaped kolachi. Creativity and a desire to please, however, aren't restricted to certain times of the year, Porch said.
"When we do something, we're making someone happy," she said. "We try to be unique through the year and every year we keep growing and growing."